Rank Subspecies | Phylum Chordata Order Artiodactyla | |
Similar Marco Polo sheep, Coburger Fuchsschaf, Soay sheep, Barbados Black Belly, Charmoise | ||
The Armenian mouflon (Armenian: հայկական մուֆլոն, haykakan muflon; Persian: گوسفند وحشی ارمنی, Qutch-e armani), also known as the Armenian sheep, Armenian wild sheep, Armenian red sheep, or Trans-Caucasian sheep (Ovis orientalis gmelini) is an endangered subspecies of mouflon endemic to Iran, Armenia, and Nakhchivan (Azerbaijan).
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Nomenclature
The Armenian mouflon was first described in 1840 by Edward Blyth, who equated it with the "Orientalische Schaaf" (Oriental Sheep) described by Samuel Gottlieb Gmelin in 1774.
Distribution and population
O. o. gmelini is found in northwestern Iran. Armenian mouflons were transferred to Kabudan (Kaboodan) Island in Lake Urmia in 1895 and 1906 by one of the governors of Azerbaijan. A study carried out in the 1970s at the island found that their number declined from around 3,500 in 1970 to 1,000 in 1973. In 2004 1,658 Armenian wild sheep were counted at the Angouran Protected Area in Iran's Zanjan Province.
O. o. gmelini is found in Syunik Province in southern Armenia (and to a lesser extent, in the provinces of Ararat and Vayots Dzor). According to a 2009 study there were "hardly over 200" mouflons in Armenia.
An estimated 250 to 300 mouflons are found in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan.
Habitat
The Iranian red sheep lives mostly in open rough terrain at medium or high altitudes, where they inhabit rocky hill country, lowland and highland steppes, and rocky semi-deserts, and grass-covered slopes and alpine meadows.
They spend the summer at the highest elevations, right below the permanent snow. In winter they move lower and may come into the valleys.
They live in small or larger herds, and in the summer the older males live singly or in separate groups. They may live up to 18 years.
Protection measures
O. o. gmelini was listed in Category I of the USSR Red Data Book. In Armenia, hunting it has been forbidden since 1936. A captive breeding program has been initiated at the Zoological Institute of Armenia aiming to expand Khosrov Nature Reserve, reorganize the Orbubad Sanctuary into a state reserve, control livestock and reduce poaching. As of 2011, the fine for hunting the Armenian mouflon in Armenia was 3 million drams (roughly $8,000).
In Iran, hunting of O. o. gmelini is allowed only under permit, outside the protected areas, between September and February. Within the protected areas, grazing of domestic livestock is strictly controlled.