Dall Sheep
Dall Sheep (Ovis dalli dalli) Dall Sheep ram at the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage, Alaska.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Subfamily: Caprinae Genus: Ovis Species: dalli
Binomial name
Ovis dalli Nelson, 1884

The Dall Sheep (originally Dall's Sheep, sometimes called Thinhorn sheep), Ovis dalli, is wild sheep of the mountainous regions of northwest North America, ranging from white to slate brown and having curved yellowish horns. There are two subspecies, the northern Dall sheep proper (Ovis dalli dalli) which is almost pure white, and the more southern and larger Stone sheep ((Ovis dalli stonei), which is a slaty brown with some white patches on the rump and inside the hind legs. An intermediately coloured population, called Fannin sheep, is found in the Pelly Mountains of the south-central Yukon. It is closely related to the Siberian Snow sheep (Ovis nivicola) and some taxonomists consider it the same species. Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Subclass Monotremata Monotremata Subclass Marsupialia Didelphimorphia Paucituberculata Microbiotheria Dasyuromorphia Peramelemorphia Notoryctemorphia Diprotodontia Subclass Placentalia Xenarthra Dermoptera Desmostylia Scandentia Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Insectivora Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals characterized by the presence of mammary glands... Families Suidae Hippopotamidae Tayassuidae Camelidae Tragulidae Moschidae Cervidae Giraffidae Antilocapridae Bovidae The even-toed ungulates form the mammal order Artiodactyla. ... Subfamilies Bovinae Cephalophinae Hippotraginae Antilopinae Caprinae A bovid is any of almost 140 species of cloven-hoofed mammals belonging to the family Bovidae. ... Genera Capricornis Nemorhaedus Rupicapra Oreamnos Budorcas Ovibos Hemitragus Ammotragus Pseudois Capra Ovis Pantholops A goat antelope is any of the species of mostly medium-sized herbivores that make up the subfamily Caprinae or the single species in subfamily Panthalopinae. ... Binomial name Ovis aries Linnaeus, 1758 A sheep is any of several woolly ruminant quadrupeds, but most commonly the Domestic Sheep (Ovis aries), which probably descends from the wild moufflon of south-central and south-west Asia. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is a standard convention used for naming species. ...

The species is named after William Healey Dall (1845-1927), an American naturalist. William Healey Dall, (August 21, 1845 - March 27, 1927), was a great American naturalist and a prominent malacologist. ...

The sheep inhabit the mountain ranges of Alaska, the Yukon Territory, the Mackenzie Mountains in the western Northwest Territories, and northern British Columbia. Dall sheep are found in relatively dry country and try to stay in a special combination of open alpine ridges, meadows, and steep slopes with extremely rugged ground in the immediate vicinity, in order to escape from predators that cannot travel quickly through such terrain. State nickname: The Last Frontier, The Land of the Midnight Sun Other U.S. States Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Governor Frank Murkowski Official languages English Area 1,717,854 km² (1st)  - Land 1,481,347 km²  - Water 236,507 km² (13. ... Motto: none Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Whitehorse Largest city Whitehorse Commissioner Jack Cable Premier Dennis Fentie (Yukon Party) Area 482,443 km² (9th)  - Land 474,391 km²  - Water 8,052 km² (1. ... The Mackenzie Mountains are a mountain range forming part of the Yukon-Northwest Territories boundary between the Liard and Peel rivers. ... A former territory in the United States is called Northwest Territory. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Splendour without diminishment) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Lieutenant Governor Iona Campagnolo Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Area 944,735 km² (5th)  - Land 925,186 km²  - Water 19,549 km² (2. ...

Male Dall sheep have thick curling horns. The females have shorter, more slender, slightly curved horns. Males live in bands which seldom associate with female groups except during the mating season in late November and early December. Lambs are born in May.

During the summer when food is abundant, the sheep eat a wide variety of plants. During the winter diet is much more limited and consists primarily of dry, frozen grass and sedge stems available when snow is blown off, lichen and moss. Many Dall sheep populations visit mineral licks during the spring and often travel many miles to eat the soil around the licks.

Dall sheep are hunted by wolves, Grizzly bears and humans, and golden eagles are predators on the young. Binomial name Canis lupus Linnaeus, 1758 The Grey Wolf (Canis lupus), also known colloquially as just the wolf, is a mammal of the Canidae family and the ancestor of the domestic dog. ... Binomial name Ursus arctos Linnaeus, 1758 The Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) is a species of bear that can reach weights of 130–700 kg (300–1500 pounds). ... Binomial name Aquila chrysaetos Linnaeus, 1758 The Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is one of the best known birds of prey in the world. ...

Dall sheep can often be observed along the Alaska Highway at Sheep Mountain in Kluane National Park and Reserve, as well as near Faro, Yukon (Fannin sheep). The Alaska Highway, also Alaskan Highway, Alaska-Canadian Highway, Al-Can Highway, runs from Dawson Creek, British Columbia to Fairbanks, Alaska, via Whitehorse, Yukon. ... Kluane National Park and Reserve of Canada is located in the extreme southwestern corner of the Yukon territory in Canada. ... Faro is a small town in central Yukon, Canada, formerly the home of the largest open pit lead-zinc mine in the world as well as a significant producer of silver and other natural resource ventures. ...

Reference

A.W.F. Banfield (1974). The Mammals of Canada. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 0802021379