Counting Sheep

One of the finest contemporary nature documentaries I've seen, Counting Sheep is ironically titled since one can literally count the remains of the endangered wild Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep. Approximately 100 bighorn were still surviving in 1998; the depletion of their numbers was hastened by manmade carelessness in the 19th and 20th centuries (primarily due to the introduction of domestic sheep, which carried diseases that killed off the bighorn). More recently, bighorn numbers were threatened by an unlikely environmental problem: their natural predator, the mountain lion, protected by endangered species status, could not be shot. A protracted process won the bighorn federal emergency endangered species status, trumping the rights of the mountain lions and thus allowing these big cats to be killed in cases where they were threatening the sheep. In the midst of this situation are biologist John Wehausen and mountain lion trackers Jeff and Vicki Davis, who've devoted their lives to finding some sort of balance in which bighorns and mountain lions can coexist without facing premature and violent demise. This compelling real-life adventure--filmed over an 11-year-period--is artfully framed by filmmaker Frank Green, whose camera gracefully captures both the stunning beauty of the Sierra Nevada peaks and the four-legged residents who dwell at 12,000 feet. An artistic triumph and a provocative dissection of conservation issues, this is highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)