460 



THE CLOVEN-HOOFED ANIMALS. 



Wild Sheep Nearly all wild species may te "tamed 

 Easily Domes- without special trouble, and retain 

 ticated. their lively disposition at least 



through several generations, and as a rule breed in 

 captivity. They become sincerely attached to those 

 persons to whom they must look. for their sustenance 

 and care, respond to their calls, are fond of caresses 

 and may become so thoroughly tame that one can 

 send them to pasture with other domestic animals, 

 withou^ -{neifjjattemptirig to profit by such favorable 

 opportunities ■ to regain their freedom. The tame 



TH£ UOUFI'LOIT. Inhabiting the mountains of Corsica and Sardinia is the Mouf- 

 flon, a species of wild Sheep now much reduced in numbers. It is a very agile, timid animal, an 

 excellent climber, sure-footed and climbing to great heights inaccessible to Man. The male has 

 broad, boldly curved horns as shown in the picture. (Outs musimon.) 



Sheep have been under Man's supervision for thou- 

 sands of years and are now distributed all over the 

 globe and everywhere held in high esteem on ac- 

 count of their surpassing usefulness.. 



The Aoudad We place the Aoudad {Ovis tragela- 

 its Range and phus) foremost among the wild 

 Hixblta., Sheep to be described; it is an ani- 

 mal markedly characterized by its long, hanging 

 mane. The fleece consists of a strong, rough outer 



fur, and an undercoat of fine, curly wool, completely 

 investing the body. The hair is longer on the neck 

 and withers, forming a short, erect, mane-like ridge 

 or comb; on the breast and sides it develops into a 

 rich mane, beginning at the throat and nearly reach- 

 ing the ground, and covering the forelegs and a por- 

 tion of the neck. 



Various naturalists from Caius Brittanicus, who 

 mentioned it in 1 561, have described the animal as 

 an inhabitant of Morocco, Algiers, Egypt, Abyssinia 

 and the upper Nile. Buvey says : "The Aoudad is 

 generally called Arui by the natives of 

 southern Algiers. Undoubtedly it oc- 

 curs with still greater frequency in the 

 loftier mountain levels in the Atlas 

 range in Morocco than it does in Al- 

 giers, as the immunity from human 

 invasion which characterizes that part 

 of the mountain range can not but be 

 agreeable to a Rumiftant. 

 I "The Arui, is fond of the highest 

 mountain ridges, which can be reached 

 only by penetrating through barriers of 

 bowlders, and masses of stone, and 

 therefore its', pursuit is, extremely diffi- 

 cult and often very perilous. Nor does 

 it, even; if successful, hold out a promise 

 of much gain, for the Aoudad lives soli- 

 tarily, and oiily at certain periods, gen- 

 erally in November, can several Sheep 

 be found congregated. They keep to- 

 gether for a time, and then they disperse 

 again, each -going its own way. The 

 Arabs are very fond of the flesh of 

 these wild Sheep, the mutton closely 

 'Resembling the flesh of Deer. The 

 fleeces are made into rugs by the Arabs; 

 the skin is sometimes tanned and used 

 as Morocco leather. 



"Though the Arui is classified among 

 the rarer animals, it is sometimes caught 

 in nooses by the inhabitants of the 

 mountains and is then usually disposed 

 of to the commander of the nearest mil- 

 itary post at a low price. In the gar- 

 dens of the clubrooms at Biskra there 

 was a young Arui, which was accus- 

 tomed to surmount a wall sixteen feet 

 high, surrounding the enclosure in 

 which he was kept; he would climb it 

 with a few nearly vertical bounds ap- 

 parently as easily as if he ran along 

 level ground, and then maintain his 

 hold on the top, which was barely a 

 hand's breadth in width, with a security 

 which warranted the belief that he felt 

 himself entirely at home on it." 

 The Moufflon th? Only two degreesof lat- 

 Only Wild SheSp itude separate the Aou- 

 Nafive in Europe, dad frorti the Moufflon 

 {Ovis musimon), the only wild Sheep' 

 inhabiting Europe, and which ranges in 

 mountains of the islands of Sardinia and Cor- 

 sica. It is more or less generally believed that the 

 Moufflon in former times existed also in other parts 

 of southern Europe, as for instandie on the Balear- 

 ic Islands and in Greece, but there is no positive 

 proof upon which to base this belief. At present •, 

 the Moufflon is found in herds that may sometimes " 

 rise in number to half a hundred, but are usually- 

 much smaller. 



the 



