The Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC) filed a formal complaint with the Federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR) in Ensenada on May 22 over the alleged illegal killing of a bighorn sheep near Valle de la Trinidad. Military personnel from Sedena (the Mexican defense ministry) detained a group of individuals at a private ranch in possession of the dead animal.
The incident first came to light through social media posts before UABC took legal action. Valle de la Trinidad sits roughly 140 kilometers southeast of Ensenada along the Transpeninsular Highway, in rugged terrain that serves as prime bighorn sheep habitat.
Protected Species, Steep Penalties
The bighorn sheep, known locally as borrego cimarrón, is classified under Mexico’s NOM-059-SEMARNAT environmental standard as a species subject to special protection. Hunting one without federal authorization carries serious criminal penalties, including prison time and six-figure fines. Mexico’s federal wildlife law treats unauthorized killing of a protected species as an environmental crime prosecuted by the FGR, not by state authorities.
The species has been Baja California’s state symbol and UABC’s official mascot since 1996. That connection turned the poaching case into both a conservation matter and an institutional one for the university.
UABC’s Conservation Role
UABC operates the Proyecto Santuario Cimarrón, a reserve spanning more than 30,000 hectares dedicated to bighorn sheep conservation. The project is run in partnership with Fundación UABC. Researchers from the university’s School of Sciences in Ensenada have conducted aerial population surveys across thirteen mountain ranges in Baja California, most recently in November 2021.
Poaching remains one of the top threats to bighorn sheep populations in the state, alongside extensive ranching, mining, and habitat fragmentation. Community workshops held in nearby ejidos like Cordillera Molina and Matomí have identified frequent poaching on their lands, with local residents reporting that illegal hunters kill not just trophy rams but also females and lambs.
Community Response
UABC called on the broader Baja California community to support the species’ protection, describing the bighorn sheep as central to the region’s natural and cultural heritage. The university’s complaint to the FGR will determine whether formal charges are brought against the detained individuals.
The case was first reported by Jornada BC.