Quadrupeds, What They Are and Where Found: A Book of Zoology for BoysReid, Mayne
Science
Quadrupeds, What They Are and Where Found: A Book of Zoology for Boys
Reid, Mayne
Mammals
With regard to tails, no breed has these appendages so developed as the
broad or fat-tailed sheep. This kind is supposed to have originally
come from Barbary; but they are now propagated in different parts of the
world. In Asia they are found among the Tartars, Persians, Buchanans,
and Thibetians. In Africa itself they are common among the Abyssinians,
and are also kept in large flocks by the Dutch colonists of the Cape.
The tails of these sheep are sometimes so large and heavy, that it is
with difficulty the animals can carry them; and in some instances they
are dragged along the ground as the sheep move from place to place! The
fat of which this appendage is composed is esteemed a great delicacy;
and at the Cape, as elsewhere, it constitutes an important article of
the _cuisine_.
There are several other curious breeds of sheep reared in the different
countries of Africa. These are, the Guinea sheep of the western coast;
the Morocco sheep, bred in the kingdom of the same name; the African
sheep, an inhabitant of the Sahara; and the smooth-haired African sheep.
There are also the Tezzan sheep, belonging to Tripoli; the Saint Helena
sheep, of the celebrated Island of Saint Helena; the Congo sheep, of
Congo; and the Angolas, of the same region, famous for the quality of
their wool--not to be confounded, however, with the Angora wool, which
is the produce of a goat. There are sheep in Tartary that eat bones
like dogs, and in Hindustan and Nepaul there are kinds that have four
horns each. These are the Dumbas. A little species exists in Iceland,
in which the horns sometimes grow to the number of eight--though four is
the more common number. America, too, has its varieties. These are the
Brazilian sheep, the Demerara breed, the South American sheep, and a
variety known as the West Indian.
In fact, go to whatever part of the world you may, you will find a
species or variety of this valuable animal, different in some respects
from all the others.
The _wild sheep_, like the wild goats, do not number a great many
species; but there are certainly several that are yet undescribed, and
perhaps there may be about a dozen in all. No doubt the great central
mountains of Asia, and also the ranges of Northern Africa, still
unexplored, will in time yield several new species of wild sheep.
Indeed, late travellers in the Himalayas speak of wild sheep that appear
to be essentially different from the _argali_, and other species already
known.
One species of wild sheep belongs to Europe--the Moufflon, which is to
this day found plentifully in the mountainous parts of Corsica, Cyprus,
and Candia. It was supposed to be the original of the tame breeds; but
this is a mere conjecture.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account