Ovis hodgsoni Blyth 1841

• Main Authors: Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Published: Lynx Edicions 2011
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Taxonomy; Animalia; Chordata; Mammalia; Artiodactyla; Bovidae; Ovis; Ovis hodgsoni; Canis lupus; gray wolf; Ruff
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6773081; http://treatment.plazi.org/id/03F507139933FF890677FDE3FC18FDC0

201. Tibetan Argali Ovis hodgsoni French: Mouflon du Tibet / German: Tibet-Wildschaf / Spanish: Argali del Tibet Taxonomy. Ouvis hodgson: Blyth, 1841, Tibet, probably on Nepal frontier. This species is usually classified as a subspecies of O. ammon. Some authors assign two argali forms to the Tibetan Plateau: hodgsoni (southern Tibetan Plateau) and dalailamae (northern Tibetan Plateau). These two forms cannot be distinguished phenotypically or karyologically. Monotypic. Distribution. N India (including N Sikkim), N Nepal, and SW China (mostly Xizang). Descriptive notes. Head-body 167 cm (males) and 148 cm (females), tail 5-5 cm (males), shoulder height 115-118 cm (males) and 99-112 cm (females); weight 98— 105 kg (males) and 68 kg (a female older than four years). Basal horn circumference 39.4-43 cm (males) and 19 cm (females); horn length 86-145 cm (males) and 36-46 cm (females). Male skulls with horns weight 7.2-18 kg, longest recorded horn 145 cm (males). Horns of older males are broomed (broken off at ends). This species is characterized by a white ruff that surrounds the neck and is distinctly set off from the body. The body is grayish-brown near the back and paler on the sides, with a white rump patch that surrounds the tail. The front of all four legs is dark, but the back of the legs, belly, and face are white. A dark lateral stripe divides the upperparts from the white belly. Habitat. Tibetan Argali occur on undulating or broken terrain, occasionally on upper slopes of mountains but not in rugged, precipitous areas. They are usually not found on plains or low hills, except when crossing from one mountain range to another. They use high ground such as broken,jagged cliff terrain to visually scan the landscape to detect predators and have adequate warning to outrun any threat. Their principal predator is the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus). Even when running from a predator, they usually do not seek cover in precipitous terrain. In Ladakh, 64% of Tibetan Argali observations were farther than 250 m from ...