Alberta holds auction, bidder ponies up US$400,000 to hunt one bighorn sheep
EDMONTON — The right to hunt a single bighorn sheep, Alberta's official mammal, has netted the province US$400,000 at auction.
The Alberta government says it's a "record-setting" price and hopefully a sign of what's to come when seven more provincially issued special licences are auctioned next month at a hunting expo in Salt Lake City, Utah.
'Based on the recent record setting sale in Reno, Nev., for the 2025 Minister's Special Licence for bighorn sheep, our government is confident the province will see an increase in funding raised this year,' said Alexandru Cioban, Forestry and Parks Minister Todd Loewen's press secretary.
Minister's Special Licences grant hunters with the highest bid the opportunity to hunt year-round for one of the animals each licence is for.
Each licence is valid for one year.
The hunt must take place in designated wildlife management areas across the province that permit hunting for each animal, but seasonal rules in each area don't apply.
The licences are not limited to Albertans or even Canadians, though the province also issues similar licences each year for Alberta residents only. The Alberta resident licences are awarded through raffles rather than sold at auction, Cioban said.
The remaining 2025 licences up for auction in February are for hunting a cougar, pronghorn antelope, moose, elk, wild turkey and two species of deer.
Cioban said the 2024 licences for mule deer, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep and more sold for $1.2 million combined at auction and through raffles.
Last year's bighorn sheep licence was the most coveted, selling for US$320,000, while a licence for hunting a wild turkey fetched the least at US$4,750.
The 2024 mule deer licence was the second most expensive, selling for US$160,000, followed by US$55,000 for the elk licence and US$45,000 for the moose licence.
Cioban said the money raised through auction is given to the Alberta Professional Outfitters Society, which is responsible for licensing hunting guides on behalf of the government.
The society's website says it gives wildlife presentations in schools, provides grants for animal conservation projects such as population surveys, and offers post-secondary scholarships to fish and wildlife management students.
Funds raised through raffle, which over the past two years have been significantly less than auction sales, are given to the Alberta Conservation Association, Cioban said.
He said habitat enhancement, disease management in wild sheep and wildlife movement ecology studies were all examples of conservation projects the special licences have helped fund in the past.
"While the funds raised vary from year to year, the Minister's Special Licence program provides a steady flow of funding to conservation projects," he said.
Loewen flew to Germany on Tuesday to attend the Jagd and Hund Show, considered Europe's largest hunting exhibition, to promote the upcoming auction.
"I'm excited to promote our province as a 'must-see' destination for nature-based recreation,' Loewen said in a press release Monday.
The auction will take place Feb. 14 to 17.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 29, 2025.
Jack Farrell, The Canadian Press
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