Wagnon said that oryx may also be a reservoir for wildlife disease, which they can pass along to species like desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni), considered endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Just a few decades into their introduction in New Mexico, oryx are already the most common ungulate in New Mexico portion of the Chihuahuan Desert, more common than bighorns, pronghorns or mule deer, Wagnon said.
RISING ORYX NUMBERS MAY DISTRESS NEW MEXICO ECOSYSTEM
I wondered how long before they would be a problem.