Kazakhstan: Ustyurt Mountain Sheep
White hiking to the Beket Ata Underground Mosque we twice got super lucky to spot the very rare Ustyurt Mountain sheep (Ovis gmelini cycloceros in Latin). It is a subspecies of the arkhar or muflon or urial – a mountain goat with huge horns sparsely spread out through high mountainous area of Asia and almost everywhere seriously endangered. This Ustyurt subspecies leaves relatively low above sea level in the desert, but still in the area of sharp cliffs and rocky outcrops. Sightings are very rare.
