Bring a good camera. Bighorn Sheep on Wild Horse Island, Montana.JPG, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0, https://www.flickr.com/photos/aneil4lom/34929133634/in/dateposted-public/, https://flickr.com/photos/72547033@N06/34929133634, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bighorn_Sheep_on_Wild_Horse_Island,_Montana.JPG. Subscribe now to continue reading this article. Sign in. The origin of the island’s name continues to be debated, but the name “Wild Horse Island” first appeared in the 1854 journal of early explorer John Mullan. 2.4k. We acknowledge up front that this is not a traditional hunting story—in fact, this is not a hunting tale at all, but rather a conservation success story based on a vision, the investment for future generations, and persistence in doing the right thing for Montana’s natural resources. 5. -- Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials ran routine health evaluations on bighorn sheep on Wild Horse Island on Flathead Lake on Feb. 3 and 4. The objective of the capture project on Wild Horse Island is to keep the bighorn sheep population in line with available habitat. The importance of bighorn sheep to Native Americans and early western explorers is well documented. The reason for a smile, from O'Connor or from anyone else who was present, was the declaration of a new Boone and Crockett Club (www.boone-crockett.org) world record bighorn ram, a massive sheep from Montana's Wild Horse Island State Park. POLSON — A Dayton resident has been banned from Wild Horse Island, and lost his hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for three years, for multiple violations of Montana Fish, Wildlife Wild Horse Island is a favorite place to day-hike and photograph wildlife like mule deer, Rock Mountain Bighorn sheep and of course, the infamous wild horses. While some jurisdictions were still assessing population declines, others, such as Montana, were initiating more aggressive restoration programs. Wednesday morning, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks began moving Bighorn Sheep from Wild Horse Island. Three of the top five Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep recorded by the Boone and Crockett Club over the last three years have come from a single, small area in Montana, the geographic address for this story. Fortunately, Wild Horse Island provides all of these. Wild Horse Island has been a landmark since the Kootenai Indians were reported to have used it to pasture horses to keep them from being stolen by other tribes. Wild Horse Island State Park: Wonderful Place to view wild Bighorn Sheep - See 94 traveler reviews, 89 candid photos, and great deals for Kalispell, MT, at Tripadvisor. Wild Horse Island State Park is about 3.4 square miles and his home to about 100 wild sheep along with mule deer, bald eagles, falcons other birds and a few wild horses. {{Information |Description ={{en|1=Two male mountain goats grazing on Wild Horse Island in Montana.}} Last week, the Boone and Crockett Club (B&C) confirmed that the bighorn sheep ram that died of natural causes on Wild Horse Island in Montana is a new pending world record. Wild Horse Island, near the south end of Flathead Lake, is home to a descendent herd of Spanish mustangs, mule deer and over 200 bighorn sheep. Bring a good camera. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. Hunting laws in the form of regulated harvest and seasonal restrictions or closures were implemented in most U.S. and Canadian jurisdictions, including Montana. Bighorn SheepDesert SheepDall's SheepStone's Sheep, "The wildlife and its habitat cannot speak. We provide affordable private cruises to Wild Horse Island, a primitive State Park that has bighorn sheep, full curl rams, trophy mule deer buck herd, eagles, osprey, and a few wild horses. “The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF), now based in Bozeman, Montana is thrilled that our headquarters state is home to the potential World’s Record bighorn sheep,” stated Gray N. Thornton, WSF’s president and CEO. Wild Horse Island State Park: Wonderful Place to view wild Bighorn Sheep - See 89 traveler reviews, 84 candid photos, and great deals for Kalispell, MT, at Tripadvisor. Where Hunting Happens, Conservation Happens™. Time and genetics are also two factors in producing such animals. The problem is that the island is only accessible by boat (as most islands are), and most visitors don’t have a boat or know the best places to tie-up or lay anchor. Wild Horse Island is a favorite place to day-hike and photograph wildlife like mule deer, Rock Mountain Bighorn sheep and of course, the infamous wild horses. BIG ARM - It took a day longer than initially planned, and came with an unfortunate fatality, but the burgeoning bighorn sheep population on Wild Horse Island was reduced by So we must and we will. ", Position Statement on Big Game Records and Hunting, North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. The scientific basis for informed wildlife management decisions, which we now recognize as one of the seven pillars of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, was in its infancy. Wild Horse Island is home to roughly 100 bighorn sheep and its 2,163 acres of prairie grasses make it the perfect habitat for bighorn sheep to thrive and grow, which seems to be the case for these particular sheep. • This hunt is designated for the 2019-2020 season or the 2020-2021 season to be arranged with the outfitter. WILD HORSE ISLAND, Mont. A bighorn sheep carcass discovered on Wild Horse Island State Park in the fall of 2016 is the reigning world record holder — and it is continuing to draw attention to the park from a variety of visitors, including the bighorn conservation community. Adding water sources and trails (horses) c. Opening up the Sorensen extension and USFS lands (horses) 6. Populating the island with Big Horn Sheep, Mountain Goats, Wild Horses, Osprey, Eagles, and an Eight Point Buck Deer, the Island is just as it was 100 years ago. Approximately 2,160 acres in size, bighorn numbers on the island are currently estimated at around 130 animals, with an incredible population density estimate of one bighorn sheep per 16.6 acres. “Wild Horse Island is a unique state park that provides world-class wildlife viewing opportunities for the public. Tabish says the skull was collected in 2016 from Wild Horse Island State Park on Flathead Lake. Wild Horse Island is home to roughly 100 bighorn sheep and its 2,163 acres of prairie grasses make it the perfect habitat for bighorn sheep to thrive and grow, which seems to be the case for these particular sheep. Wild Horse Island State Park, Kalispell Picture: Rocky Mountain Big Horn Sheep - Check out Tripadvisor members' 1,567 candid photos and videos. Those responsible include MFWP staff, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation, volunteers, conservation organizations such as The Nature Conservancy, the Montana Wild Sheep Foundation, the Wild Sheep Foundation, and federal agencies including the Natural Resource Conservation Service. Desert Bighorn Sheep Auction Hunt Details •This is a eight-day (six days of hunting), fully guided hunt on Carmen Island, South Baja, Mexico. David Suda of Grafton, N.D., with the North Dakota record bighorn ram he shot Friday, Oct. 30, the opening day of North Dakota's bighorn sheep season. In addition, we offer our respect and heartily commend those responsible for restoring and managing bighorn sheep and their habitat on Wild Horse Island. Suda was one of five North Dakota hunters to dra Wild Horse Island State Park, Kalispell Picture: Bighorn Sheep - Check out Tripadvisor members' 1,652 candid photos and videos. According to a Facebook post from Flathead Lake State Park, A total of 13 FWP workers assisted in the process, including one veterinarian and helicopter crew of three people. Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials plan to transplant the sheep from Wild Horse Island on Flathead Lake to the Tendoy Mountains near Lima, the Independent Record reported. The island is a favorite of hikers, boaters and swimmers. CC BY-SA 2.0 The first conservation law in Montana passed in 1869, and in 1872, the hunting season for bighorn sheep and a few other species was closed February 1 to August 15 each year. WILD HORSE ISLAND, Mont. Create maps of unused bighorn sheep and wild horse habitat. Trapping and transplanting activities to manage the herd are typically initiated when the population reaches 100 animals. Bighorn Sheep and more… Flathead Lake’s Wild Horse Island is rich in wildlife that includes more than just the infamous wild horses. -- Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials ran routine health evaluations on bighorn sheep on Wild Horse Island on Flathead Lake on Feb. 3 and 4. Enjoy. From a founder population of only 10 animals, 561 total bighorn sheep have been translocated from Wild Horse Island, including to 18 other sites in Montana (433) and to two other western states (73). The park is noted for its wildlife including bighorn sheep, mule deer, songbirds, waterfowl, bald eagles, and falcons, as well as five wild horses. Unregulated harvest, disease, forage competition with domestic, feral, or exotic livestock, and human encroachment, which exacerbated an already naturally fragmented distribution, have been implicated in the decline of bighorn sheep throughout the west. “A set of bighorn sheep horns that Filipek had previously taken from Wild Horse Island were seized,” Fraley said. We commend the State Park and Wildlife Division staff of MFWP and cooperating partners in doing what is best for the resource and the habitat in which they live. In 2014, the population was between 160-200 sheep, and Montana Fish, Wildlife, & Parks worked to relocate 59 sheep to other herds in Northwest Montana. Use the model to identify potential habitat for both species that could be created by: a. Manipulating vegetation types (sheep) b. The target population for the island is about 100 sheep, but the population had reached 160-200 sheep before the capture operation. KALISPELL, Mont. Wild Horse Island, Montana. Today, annual visitation at Wild Horse Island State Park averages between 15,000 to 20,000 people. Jennifer Ramsey and Neil Anderson of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks examine a bighorn sheep after it was captured on Flathead Lake's Wild Horse Island and … Wild Horse Island State Park: Wonderful Place to view wild Bighorn Sheep - See 89 traveler reviews, 84 candid photos, and great deals for Kalispell, MT, at Tripadvisor. The skulls of bighorn rams are often removed by park staff to discourage illegal horn harvesting. “The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF), now based in Bozeman, Montana is thrilled that our headquarters state is home to the potential World Record bighorn sheep,” stated Gray N. Thornton, WSF’s President and CEO. : You are free: to share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work; to remix – to adapt the work; Under the following conditions: attribution – You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. Additional translocations to Wild Horse Island occurred in 1944, with the movement of six animals from the Sun River herd in Teton County, and concluded in 1987 with the transplant of two animals from Ural-Tweed in Lincoln County. Funding for management activities is derived from Montana State Parks earned revenue, which includes light vehicle registration fees and state park user fees. Wild sheep translocations began in 1922 with the capture of 20 bighorns in Alberta, Canada. by Steve Collins December 13, 2020. Never did see a horse, but I did see this Big Horn Sheep Close. Federal aid supports bighorn sheep population monitoring and transplants from the park, which is conducted by Wildlife Division personnel. Bighorn Sheep and more… Flathead Lake’s Wild Horse Island is rich in wildlife that includes more than just the infamous wild horses.. Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, mule deer and other animals live on the island year round. Twelve were subsequently released on the National Bison Range near Moiese, Montana, and eight animals were released at Custer State Park, South Dakota. “The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF), now based in Bozeman, Montana is thrilled that our headquarters state is home to the potential World’s Record bighorn sheep,” stated Gray N. Thornton, WSF’s president and CEO. While not a traditional hunting narrative in itself, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks’ (MFWP) Wild Horse Island State Park is responsible for countless other hunting stories throughout the great state of Montana and a number of other states. Wild Horse Island is home to roughly 100 bighorn sheep and its 2,163 acres of prairie grasses make it the perfect habitat for bighorn sheep to thrive and grow, which seems to be the case for these particular sheep. Wild Horse Island State Park, Kalispell Picture: Bighorn Sheep - Check out Tripadvisor members' 1,660 candid photos and videos. For centuries, the Salish-Kootenai used the island, approximately 2,164 acres (876 ha) in size, in order to pasture horses and keep them from being stolen by other tribes. “The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF), now based in Bozeman, Montana is thrilled that our headquarters state is home to the potential World Record bighorn sheep,” stated Gray N. Thornton, WSF’s President and CEO. Wild Horse Island State Park, Kalispell Picture: Bighorn Sheep - Check out Tripadvisor members' 1,612 candid photos and videos. Most importantly, read this as a testament of what can be achieved through strong partnerships; what can be achieved by those willing to work together toward a common goal. HELENA, Mont. They charge at each other, rear-ing up onto their hind legs and lowering their heads just before colliding at speeds up to 20 miles per hour. Unlimited access to articles, reviews and stories from NZ’s best hunting magazine on our website. For centuries, the Salish-Kootenai tribe used the island, 2,164 acres (8.76 km) in size, in order to pasture horses and keep them from being stolen by other tribes. Wild Horse Island State Park: Wonderful Place to view wild Bighorn Sheep - See 90 traveler reviews, 84 candid photos, and great deals for Kalispell, MT, at Tripadvisor. Wild Horse Island State Park is about 3.4 square miles (8.7 square kilometers) and his home to about 100 wild sheep along with mule deer, bald eagles, falcons other birds and a few wild horses. Bighorn Sheep and Wild Horses from page 24 Rams battle to prove dominance and to secure a chance to mate. Wild Horse Island has yielded some of the largest Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep in recorded history. Wild Horse Island, Montana. Bighorn sheep have over 2100 wild acres of state park to roam at Wild Horse Island but park managers have less than $15,000 a year to protect and maintain the park. CRAWFORD, Neb. (AP) — Montana wildlife officials plan to restore bighorn sheep to a southwestern Montana mountain range where the animals had been killed off due to disease. Already have an account? Roosevelt's ElkTule Elk, Mule Deer - TypicalMule Deer - Non-typicalColumbia Blacktail Deer - TypicalColumbia Blacktail Deer - Non-typicalSitka Blacktail Deer - TypicalSitka Blacktail Deer - Non-typical, Whitetail Deer - TypicalWhitetail Deer - Non-TypicalCoues' Whitetail Deer - TypicalCoues' Whitetail Deer - Non-typical, Canada MooseAlaska-Yukon MooseShiras' Moose, Mountain CaribouWoodland CaribouBarren Ground CaribouCentral Canada Barren Ground CaribouQuebec-Labrador Caribou, PronghornBisonRocky Mountain GoatMusk Ox - Tie, New! In addition to the quality habitat of Wild Horse Island, much of the success of the bighorn sheep program can be attributed to the diversity of partnerships, funding mechanisms, and resource management strategies. From a founder population of only 10 animals, 561 total bighorn sheep have been translocated from Wild Horse Island, including to 18 other sites in Montana (433) and to two other western states (73). – Nebraska’s bighorn sheep hunting season ended Friday afternoon, Dec. 4, as the state’s only permit holder found success at Fort Robinson State Park in the Pine Ridge. Since the initial transplants, 172 separate Montana operations have resulted in the translocation of over 3,000 bighorn sheep including 28 imports from other states to Montana; 2,323 within Montana; and 694 exports from Montana to 8 other western states. Consistent with the time-revered tradition of B&C, we honor these animals and the habitat in which they spent their lives. Wild Horse Island State Park Wild Horse Island is the largest Island in Flathead Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Montana. Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, mule deer and other animals live on the island year round. Wild Horse Island is the largest island on Flathead Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Montana. Walk the island, shoreline or rolling hills for spectacular views of nature. The area became a state park in 1977-78 and was acquired through cooperative efforts of The Nature Conservancy, private landowner Bourke McDonald, and MFWP. A bighorn sheep skull recovered on Montana’s Wild Horse Island State Park is shown at FWP regional headquarters in Kalispell, Montana, on Feb. 9. Located in northwestern Montana, Wild Horse Island sits just off the western shore of Flathead Lake, the largest natural freshwater lake west of the Mississippi at approximately 190 square miles. English:Two male bighorn sheep grazing on Wild Horse Island in Montana. The large head was found in the fall of 2016 on Wild Horse Island, in Flathead Lake, Montana. Wild Horse Island is a famous hiking and wildlife photography destination open to the public. As a result, early success in restoring bighorns to their former numbers and distribution both outside and inside Montana was limited. It’s the largest island on Flathead and one of … Posted by u/[deleted] 1 month ago. However, wildlife agency resources in the form of finances and personnel were severely limited. 2.4k. The success story of Wild Horse Island continues to benefit wild sheep and hunters in Montana and other western states. One of six state park units on Flathead Lake, Wild Horse Island is a world-class wildlife viewing destination that provides visitors spectacular glimpses of bighorn sheep, mule deer, songbirds, waterfowl, bald eagles, and falcons, as well as wild horses. Found between 2015 and 2018, these three winter-killed, pick-up heads were officially scored, entered, and accepted by B&C at 205-2/8, 209, and 216-3/8, a new World’s Record. Day-use only is permitted, and there are other rules … We offer picnics, hikes, and viewing of wildlife. By the 1930s, bighorn sheep had been reduced to small, isolated populations scattered throughout western Montana. Twilight and moonlight cruises can include hors d’oeuvres or stops at excellent waterfront restaurants for dinner. Wild Horse Island, Montana. Later, in 1889, the first state laws set the open season on bighorn sheep from September 15 to December 31. A group of bighorn lambs on Wild Horse Island watch as visitors take pictures during a tour Wednesday. SCORE: 216 4/8LOCATION: Lake County, MontanaHUNTER: Picked UpOWNER: Montana Dept. Financial support for wildlife agencies came in 1937 with passage of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (the Pittman-Robertson Act), which imposed an 11% federal excise tax on hunting equipment and firearms sold in the U.S. Funds were apportioned to individual states exclusively for the management and restoration of wildlife resources and habitats. (AP) — Montana wildlife officials plan to restore bighorn sheep to a southwestern Montana mountain range where the animals had been killed off due to disease. Original file ‎(3,910 × 1,860 pixels, file size: 2.59 MB, MIME type: image/jpeg), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0 Populating the island with Big Horn Sheep, Mountain Goats, Wild Horses, Osprey, Eagles, and an Eight Point Buck Deer, the Island is just as it was 100 years ago. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 BIG ARM - It took a day longer than initially planned, and came with an unfortunate fatality, but the burgeoning bighorn sheep population on Wild Horse Island was reduced by Reliable population estimates of bighorn sheep in North America prior to the 1800s are not available, but numbers in the hundreds of thousands have been reported. Wild Horse Island continues to serve as one of the primary resources for bighorn sheep reintroductions in Montana and other western states. Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. All three skulls had a green score of over 200” and Boone and Crockett (B&C) plan to measure and rank the skulls once the 60 day drying period is over. Ninety-nine percent of Wild Horse, a 2,164-acre island in Flathead Lake, is a primitive state park. The following pages on the English Wikipedia use this file (pages on other projects are not listed): (3,910 × 1,860 pixels, file size: 2.59 MB, MIME type: Commons is a freely licensed media file repository. Premium article. Add a one-line explanation of what this file represents. About the same time, strong partnerships began to form between wildlife agencies, sportsmen, landowners and others committed to wild sheep and the lands they occupied, providing a critical coalition of support for restoration efforts. Wild Horse Island hosts a score of other wildlife such as mule deer, a variety of birds (such as songbirds, waterfowl, bald eagles, and falcons), a few wild horses, and an occasional mountain lion and grizzly bear. Never did see a horse, but I did see this Big Horn Sheep … Similar to other western states, Montana could not escape the swift decline in bighorn numbers and population extirpations that occurred in some areas following western settlement. of Fish, Wildlife & ParksDATE: 2016, KEY MEASUREMENTS:Length of horn: Right 48 3/8 - Left 49 6/8, Circumference of base: Right 16 3/8 - Left 16 4/8. Wild Horse Island is a famous hiking and wildlife photography destination open to the public. (AP) — A bighorn ram that spent its life on Wild Horse Island State Park in Montana looks to be a world record bighorn sheep, the Boone & Crockett Club said. FWP surveys have indicated the population on Wild Horse Island has grown to between 130 and 150 sheep. The three Wild Horse Island bighorn sheep recognized in the 30th Big Game Awards Program are owned by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks and received Certificates of Merit. Wild Horse Island State Park, Kalispell Picture: Bighorn Sheep - Check out Tripadvisor members' 1,701 candid photos and videos. According to Mullan, a local tribal member swam his horses over to the island to protect them from rival tribes. For centuries, the Salish-Kootenai tribe used the island, 2,164 acres (8.76 km) in size, in order to pasture horses and keep them from being stolen by other tribes. Flash did not fire, compulsory flash suppression. If the file has been modified from its original state, some details may not fully reflect the modified file. Initial and subsequent efforts focused on protection of wild sheep and their habitat. Apparently it died of natural causes at approximately nine years old, which is not really old as far as bighorns go. This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create or digitize it. Walk the island, shoreline or rolling hills for spectacular views of nature. Producing quality animals such as those described above requires a suitable habitat that offers adequate food and water, in addition to a topography that provides important sources of cover for bedding, lambing, and escape terrain. Twenty of the sheep … As O'Connor wrote in his classic 1974 book, Sheep and Sheep Hunting, this ram was all horns and then some. Wild Horse Island State Park is managed by the MFWP State Park Division staff, utilizing paid and volunteer personnel, whereas the bighorn sheep program is managed by wildlife professionals of the MFWP Wildlife Division. Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials plan to transplant the sheep from Wild Horse Island on Flathead Lake to the Tendoy Mountains near Lima, the Independent Record reported. Wild Horse Island is within the boundaries of the Flathead Reservation of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation, which was created under the 1855 Hellgate Treaty. Understanding the history of bighorn sheep throughout the west and in Montana is vital to understanding why Wild Horse Island is special. Michael Filipek accepted a plea bargain and pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing bighorn sheep horns that came from Wild Horse, and to illegally killing a bobcat and mountain lion. From just $ 39.00 per year you will receive: See offers. HELENA, Mont. Wild Horse Island, Montana. Despite these restrictions, the state-wide bighorn sheep hunting season was eventually closed in 1915. The problem is that the island is only accessible by boat (as most islands are), and most visitors don’t have a … Wild Horse Island, near the south end of Flathead Lake, is home to a descendent herd of Spanish mustangs, mule deer and over 200 bighorn sheep. The ram’s skull, which was discovered by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (MFWP) officials last year along with two others, was officially scored at 216 3/8" B&C. Never did see a horse, but I did see this Big Horn Sheep Close. truetrue. David Suda of Grafton, N.D., with the North Dakota record bighorn ram he shot Friday, Oct. 30, the opening day of North Dakota's bighorn sheep season. Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Management on Wild Horse Island, Montana, USA. Historically, distribution of bighorn sheep extended southward from central British Columbia and Alberta, Canada to northern Mexico, and from the Pacific eastward to the western areas of the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Texas. This is a common practice at Wild Horse Island State Park. For centuries, ... Bighorn Sheep, for example, are managed at around 100 sheep. Among those was the first in-state translocation to Wild Horse Island, which occurred in 1939 with the translocation of two animals from Montana’s Mission Mountains in Lake County. Black BearGrizzly BearAlaska Brown BearPolar BearJaguarCougar, American Elk - Typical American Elk - Non-typicalNEW! Wild Horse Island continues to serve as one of the primary resources for bighorn sheep reintroductions in Montana and other western states. Wild Horse Island is the largest island on Flathead Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Montana. It’s illegal to possess bighorn sheep skulls and horns, so wildlife officials regularly remove deceased rams from the island which is known for its bighorn sheep population. Big Arm State Park to the south is the primary launching point to access Wild Horse Island. Suda was one of five North Dakota hunters to dra Posted by u/[deleted] 1 month ago. Wild Horse Island State Park, Kalispell Picture: Rocky Mountain Big Horn Sheep - Check out Tripadvisor members' 1,536 candid photos and videos. Appraised at $3.5 million, the McDonald family donated half the value, with the remaining $1.75 million provided through the government Land and Water Conservation Fund. Wild Horse Island is a famous hiking and wildlife photography destination open to the public. In 2018, a new world-record bighorn sheep was announced. BIG GAME – Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks captured about 40 bighorn sheep from Wildhorse Island on Flathead Lake recently for transplant to other areas in the state. Following western settlement, numbers declined rapidly and bighorn sheep were extirpated from much of their historic range. According to a Facebook post from Flathead Lake State Park, A total of 13 FWP workers assisted in the process, including one veterinarian and helicopter crew of three people. 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