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  • Explore Akrotiri

Ovis aries

Linnaeus, 1758
Chordata » Artiodactyla » Bovidae » Ovis aries
Common name (English)
Domestic sheep
Common name (Greek)
Πρόβατο, Κουέλλα
Ηabitat
E: Grasslands
F: Heathland
G: Woodland
X: Miscellaneous
Global distribution

Australia 13 0; Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China) 373 0; North America 132 0; Oceania 131 0; South America 104 0

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Establishment status
Unknown
Establishment status detail

Alien:

"The rate of introduction continued to increase during the first half of the 10th millennium, with the new introduction of two wild animals, fox (Vulpes vulpes) and the Persian fallow deer (Dama dama mesopotamica), and one new domestic taxon, sheep (Ovis aries)" (Vigne et al. 2014).

"The presence of mouflon in Cyprus is believed to date back to around 10,000 years ago (YA) [2]. Recent paleontological findings [25] indicated that the first sheep (O. aries) were introduced in Cyprus during the first half of the 10th millennium BP, then replaced 500 years later by bigger sheep presumably introduced in the island from Syria. Based on the shape and size of the horns of these prehistoric animals, these sheep were similar to the wild sheep of the nearby mainland [25–26]" (Sanna et al. 2015)

Online resource
http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=5…
Pathway
2 ESCAPE FROM CONFINEMENT - Farmed animals – Farm
Pathway detail

Introduced to the island around 10500 BCE.

References

Vigne JD, Zazzo A, Cucchi T, Carrère I, Briois F, Guilaine J (2014) The transportation of mammals to Cyprus sheds light on early voyaging and boats in the Mediterranean sea. Eurasian Prehistory 10(1-2): 157–176.

Sanna D, Barbato M, Hadjisterkotis E, Cossu P, Decandia L, Trova S, Pirastru M, Leoni GG, Naitana S, Francalucci P, Masala B, Manca L, Mereu P (2015) The First Mitogenome of the Cyprus Mouflon (Ovis gmelini ophion): New Insights into the Phylogeny of the Genus Ovis. PLOS ONE 10(12): e0144257. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0144257

Zeder MA (2008) Domestication and early agriculture in the Mediterranean Basin: Origins, diffusion, and impact. PNAS 105(33): 11597-11604. http://www.pnas.orgcgidoi10.1073pnas.0801317105%20pna/

"UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology"
Joint Service Health Unit
University of Cyprus - Department of Biological Sciences
Darwin Initiative
Akrotiri Environment

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