Dr. N. Severtzoff on the Mammals of Turkestan. 209 



identified sheep from North Siberia, from the mountains 

 separating the basin of the river Nyjnaja Tungusca, a tribu- 

 tary to the Jennissey, from the basins of the Hatanga and 

 Piasina. Several perfect specimens were obtained from there 

 for the Zoological Museum of the Academy of Sciences by 

 Mr. Schmidt's expedition. According to the shape of the 

 horns, it is rather close to 0. nivicola and 0. nahoor^ Hodgs., 

 from the Himalayas, so much so that Blasius does not find 

 any difference at all between the Himalayan and the American 

 horns (Bias. Saugeth. Deutschl. p. 470), which reminds me of 

 the general origin of all the different species of sheep. 



2. Ovis argali^ Pall., non Bias. 



The horns are thick, and rather rounded at the edges ; the 

 orbital surface is convex, loithout any depression whatever. 

 The horns begin to diminish in the first third of their length ; 

 they are almost three times as long as the skull ; the frontal 

 surface is narrower than the nuchal surface, which last is the 

 case also with all the following species. The chords of the basal 

 and terminal curves are not parallel, the former being more 

 horizontal. ^ The axil spiral of the horn Avould fit on an 

 inverted cylinder. The prajmaxillse do not articulate with 

 the nasals, from which the maxillary is separated by a little 

 bone. The lachrymal is small and subquadrate ; its anterior 

 edge forms a parallel line %oith the front edge of the malar. 



The Iiead is flat-topped, pyramid-shaped, stout and blunt. 

 The neck is maneless. The skin is reddish bro7.cn ; the throat, 

 breast, and belly are darker than the vertebral line or any of 

 the other parts of the back; there is a white patch around the 

 tail, sharply defined from the body-colour, but without any darker 

 edge round it ; this white colour extends down half of the 

 rump. In winter it gets very soft short hair under the long 

 rough coat. 



The length of the animal from the tip of the nose to the 

 tail ranges up to 6 feet, the height at the shoulders to 3^ feet, 

 the length of the horns from 39 to 42 inches. 



Obs. It is not yet known whether the sheep called by this 

 name inhabiting the low hills and the Siberian Kirgies steppes 

 (for instance the Karkalinsk, Arkatsk, and Aldgan-adirsk 

 steppes) belong to the present species. According to the 

 analogy of the distinction of Musinion arkal of Turcomania 

 from M. orientalis of the high mountains, and also of the 

 Karatau sheep from those inhabiting the Thian-Shan,it appears 

 to me that these Karkalinsk sheep will prove to form a sepa- 

 rate species. 



