Brehm's Life of animals - a complete natural history for popular home instruction and for the use of schools (1895) (20419425751)

Title: Brehm's Life of animals : a complete natural history for popular home instruction and for the use of schools
Identifier: brehmslifeofanim00breh (find matches)
Year: 1895 (1890s)
Authors: Brehm, Alfred Edmund, 1829-1884; PechuLoesche, Eduard, 1840-1913; Haacke, Wilhelm, 1855-1912; Schmidtlein, Richard
Subjects: Mammals; Animal behavior
Publisher: Chicago : Marquis
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library



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THE HORNED ANIMALS—SHEEP. 463 their mothers into the most inaccessible spots. The attempt has recently met with success, however, and in the west young rams have not only been tamed to such an extent that the)- could be safely left to run free with the domestic flocks, but they have also been successfully crossed with the common Sheep. The flesh of the mixed breed is said to be excellent. Origin of the We have as little definite knowledge Domestic about the origin of the domestic Sheep. Sheep ( Ovis aries) as about the de- scent of other Ruminants that have entered our service and have become completely domesticated. Opinions of naturalists concerning this subject di- verge widely. Some believe that all breeds of Sheep spring from one common wild parent species, which presumably became entirely extinct in prehistoric times or else was completely exhausted by the com- plete domestication of all the individuals compris- In the light of recent investigations, the opinion seems justified that the different breeds of Sheep are nothing but artificial products of the efforts of Man, variable in^shape and size, formation of horns and fleece, habits, behavior and all other qualities. The varieties of the domestic Sheep are numerous, but from the naturalist's standpoint are much alike. The Merino Sheep The Merino Sheep ( Ovis dries his- a Profitable paiiica) is at present by some au- Variety. thorities considered to be the most profitable of all domestic Sheep. It has been proven that it acquired its peculiar character in Spain and it has gradually been used for the improvement of nearly all European breeds. Of moderate size and plump, stout build, it is distinguished by a large head with a flat forehead, arched nose and blunt muzzle, small eyes and large tear-pits and moder- ately long, acutely pointed ears. The horns are
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THE BIG HORN. A species of wil ain Sheep. It is the only native Sheep found the males of this species. (Oris mon/ana.) ing the species, and is therefore nowhere to be found in a state of nature at the present time. Others, however, hold that several species of wild Sheep must certainly be considered as factors in this evolution, and that the almost numberless breeds of domestic Sheep must be regarded as prod- ucts of continued interbreeding of those species and their offspring. Some regard the .Moufflon as the original stock, others the Argali; some the Aou- dad, a few the Sha (Ovis vignei) of Little Tibet; some, whose ranks I join, admit their ignorance frankly and honestly, and justly emphasize the fact that mere suppositions cannot aid in the solution of the question. The difference between the breeds consists mainly in the convolutions or twistings of the substance of the horns, the length and anatom- ical structure of the tail and texture of the fleece. strong and curve laterally and backward from their base; then they turn forward and upward in a double spiral curve. As a rule horns grow only on the head of the ram. The neck is short and thick, the skin usually lying on it loosely and being deeplv wrinkled and furrowed, and a dewlap usually de- pends from its lower portion, while the muscular and fatty tissue about the upper part of the throat proper bulges out in a goitre-like fashion. The legs are comparatively short, but strong and stout, and the hoofs are obtusely pointed. The fleece is a short, soft, fine wool, which is quite uniformly curly. Merino sheep have been introduced with great suc- cess into Cape Colony, North and South America and Australia, in some of these countries being raised as separate herds and in others they have been used to improve native breeds.