224 Dr. N. SevertzofF on the Mammals of Turkestan. 



On the high plain of the Aksay only O. Polii is to be met 

 with, and is very abundant there ; here it usually keeps in 

 the mountains of Bos-adir, on the left or north shore of the 

 Aksay, and feeds on the hilly meadows situated close to the 

 above place ; further north it has not been obtained yet. 



This animal is not a regular inhabitant of the mountains 

 and rocks, but of high-situated hilly plains and meadows, 

 where the Festuca, Artemisia^ and Salsolece form its principal 

 food. It only takes to the mountains for concealment, but 

 even then avoids the more rocky localities, as, for instance, the 

 Kok-Ria near the Aksay, where I only found the Gapra skyn. 



The lowest elevation where it is to be met with on Han- 

 tengri is about 10,000 feet, namely in the Kar-Rara and 

 Tekes ; but even here it is rare, mostly inhabiting the more 

 level parts of Han-tengri, which are covered with grass, near 

 the range of perpetual snow, about 11,000 feet above the sea- 

 level. On the Aksay the limits of its range are formed by 

 the river of the same name, between the mountains of Kok- 

 Ria and Bos-adir, at an altitude of 9500 feet ; to about the 

 same height it descends also in the Atpash, going, however, 

 as high as the perpetual snow, about 13,000 to 14,000 feet. 

 Mr. Wood found the horns of this species about the river 

 Amu-Darja, at an elevation of about 16,000 feet. 



I do not know its distribution beyond the above localities j 

 some information regarding this might perhaps be obtained 

 from the zoological portion of the work by the Brothers Schla- 

 gintweit. It is probable, however, that 0. Polii does not go 

 further than the Karakorum mountains, between the Indus 

 and the Tarim, as south of the Karakorum the range of 

 the Himalayan sheep commences. As yet I cannot fix how 

 far it occurs towards the east. 



Wherever 0. Polii has been met with it has been found 

 inhabiting the same localities during the summer and winter ; 

 the latter season, though cold, is remarkably free from snow, 

 the winter clouds being intercepted by the lower mountains 

 before reaching the elevations inhabited by the sheep. I saw 

 this species on Han-tengri and Aksay in small scattered flocks 

 of from five to ten individuals — unlike 0. Kareliniy which 

 species I have seen in flocks of hundreds in the neighbourhood 

 of the Narin. Old males are often met with singly, separated 

 from the flock, not wandering to a great distance, but keeping 

 within sight of the herd they belong to, to which they appa- 

 rently act as sentinels. 



An old specimen obtained by me was thus separated from the 

 flock on the look-out. The herd itself often goes about scat- 

 tered and not at all so close to each other as is the case with 



