The Barbary sheep, Ammotragus lervia, also known as the aoudad, is a species of caprine native to rocky mountains in North Africa and parts of West Africa. It is the only species in the genus Ammotragus, and six subspecies have been described. Although it is rare in its native North Africa, it has been introduced to North America, southern Europe and elsewhere. It is also known in Berber languages as waddan or arwi. Barbary sheep stand 75 to 110 centimetres at the shoulder and weigh 30 to 145 kilograms, with a sandy-brown coat that darkens with age, shaggy hair on the throat and horns that curve outward, backward and then inward. Populations within its native range have been decreasing due to hunting. It is mainly crepuscular.
Facts
Classification
Population Trend System (Realm) Living or Extinct Conservation Status Activity Pattern Connections
Sources
1. Barbary sheep (Wikipedia)
Lead
The Barbary sheep (Ammotragus lervia), also known as aoudad (pronounced [ˈɑʊdæd]), is a species of caprine native to rocky mountains in North Africa and parts of West Africa.
Habitats
Barbary sheep are found in arid mountainous areas where they graze and browse grasses, bushes, and lichens.
Habitats, activity pattern
Barbary sheep are crepuscular - active in the early morning and late afternoon and rest in the heat of the day.
Natural range
Populations within its native range have been decreasing due to hunting, legal and otherwise, and destruction of habitat.
Natural range, system
West of the Nile, they can be found in Sudan; east of the Nile, in the Red Sea Hills.
In Biome: Desert, Taxonomy
Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1827 (Egyptian Barbary sheep, thought to be extinct in the wild, but still found in the eastern desert of Egypt)
A. l. sahariensis Rothschild, 1913 (vulnerable)
A. l. blainei Rothschild, 1913 (vulnerable)
A. l. angusi Rothschild, 1921 (vulnerable)
A. l. fassini Lepri, 1930 (vulnerable)
View the Source2. GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): GBIF IUCN Red List category record 2441005
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility)IUCN Red List category recordQuote, IUCN Red List category record
VULNERABLE
3. AnAge (Human Ageing Genomic Resources): AnAge entry for Ammotragus lervia
AnAge (Human Ageing Genomic Resources)Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traitsQuote, Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traits
Maximum longevity 21.7 years (captivity)
Artiodactyla (Wikipedia)
In Group: Even-Toed Ungulates (Artiodactyla), Inner systematicsQuote, In Group: Even-Toed Ungulates (Artiodactyla), Inner systematics
The bovids (Bovidae) are the most species-rich family.
Bovidae - Wikipedia
Child Taxon Of: Bovidae, LeadQuote, Child Taxon Of: Bovidae, Lead
Bovidae is the biological family of cloven-hoofed, ruminant mammals that includes cattle, bison, buffalo, antelopes, and goat-antelopes such as sheep and goats.
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