Marco Polo's Sheep 199 



colour above hoary brown, distinctly rufescent or fawn on the upper hind 

 neck and above the shoulders, darker on the loins, with a dark line ex- 

 tending along the ridge of the tail to the tip. Head above and at the 

 sides a grayish-brown, darkest on the hinder part, where the central hairs 

 are from 4 to 5 inches long ; while between the shoulders somewhat 

 elongated hairs indicate a short mane. Middle of upper part of neck 

 hoary white, generally tinged with tawn ; sides of body and the upper 

 part of the limbs shading from brown to white, the hairs becoming more 

 and more tipped with the latter colour. Face, all the lower-parts, limbs, 

 tail, and all the under-parts, extending well above towards the loins, more 

 white. The hairs on the lower neck are very much lengthened, being from 

 5 to 6 inches long. Ears hoary brown externally, almost white internally." 



Several of these specimens are now mounted in the British Museum ; 

 and all of them show more or less brown on the upper half of the face, 

 while the dark line on the tail is not apparent. Otherwise they accord 

 well with the description. 



As already mentioned, it is most unfortunate that there are no means 

 ot comparing these specimens with the corresponding (winter) dress of 

 the typical poll. But it seems most probable that at the same season the 

 general coloration of the two forms would be very similar ; and, apart 

 from other features, it is thus unlikely that kareliui would in summer 

 assume the dark buttocks, thighs, and under-parts of O. sairensis. Still, as 

 has been stated above, in the dark upper part ot the face and the blackish 

 dorsal stripe of the female the present form does lead on from the typical 

 poll in the direction of the latter. 



With regard to the horns, one of the Thian Shan males in the British 

 Museum has the outer front angle completely rounded off, as is well 

 shown in the figure given by Sir V. Brooke in the Zoological Society's 

 Proceedings for 1875, p. 512, figs. 2 and 3. In the other examples, 

 however, both front angles are very strongly marked indeed ; and it does 



