chase_christopher Report post Posted March 25, 2015 Here is the video of our recent trip to Texas, hope you enjoy. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KidBowHunter Report post Posted March 26, 2015 Sweet vid! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DesertBull Report post Posted March 26, 2015 Very nice. Hoping to draw a NM tag this year. The Most underrated hunt in the US, IMO. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rcdinaz Report post Posted March 26, 2015 Awsome! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
4Falls Report post Posted March 26, 2015 Cool. Loved the line "if God meant for man to hunt sheep he'd have given him wings..." Well done. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GreyGhost85 Report post Posted March 26, 2015 I've hunted them twice, southeast of el paso on the mexican border. the ranch i hunted was garbage. saw 2 small groups in two separate week long trips. hands down the hardest hunt i have ever been on. i will go again, but pay a little more to hunt a ranch that has a few more runnin' around. they are an incredible animal. i have the bug for sure 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Big Browns Report post Posted March 27, 2015 Great video! Congrats!!! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billrquimby Report post Posted March 27, 2015 I had to attend a meeting at a large game ranch near San Antonio many years ago, so I arranged to borrow a ranch rifle and hunt an aoudad and a blackbuck while I was there. After picking us up at the airport, the owner took our group out in his zebra-striped Jeep for a tour of his place. Every gate opened with a remote control device, and every time we entered a new pasture, critters from all over the world -- including aoudad and blackbuck -- came running up to us. When I asked, I learned the animals were fed supplemental goodies from that vehicle. I decided not to hunt there. It was my only experience with either animal. I would have liked to have hunted them free-range, where the aoudad is a great trophy, but I waited until I was too old to hunt them. -- Bill Quimby 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tres Report post Posted March 27, 2015 I guarantee that Aoudad or some call Barbary sheep won't be on your favorite game meat list. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billrquimby Report post Posted March 27, 2015 You may be interested in what the SCI record book says about the aoudad in its native North Africa: Aoudad or Barbary Sheep - Africa Ammotragus lervia Arrui (Sp), Mähnenschaf (G), Mouflon à manchettes (F). Also called arui (Arabic). "Aoudad" seems to be an anglicization of its Tunisian name udad, and is a better name than Barbary sheep, because this animal is not really a sheep, and is found in many parts of northern Africa besides the former Barbary States or Barbary coastal region. The name "Barbary" originates from the Berber people, the chief inhabitants of the region. DESCRIPTION Shoulder height 36-40 inches (91-102 cm). Weight 200-250 pounds (90-115 kg). The aoudad is a medium-sized mountain animal that is biologically intermediate between a goat and a sheep. It is strongly built, with a short mane on neck and shoulders and long flowing hair on throat, chest, forelegs and tail. The general color is sandy brown, with underparts paler. As in goats, the aoudad has a scent gland beneath the tail, but does not have glands between the hoofs, in the groin area or in front of the eyes. Its chromosome number is 58, which is the same as in the urials, but is different from the 60 that is universal in true goats. Aoudads will hybridize with domestic goats, but not with sheep. The horns (both sexes) are sheep-like, being smooth, thick, triangular in section, and curved to form a semi-circle over the neck (supracervical horns). Females are much smaller than males and lighter in color, with less hair and much smaller horns. BEHAVIOR Usually lives in small family groups with an adult male. Old males and pregnant females may be solitary. Breeds mainly from September to November, but there is some activity throughout the year. A single young (often two) is born 5-1/2 months later. Newborns are able to get about in moderately rugged terrain almost at once, and are sexually mature at about 18 months. Females have been known to give birth twice in one year. Captives have lived as long as 20 years. Feeds early morning and late afternoon, resting in shade at midday. Eats grasses and foliage, sometimes standing on its hind legs to browse. Drinks water where available, otherwise obtains moisture from its food. Will descend from rocky terrain in evening to feed on plains. Eyesight and hearing are very good, sense of smell is good. Alert and wary. An agile climber and jumper. HABITAT Rocky mountains and desert hills. DISTRIBUTION Desert hills and mountains of northern Africa from Morocco and Mauritania eastward to Libya and Chad. Also in northeastern Sudan. Believed extinct in Egypt. Has been introduced on private ranches in South Africa, which is far outside its natural range, and also in Spain, Mexico and the United States. REMARKS The aoudad is a superb game animal that is difficult to hunt under almost any circumstances. TAXONOMIC NOTES Five extant subspecies are listed: angusi (Niger), blainei (Libya, Sudan), fasini (Libya, southern Tunisia), lervia (Morocco, northern Algeria, northern Tunisia), and sahariensis (western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali, southern Algeria, southern Libya, Chad). Their limits are unclear and we do not separate them. A sixth subspecies, ornatus, formerly occurred in Egypt, but is believed extinct. STATUS The aoudad may never have been common in northern Africa because of its limited habitat in the desert environment. In recent years, its numbers have been reduced in many places from overhunting by local people, to whom it represents an important source of meat, skins and other parts; however, it is believed to still occur in much of its original range. To the best of our knowledge, Chad and Sudan are the places it can be hunted today in its natural range. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chase_christopher Report post Posted March 28, 2015 I guarantee that Aoudad or some call Barbary sheep won't be on your favorite game meat list. I've killed a couple of Barbary rams in NM (I have learned that NM residents call them Barbary sheep, while Texans call them Aoudad. So when in TX..!). The meat isn't the highest on my favorite list, but that is mostly because of the tough texture, not the flavor. I don't mind it ground. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DesertBull Report post Posted March 28, 2015 Agreed. I've had worse deer meat than the one sheep I killed. Mine was a female though. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tres Report post Posted March 29, 2015 I guarantee that Aoudad or some call Barbary sheep won't be on your favorite game meat list. I've killed a couple of Barbary rams in NM (I have learned that NM residents call them Barbary sheep, while Texans call them Aoudad. So when in TX..!). The meat isn't the highest on my favorite list, but that is mostly because of the tough texture, not the flavor. I don't mind it ground. Exactly. It's very tough. Flavor was ok but really really tough 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billrquimby Report post Posted March 29, 2015 Years ago, when I started writing books for hunters who had taken trophy aoudad in Africa, I had to decide what to call the males they hunted. I finally settled on "billies" because the aoudad can hybridize with a goat, but not a sheep. Once made, that decision meant I had no choice but to call females "nannies" and youngsters "kids." --- Bill Quimby 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas110 Report post Posted March 29, 2015 id like to get the info on a quality place to hunt them for next season. is it best in texas or new mexico? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
