Ovis severtzovi Nasonov 1914
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2011
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Artiodactyla
Bovidae
Ovis
Ovis severtzovi

description: 196.
Severtzov’s Argali
Ovis severtzovi
French: Mouflon de Severtzov / German: Kysylkum-Wildschaf / Spanish: Argali de Kyzylkum
Other common names: Kyzyl Kum Argali, Kyzyl Kum Sheep
Taxonomy. Ovis severtzovi Nasonov, 1914,
Nura-Tau Mountains, Uzbekistan.
Severtzov’s Argali had been classified as a subspecies of O. ammon or a subspecies of urial. Recently it has been determined to be an argali, based on anatomy and its karyotype (diploid number of 56 and Gbanding), which are identical in all argali. Monotypic.
Distribution. NE Uzbekistan, mainly in Nuratau Range, but also in Tamdytau Mts to the W, and at least until 1980s on the Turkestan Range to the E; possibly also in NW Tajikistan and SW Kyrgyzstan.
Descriptive notes. No specific measurements available. Severtzov’s Argali is the smallest argali; skull length is 26-27 cm. Horn length of adult male rams is 75.5-83 cm; basal circumference is 23.5-25. 5 cm. Males in winter coat are characterized by a palecolored neck ruff restricted to the front half of the neck that contrasts with the color of the rest of the neck and body. The body color is cinnamon to chestnut brown, with a dark brisket and white abdomen and rump patch; the white rump patch does not extend above the base of the tail. A dark band of hair extends from the withers to the base of the tail. The legs are white from the knee to the hooves.
Habitat. Mainly foothills and mountains of medium height in the Nuratau Range up to 2190 m. Argali dwell mainly in mountain steppe with shrubs and rocky outcrops. The Aktau massif within the Tamdytau Range is more arid and more precipitous. Freshwater sources are scarce and grass dries out by the end of May. Main predators of Severtzov’s Argali are Gray Wolves (Canis lupus), responsible for 20% of annual mortality.
Food and Feeding. In the Nuratau Range, in autumn and winter, animals browse on ephedra shrubs that may constitute up to 90% of stomach content, almond and maple trees, and they graze on grasses and various herbs. On an annual basis, grasses and forbs are their forage components. Severtzov’s Argali also dig up roots of plants.
Breeding. Rut occurs from the end of October until the third week of November, with a peak in the first week of November. Births occur on 10-15 April. In May—-August of the 1960s in Nuratau Range, the population consisted of 26-8% males, 39-8% females, and 33-4% lambs. The lamb—female ratio was 0-84:100, indicating frequent twinning. In 2002, in the Hayat Valley, Nuratau Range, of 193 Severtzov’s Argali sighted, the lamb—female ratio was 0-79 with seven pairs of twins. The yearling—female ratio was 0-26; the low yearling ratio was caused by a drought in 2001.
Activity patterns. In the warm time of the year, animals are active in the morning until 09:00 h and in the evening beginning at 18:00 h. With the approach of winter weather, activity gradually rises in the daytime and in winter they are active throughout the day.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. In summer, Severtzov’s Argali prefer montane steppe mainly above 400 m on north-facing slopes, moving to south-facing slopes during winter, often outside of the nature reserve. In the 1960s, in the Nuratau Range, average groups sizes were 5-3 in May, 8-4 in June, 9-6 in August, and ten in October-November. Average group size in May 2002 in the Nuratau Range was 9-3; the average female group size was eight. During rut, most animals form mixed herds with a maximum of 54 animals. Outside rut, mixed groups are rare and mixed groups consist of younger males that may associate with females and vice versa.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II (under O. ammon). Classified as Near Threatened on The IUCN Red List (under O. ammon). Competition with domestic livestock and illegal hunting are the threats. Formerly animals occurred also on low mountains of north-eastern Kyzylkum in southern Kazakhstan but they have disappeared from there completely by now. About 1200-1300 occurred in 1991 in a protected region in the Nuratau Range in Uzbekistan and about 400 occurred outside the protected area and surrounding mountains. By the end of the 1990s, numbers in the Nuratau Range rose to 2000 individuals with a population density averaging 50 ind/ km*. However, data are unavailable for recent years and other areas. The Turkestan Rangeis separated from the Nuratau Range by a broad valley with a busy highway and railway, which in effect isolated the main population in Uzbekistan from contact with possible populations in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. The Nuratau Nature Reserve is the only protected area harboring Severtzov’s Argali; several are kept in a large enclosure near the Nuratau Reserve Research Station.
Bibliography. Baskin & Danell (2003), Bunch et al. (1998), Carruthers (1949), Fedosenko (2000), Fedosenko & Blank (2005), Geist (1991a), Groves & Grubb (2011), Grubb (2005), Harris & Reading (2008), Heptner et al. (1988), Ishunin (1967, 1968), Kapitanova et al. (2004), Korshunova & Korshunov (1983), Lyapunova et al. (1997), Mambetzhumaev (1974), Rakhimov (1966), Rezaei et al. (2010), Sapozhnikov (1976), Shakula (1989, 2001), Shakula et al. (1994), Valdez (1982, 1983, 2008), Weinberg (2003), Weinberg et al. (1997), Wu Chunhua et al. (2003).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2011, Bovidae, pp. 444-779 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 2 Hoofed Mammals, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 689, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6512484