1896.] 



MR. W. T. BLAKTOBD ON OTIS AMMON. 



787 



Mr. W. T. Blanford, F.R.S., exhibited, on behalf of Major C. S. 

 Cumberland, four heads of Ovis amnion (L.) from the North-west 

 TUtai, east of Semipalatinsk, in Central Asia (about lat. 50° N., 

 long. 88° E.). Major Cumberland, duriug the summer of the 

 present year, bad succeeded in shooting seven fine rams, and the 

 horns brought back by him far excelled any belonging to this species 

 that had previously, so far as was known, been seen in this country. 

 Of the largest pair, which had been presented by Major Cumberland 

 to the British Museum, each horn measured 18| inches in cir- 

 cumference at the base, and 56j inches in length round the curve ; 

 wjiilst the horns of anotlier pair measured 19| inches round the 

 base, thougli only 54| long. Evidently this animal exceeded the 

 great Tibetan Slieep, 0. hodgsoni, in size, and was the largest of all 

 living Sheep. 



Head of Ovis ammon, from Major OiiinberlancVs specimen in the 

 British iVIuBeum. 



The heads now exhibited entirely confirmed the view that 

 0. ammon must be regarded as a distinct species from 0. hodgsoni. 

 As had been first pointed out by Sir Victor Brooke and Mr. Basil 

 Brooke, in the ' Proceedings ' of the Society for 1875, pp. 518-520, 

 the horns in 0. ammon were thicker and longer and curved much 

 more outwards towards the ends, and were thus intermediate 

 in curve between 0. hodgsoni and the form of 0. poli called 

 0. harelini by Severtzoff. 0. ammon, moreover, wanted the ruS or 

 lengthened hair on the sides and lower surface of the neck that is 

 found, apparently at all seasons, in adult rams of 0. hodgsoni. 



The rams shot by Major Cumberland in summer were very palei- 



