Armenian mouflon Armenian mouflon The Armenian mouflon (, "haykakan muflon"; , "Qutch-e armani"), also known as the Armenian sheep, Armenian wild sheep, Armenian red sheep, or trans-Caucasian sheep ("Ovis orientalis gmelini") is an endangered subspecies of mouflon endemic to Iran, Armenia, and Nakhchivan (Azerbaijan). The Armenian mouflon was first described in 1840 by Edward Blyth, who equated it with the "Orientalische Schaaf" (Oriental sheep) described by Samuel Gottlieb Gmelin in 1774. "O. o. gmelini" is found in northwestern Iran. Armenian mouflons were transferred to Kabudan (Kaboodan) Island in Lake Urmia in 1895 and 1906 by one of the governors of Azerbaijan. A
European mouflon (in 2005 there were 90,000), the largest population being in the Czech Republic (17,500). The population in Germany was around 15,600 animals in 2010 (c. 20,600 in 2005) living in about 120 groups. In Hungary there are around 10,600 and in Austria about 7,500 mouflon (no herds in Vorarlberg). In the early 1980s, mouflon migrated from France to the Swiss canton of Valais, where there are now two colonies with a population of around 200 animals. The IUCN considers the European mouflon to be 'at risk'. Mouflon have a well-developed vision and can recognize a man at a range of