Ladakh Tourism --» Wildlife in Ladakh --» Urial

Urial

The urial or shapu, (Ovis orientalis), which weighs 85 Kg. and has horns measuring upto 99 cm., is the smallest of the world sheep in eastern Asia, its body just about as tall as its horns.

These sheep prefer the grassy mountain slopes, usually at a height of 3,000 - 4,000 meters. The meeting of this species, as is the case with most sheep during December-January and they give birth to their young around May.

The need for protection of the urial is great as they are with in easy reach of hunters. Their numbers have been declining rapidly and it is estimated that there are no more than 500 in Ladakh, while a survey by the Wildlife Department of Jammu & Kashmir puts another population in the Markha and Rumbak valleys at only around 34-50.

The most common and wide spread of the sheep in the Ladakh region is the bharal or the blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur).

Found at an altitude of almost 6,000 meters, in summer they graze in huge herds on the rich and abundant grasses of the alpine meadows.

Their brownish-gray coloring provides them with protective camouflage and as they often stand motionless they can be extremely difficult to spot but, when alarmed, bharal will bolt swiftly to safety.

Strangely, bharal seem to bear some morphological traits of both sheep and goats.



Animals Found in Ladakh:

- Yak
- Nyan
- Urial
- Ibex
- Predators (Snow leopard, Brown bear, Wolf, Lynx)
- Avifauna



Wildlife in Ladakh Reservation Form