Willmore Wilderness Park

Willmore Wilderness Park

Prepared by Ted Ritzer, May 2002

Willmore Wilderness Park Facts

• Established in April 1959

• Size: 4,597 square kilometres

• Trails: ~750 kilometres of trails

• Wildlife: Mountain Caribou, Moose, Elk,

Bighorn Sheep, Moutain Goats, Grizzly

Bear, Black Bear, Cougar, & Wolves

Access

• 3 Main Access Points:

• Rock Lake-93 unit campground, 5 km fromSE boundry of Willmore.

• Big Berland-18 unit campground, 8 kmeast of park, adjacent to the Berland River.

• Sulphur Gates-10 km north of GrandeCache off Hwy 40, no campground, stagingarea only.

46% of the use of Willmore is by equestrians

57% of the people that visit Willmore are from Alberta

Bighorn Ewes-female sheep

Bighorn Lamb

Lambs are born

Late May, early

June

Bighorn Biology

• Sheep stay in bandsled by old ewe, withmix of ewes, lambs &yearlings

• Rams over 3 yrs formtheir own bands inspring

• Rams rejoin ewes infall for the matingseason.

Bighorn Biology

• Bighorns are grazers,

feeding on grasses &

flowers, but they will

eat shrubs if they

have to

• Can live up to 14 yrs

• Predators: wolves,

coyotes, cougar &

golden eagle

Mountain Goats

Mountain Goat Biology

• Groups of nanniesand kids form duringthe summer

• Billy goats only jointhe females in the latefall for mating season

• They are betterclimbers thanMountain Sheep, andoccupy higher ground.

Mountain Goat Biology

• Can live to 14 yrs, like

Bighorn Sheep

• Are snip feeders, not

grazers

• Diet of grasses, sedges,

and rushes

• Predators: Cougars, &

Eagles, can attack on cliffs

• Usually safe from all else

if they can reach a cliff

Kids are born in

Late May to early

June

Willmore Wilderness Park

THE END

THE END

For further information on Alberta Parks and Protected Areas consult our web site at:

http://www.cd.gov.ab.ca/gateway

If you do not have access to the Internet, public access to the Internet

is provided by your local public library.