192 Sheep 



Ovis poll. It happened, however, that as far hack as ahout the year 1840 the 

 Russian explorer Karelin ohtained some large wild sheep from the Alatau, 

 near Semirechinsk. and due north of Lake Issik Kul, which in 187:5 were 

 named in his honour O. kdrcliiii by his countryman Severtzoff. In 1875 Sir 

 Victor and Mr. B. Brooke referred the specimens brought home by the 

 ^'arkand Expedition from the Thian Shan to O. kuir/i/ii ; and four years 

 later this species was accepted by Mr. Blanford, in his account of the 

 mammals ot the expedition, as a valid one. Later on, however, the same 

 writer, h'om the study ot additional specimens, came to the conclusion that 

 O. karclim was, at most, merely a variety of O. poli ; and this view was 

 subsequently adopted by Mr. W. L. Sclater, who wrote as follows : "The 

 above, I think, is sufficient to justify the combination of the Pamir typical 

 form and the Thian Shan specimens brought back by the Yarkand F^xpedi- 

 tion, under the name of Ovis po/i, even if the sheep described by Severtzof?" 

 as O. kiircliiii should turn out to really differ from the typical O. poli of 

 the Pamir." 



Habits. — Since the habits are fully describeil under the heading of the 

 two races, it will suffice to state here that the typical Ovis po/i is but rarely 

 found at elevations below 10,000 and i 1,000 feet above the sea, and some- 

 times at much higher levels ; the Thian Shan race is, tiowever, stated by 

 Severtzof}-" to desceml as low as 2000 or •5000 feet. It is essentially an 

 inhabitant of open, hilly, grass-clad plains; and only takes to the mountains 

 for the purpose of concealment, avoiding even then the more rocky and 

 preci p i tou s 1 ocal i t i es. 



a. Pamir Rack. — Ovis poi.i T^■PICA 



Characters. — Size large ; horns of adult males of great length, with 

 both the front angles usually well developed at the base, and the spiral, 

 which may be either comparatively close or extremely open, forming 



