WILDLIFE WATCHING -- Bighorn rams defy the concussion issue plaguing the sport of football.

With unbelievable power they reserved for the mating seasons, males prove their superiority with a challenging ram by squaring off and rising to their hind feet to "ram" their horns together. The impact sounds like the boom of a high-powered rifle.  They usually back off to collect themselves, their eyes bugged out and rolling a bit -- then they often do it again!   And AGAIN.

Montana outdoor photographer Jaime Johnson scored big time with bighorns this month as he found a group of rams vying for the distinction to breed.

He not only scored great profiles and head-ramming photos, but also one of the best photos I've seen of an unusually aggressive ram launching a foe airborne with a blow to the ribs. Ouch!

He also got a shots of the broken, or "broomed" ends of the tough horns on some rams after their breeding-right battles. 

Finally, he visited the bighorns recently as the rut apparently had wound down, showing rams that looked a bit exhausted from the wear and tear.

• Click "continue reading" to see a small selection of the "thousands of images" Jaime and his photographer wife Lisa shot of this band of wild sheep.
• See video of bighorn rams in battle.