Bighorn River river passes through Yellowtail Dam and Afterbay Dam. The river turns to the northeast and enters the Great Plains. At Hardin the river is joined by the Little Bighorn River. Approximately downriver from the Little Bighorn, in Big Horn County, the Bighorn empties into the Yellowstone. The Bighorn River has also been known as the Great Horn River, Le Corne and Iisaxpúatahcheeaashisee in the Apsáalooke language which translates to English as "Large Bighorn Sheep River". Bighorn River The Bighorn River is a tributary of the Yellowstone, approximately long, in the states of Wyoming and Montana in the western United States.
Desert bighorn sheep establish two desert areas in southwestern Arizona to help preserve the desert bighorn sheep: Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge and the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. In 1941, the San Andres National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico was added. Desert bighorn sheep populations have trended upward since the 1960s when their population was estimated at 6,700-8,100. The upward trend was caused by conservation measures, including habitat preservation. In 1980, desert bighorn sheep populations were estimated at 8,415-9,040. A state-by-state survey was conducted a few years later and estimated the overall US desert bighorn sheep population at 15,980. The 1993 estimate of