Armenian wild sheep, Armenian red sheep, Transcaucasian mountain sheep, Transcaucasian sheep, Anatolian mouflon
The Armenian mouflon (Ovis gmelini gmelini) is an endangered subspecies of mouflon. It was first described in 1840 by Edward Blyth, who equated it with the "Orientalische Schaaf" (Oriental sheep) described by Samuel Gottlieb Gmelin in 1774.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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GraminivoreIn zoology, a graminivore (not to be confused with a granivore) is an herbivorous animal that feeds primarily on grass. Graminivory is a form of g...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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PrecocialPrecocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
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CongregatoryCongregatory animals tend to gather in large numbers in specific areas as breeding colonies, for feeding, or for resting.
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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GrazingGrazing is a method of feeding in which a herbivore feeds on plants such as grasses, or other multicellular organisms such as algae. In agriculture...
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NomadicNomadic animals regularly move to and from the same areas within a well-defined range. Most animals travel in groups in search of better territorie...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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HerdingA herd is a social grouping of certain animals of the same species, either wild or domestic. The form of collective animal behavior associated with...
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Dominance hierarchyA dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social gr...
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Altitudinal MigrantAltitudinal migration is a short-distance animal migration from lower altitudes to higher altitudes and back. Altitudinal migrants change their ele...
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starts withArmenian mouflons are similar in appearance to other mouflons. They have reddish to dark brown, short-haired coats with dark back stripes and black ventral areas, and light-colored saddle patches. The males are horned; some females are horned, while others are polled. The horns of mature males are curved almost one full revolution (up to 85 cm).
Armenian mouflons are found in Iran, Armenia, and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Iraq. In Iran, they are found in the northwestern part of the country. In Armenia, these animals occur in Syunik Province (and to a lesser extent, in the provinces of Ararat and Vayots Dzor). In Azerbaijan, they are found in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Armenian mouflons live mostly in open rough terrain at medium or high altitudes, where they inhabit rocky hill country, lowland and highland steppes, rocky semideserts, 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.
Armenian mouflons live in small or large herds, and in the summer, the older males live singly or in separate groups. The dominance of a male depends on his age and how big his horns are. Fights between males about their harem of females rarely cause serious injuries, and the winner does not make any further attacks. The two contestants will graze alongside each other, with the winner every now and again initiating an "appeasement ceremony" where he presents his neck to be licked by the other male, sometimes kneeling for this purpose. Mouflons usually feed early in the day as well as during the evening and will rest during the day when they can be well hidden, under an overhanging rock or bush. The females usually have better foraging areas because their health is of more importance for reproduction.
Armenian mouflons are herbivores (graminivores) and feed on various grasses.
Little information is known about the reproductive habits of Armenian mouflons. In general, mouflons are polygynous meaning that one male mates with multiple females during the breeding season. Before mating season or "rut", which is from late autumn to early winter, males try to create a dominance hierarchy to determine access to females for mating. The gestation period usually lasts 5 months, in which females produce 1 to 2 offspring. Newly born lambs can stand on their feet within a few minutes, and soon after birth, they can run about. The young remain closely tied to their mothers, suckling every 10 to 15 minutes. Mouflons become reproductively mature at the age of 2 to 4 years. Young males need to obtain dominance before they get a chance to mate, which takes another 3 years for them to start mating. Females also go through a similar hierarchy process in terms of social status in the first 2 years but can breed even at low status.
Mouflons are threatened by expanding agriculture and farming, which has reduced population numbers and dispersed individuals into small, fragmented groups. Overgrazing throughout their range due to the expansion of sheep farming has resulted in erosion, reducing this species' suitable habitat. Consequently, pressure on hunting is high, which leads to a fragmented distribution. Parasites and contagious diseases from domestic livestock, especially domestic sheep, in many areas, are a major threat. Poachers take adult males for the value of their horns as trophies, and lambs are sometimes poached at birth to become pets.
The IUCN Red List and other sources don’t provide the number of the Armenian mouflon total population size. However, there are approximate estimates of this subspecies in the following areas: around 500 individuals in the Zangezur Range of Armenia and Azerbaijan (Nakhchivan), and around 5,200 individuals were estimated in 2016 in Iran.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...