mountain sheep

Argali
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Subfamily: Caprinae Genus: Ovis Species: O. ammon
Binomial name
Ovis ammon (Linnaeus, 1758)

The argali, or the mountain sheep (species Ovis ammon) is the globally endangered wild sheep, which roams the highlands of Central Asia (Himalaya, Tibet, Altay). It is also the biggest wild sheep, standing as high as 120 cm and weighing as much as 140 kg. The Pamir argali (also called Marco Polo sheep, for they were first described by that traveller) may attain more than 6 feet in length.

The general colouration varies between each animal, from a lightish yellow to a dark grey-brown. The face is lighter. Males have a whitish neck ruff and a dorsal crest. Males have two large corkscrew horns, some measuring 190 cm/ 6.3 ft in length. Males use their horns for competing with one another. Females also carry horns, but much smaller.

Argalis live in herds between 2 and 100 animals, segregated by sex, except during breeding season. Migrating herds, especially males, have been reported. With long legs, herds can travel quickly from place to place. Argalis tend to live at higher elevations during the summer.

Argalis are considered endangered or threatened throughout their entire range, due to habitat loss from overgrazing of domestic sheep and hunting. They are hunted for both their meat and their horns, used in traditional Chinese medicine. Legal hunting of trophies has also added to the mortality.

Traditional subspecies:

• Ovis ammon ammon, Altai argali
• Ovis ammon collium
• Ovis ammon hodgsonii, Tibetan argali
• Ovis ammon karelini
• Ovis ammon polii, Marco Polo sheep
• Ovis ammon darwini
• Ovis ammon severtzovi
• Ovis ammon jubata
• Ovis ammon nigrimontana

Some sources consider mouflon, the ancestor of modern domestic sheep as Ovis ammon musimon, however DNA testing has not supported this. Several subspecies of argali have been genetically tested for mtDNA and one study found that the subspecies Ovis ammon ammon, O. ammon darwini and the urial subspecies, O. vignei bochariensis grouped closely while the subspecies Ovis ammon collium and O. ammon nigrimontana grouped with the urial subspecies O. vignei arkal.^[1]

References

1. ^ Hiendleder S, Kaupe B, Wassmuth R, Janke A. (May 7 2002). Molecular analysis of wild and domestic sheep questions current nomenclature and provides evidence for domestication from two different subspecies. Proceedings. Biological sciences, The Royal Society of London. Retrieved on August 2, 2006.

• University of Michigan Museum of Zoology

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