Radium, British Columbia – On a clear day last May, Kent Kebe once again removed the body of a bighorn sheep from Highway 93/95 after another fatal collision. The incident was far from isolated in this small community nestled in the Canadian Rockies. Residents have long regarded the animals as local icons, yet the same roads that bring visitors also claim many lives each year.
A Village Defined by Its Sheep
The bighorn sheep once numbered around 350 in the 1990s, drawn to roadside grasses and the nearby golf course that offered easy foraging. Numbers fell sharply to roughly 140 by 2022, with vehicle strikes contributing significantly alongside other pressures. The village center features a prominent steel sculpture of sheep horns spanning about 12 meters wide and 6 meters tall, while the Big Horn Cafe displays ram artwork and serves a signature “Headbanger tea.” These symbols reflect deep local attachment even as traffic continues to exact a toll.
Highways as Barriers to Movement
Roads, railways, and developed areas fragment habitat and disrupt the routes animals rely on for food, breeding, and seasonal travel. In the Rockies, this fragmentation adds to broader threats that already reduce wildlife populations. A 2025 review published in the journal Science highlighted the challenges of meeting global targets to protect 30 percent of land and ocean areas while maintaining functional connections for species. Without safe passages, isolated groups face higher risks of decline.
Building Connections Across the Landscape
Wildlife scientist Clayton Lamb, affiliated with Biodiversity Pathways and the University of British Columbia, helped draw attention to the Radium situation in 2022. His work underscores the tension between the sheep serving as community mascots and the traffic that endangers them. Plans for a larger wildlife corridor aim to restore movement across the Rocky Mountains region, linking habitats on both sides of the border. Such infrastructure would allow animals to cross safely rather than attempting dangerous dashes over pavement. The effort reflects a growing recognition that protecting individual populations requires addressing the linear barriers that slice through their range. For travelers on Highway 93/95, the changes could eventually mean fewer sudden stops and a landscape where wildlife and road users coexist more safely.
