Wild mountain sheep - the progenitor of domestic sheep. These artiodactyls are very close to mountain goats, as well as to tours and musk ox. They are divided into seven main species and many subspecies, and sometimes they are so different from each other that it is hard to assume that they are relatives, and blue and maned rams are generally more like goats. Firstly, there is a large variation in size. The smallest representatives of the bovids are mouflons: the Crimean and Cypriot types with small, slightly curved horns, reach the withers only 65-75 cm in height and have a mass of 25-40 kg. The largest representatives of the species are argali: Altai argali and Pamir argali have a height of 120-125 cm at the withers, and weight - 220 kg. Their horns are powerful, wrapped in a tight spiral. Between mouflon and argali there are transitional subspecies: urials (eastern ram), large-horned and thin-horned sheep.
It is believed that wild ram was domesticated 11 thousand years ago in Asia and 7 thousand years ago in Europe. Most likely, a mouflon was taken to breed domestic sheep. There are many myths associated with this powerful animal. Recall the myth of the Golden Fleece. He is also the hero of one of the constellations of the zodiac - this is Aries. Wild sheep perfectly take root in zoos and bring offspring there without any problems. And now breeding work is underway on breeding domestic and wild sheep to improve the quality of livestock. Thus, archaromerinos, mountain merinos, the Tarascon "race" and other new valuable breeds were bred.
Unlike a domestic sheep, a mountain ram is a very savvy animal. Moreover, he is more slender than his domesticated relative, he has higher legs. But compared with mountain goats, wild sheep lose both in their wit and in their climbing qualities. In case of danger, the herd does not scatter like wild goats, but lumps into a pile and does not try to climb rocks, where the pursuers - mainly wolves - cannot reach, but prefer to flee, which the predators actively use.
These animals are common only in the Northern Hemisphere. But their habitat is incredibly wide. There is a mountain ram from the islands of the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Southeastern spurs of Tibet and Greater Khingan in the east. On the American continent, these artiodactyls are found from Canada to Mexico. Herds of wild sheep can be seen even in semi-deserts. In the summer, they gather in two large herds: in one - females with young, and the second is a “club of bachelors”. In the fall, most often in November, males approach a crowd of females and conduct ritual battles, scattering and hitting their foreheads. The force of the blow is monstrous, but these animals have very dense bones of the skull, and not one such battle ends even with a concussion.
Mountain sheep, unlike domestic sheep, has a camouflage color that is the same for both sexes. But females are much smaller than males in terms of body size and horns. Animals lead a nomadic lifestyle. Nomads have a vertical character: in winter artiodactyls descend, in summer they seek alpine meadows near the peaks. By winter, herds condense up to a hundred and even up to a thousand heads to protect themselves from predators. Usually, experienced individuals are led by a ram or a sheep. These herbivores do not have special watchdogs - the first to notice the danger sends a signal to the whole herd. They relate to each other calmly, inveterate males do not pursue young, but mutual assistance inside the herd is also not observed.
The mountain sheep feeds mainly on herbs, preferring cereals. But in winter it is extremely unpretentious in eating: eating moss, lichens, branches of shrubs and trees. Sheep regularly visit watering places and spare no effort to get to salt licks and lick salt. By the beginning of winter accumulate a large supply of subcutaneous fat. Lambs are born in March-June. For childbirth, the sheep leaves the herd, and after a week returns with one or two lambs. A month later, the lamb already plucks the grass, but until six months of age, its main diet is mother's milk. Sheep become sexually mature at two years of age, and lambs at three. In the first year of life, lambs are very vulnerable: their enemies are not only wolves, cougars and leopards, but also eagles, golden eagles and coyotes.