Overview
The urial is considered one of the smaller species of wild sheep. The Blanford urial is similar to the Afghan urial but smaller in body size with a smaller bib and neck ruff and no distinct saddle patch. Noticeable features are the reddish-brown long fur that fades during winter; males are characterized by a black ruff stretching from the neck to the chest. Males have large horns, curling outwards from the top of the head turning in to end behind the head. Females have slender upward curving horns about 5 inches (12.7 cm) long.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammal
- Order
- Artiodactyla
- Family
- Bovidae
- Genus
- Ovis
- Species
- Urial, vignei
Habitat
Prefers arid hills at modest elevations.
Diet
Primarily a grazer, but will browse when necessary.
Behavior
In their native habitat, mating season begins in September, where they will select 4-5 ewes, who will give birth to one or two lambs after 5 months of gestation. Rams determine hierarchy based on age, aggression, and size of horns. They will ram straight into each other by running and butting heads, or rearing up on their back legs and coming down upon their rivals . These battles can be brutal in nature and as a result injuries are often sustained. During other times of the year outside of the mating season, rams are solitary.
Hunting
The best hunting months in their native range are November through March, and on high fence ranches in North America they can be hunted year round. In their native habitat, and habitat that resembles their native habitat, they are primarily hunted by any number of spot and stalk methods, or waiting in an area with visibility in a known travel route. Proper glassing equipment, footwear, pysical stamina, and a medium caliber rifle sighted in for longer ranges is preferred. A 300. win mag and similair calibers work well for this type of hunting. On private ranches they can be hunted by any means acceptible to the outfitter and legal in that area. Many are hunted on high fence ranches, but there are still opportunities to hunt them in their native range. The hunts in their native range are undoubtly more costly and difficult due to the terrain and travel to and from the countries that it can be hunted. When traveling to their native range, a properly vetted outfitter is a necessity. Hunters consider 28-30 inches to be a very good specimen.
Conservation Status
IUCN has not assigned this subspecies its own conservation status. This urial is threatened as their habitat is perfectly suitable for human development; however the urial population has been recovering in recent years. More information is needed regarding current conservation efforts and the best way forward for future conservation of the species.