Asiatic Ibex 277 



side is almost as much developed as the inner ; the section completely 

 triangular, with the hinder angle compressed. Horns of female much 

 smaller, placed wider apart on the head, coarsely rugose, or ringed, with an 

 oval section at the base, but compressed above, and inclining slightly back- 

 wards. Hair coarse and brittle, forming a rather elongated ridge along the 

 back in the male, and in winter underlain by a dense, soft, woolly under- 

 fur or pashm. General colour of upper-parts in summer some shade of 

 brown, becoming chocolate in old males, with a more or less distinctly 

 defined dirty white saddle on the middle of the back, scarcely paler on the 

 under-parts ; in late winter the general colour yellowish- white, more or 

 less tinged with brownish or grayish, but in the early part ot the season 

 old males much darker, being frequently full brown with a large, dirty 

 white saddle-shaped patch on the back ; generally a dark line down the 

 middle of the back at all seasons ; beard and tail dark brown at certain times 

 of year, as are the legs, which may or may not have a large white streak 

 on the hinder surface of both cannon-bones. Horns yellowish- or olive- 

 brown. 



There is no difficulty in distinguishing the horns of this species, the 

 linest of the group, from those of the Arabian ibex. They attain much 

 larger dimensions than those of any examples of the Alpine species now 

 extant ; and it is probable that the latter, even in its prime, never attained 

 similar dimensions. Alpine ibex horns, judging from such examples as 

 have come under my own notice, seem always distinguishable by the slight, 

 although distinct, bevelling of the outer external angle ; and by the trans- 

 verse knots being either altogether smaller, or by having a less development 

 of their outer portion. The smaller ears and slight development of the 

 beard are also distinctive differences in the Alpine species. 



The following are some of the largest dimensions of the horns of this 

 species recorded by Mr. Rowland Ward : — 



