From the archive record
Blue sheep, (genus Pseudois), also called bharal, either of two species of sheeplike mammals, family Bovidae (order Artiodactyla), that inhabit upland slopes in a wide range throughout China, from Inner Mongolia to the Himalayas. Despite their name, blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) are neither blue nor sheep. As morphological, behavioural, and molecular analyses have shown, these slate grey to pale brown sheep-looking caprines are actually more closely related to goats (genus Capra) than to sheep (genus Ovis). Blue sheep are sexually dimorphic, with males larger (60–75 kg [130–165 pounds]) than females (35–45 kg [80–100 pounds]). Adult males have beautiful, rather large, backwards-sweeping horns (over 50 cm [20 inches] long and weighing 7–9 kg [15–20 pounds]), whereas females have very small h