Barbary sheep stand tall at the shoulder, with a length around, and weigh. They are sandy-brown, darkening with age, with a slightly lighter underbelly and a darker line along the back. Upper parts and the outer parts of the legs are a uniform reddish brown or grayish brown. There is some shaggy hair on the throat and a sparse. Their horns have a triangularcross section. The horns curve outward, backward, then inward, and can exceed in length. The horns are fairly smooth, with slight wrinkles evident at the base as the animal matures.
Barbary sheep have been introduced to southeastern Spain, the southwesternUnited States, Niihau Island, Mexico, and some parts of Africa. They have become common in a limited region of south-eastern Spain, since its introduction in 1970 to Sierra EspuñaRegional park as a game species. Its adaptability enabled it to colonise nearby areas quickly, and private game estates provided other centers of dispersion. The species is currently expanding, according to recent field surveys, now being found in the provinces of Alicante, Almería, Granada, and Murcia. This species is a potential competitor to native ungulates inhabiting the Iberian Peninsula. The species has also been introduced to La Palma, and has spread throughout the northern and central parts of the island, where it is a serious threat to endemicvegetation.
Taxonomy
A. lervia is the only species in the genusAmmotragus. However, some authors include this genus in the goat genus Capra, together with the sheep genusOvis. The subspecies are found allopatrically in various parts of North Africa:
Barbary sheep are found in arid mountainous areas where they graze and browse grasses, bushes, and lichens. They are able to obtain all their metabolic water from food, but if liquid water is available, they will drink and wallow in it. Barbary sheep are crepuscular. That is they are active in the early morning and late afternoon and rest in the heat of the day. They are very agile and can achieve a standing jump of over. They are well adapted to their habitat, which consist of steep rocky mountains and canyons. They often flee at the first sign of danger, typically running uphill. They are extremely nomadic and travel constantly via mountain ranges. Their main predators in North Africa were the Barbary leopard, the Barbary lion, and caracal, but now only humans threaten their populations.
Names
The binomial nameAmmotragus lervia derives from the Greek ἄμμος ámmos and τράγος trágos. Lervia derives from the wild sheep of northern Africa described as "lerwee" by Rev. T. Shaw in his "Travels and Observations" about parts of Barbary and Levant. The Spanish named this sheep the arruis, from Berberarrwis, and the Spanish Legion even used it as a mascot for a time. Aoudad is the name for this sheep used by the Berbers, a North African people, and it is also called arui and waddan. A group of Aoudad is referred to as an "Anger".
