mouflon

American  

[moof-lon] / ˈmuf lɒn /

Or moufflon

noun

1. a wild sheep, Ovis musimon, inhabiting the mountainous regions of Sardinia and Corsica, the male of which has large curving horns.

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mouflon British  

/ ˈmuːflɒn /

noun

1. a wild short-fleeced mountain sheep, Ovis musimon, of Corsica and Sardinia

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Etymology

Origin of mouflon

First recorded in 1765–75; from French, from Italian muflone, originally dialectal; compare Corsican muffolo, Sardinian murone, Late Latin mufrō, stem mufrōn-, presumably from a pre-Latin substratal language

Example Sentences

It also is home to animals including deer, mouflon sheep and wild boars.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 24, 2024

Beneath soaring limestone walls, the boulder-strewn gorge is home to wildlife such as the mouflon and golden eagles.

From Washington Post • May 13, 2022

In particular, De Hoge Veluwe fears for its rare population of wild mouflon sheep, with their striking curled horns.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2019

"It has already been shown that wherever the wolf appears, the mouflon disappears," it warns.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2019

That problem also derailed domestication of North American bighorn sheep, which belong to the same genus as Asiatic mouflon sheep, ancestor of our domestic sheep.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond