• Animalia

• Chordata

• Mammalia 

• Bovidae

• Artiodactyla

• Ovis Aries

• No subspecies 

• Were not reconized as a breed till 1962

• Closest living relative is the Suffolk Sheep

• Ovis Aries studeri is the only known ancestor

Blacknose sheep are mainly found in Switzerland. There is around 1000 mm of precipitation per year. There are many plants in Switzerland and lots of grass/mountain land. There is a variety of animals including deer, rodents, wolves, etc. The temperature there is similar to minnesota, it ranges from 24-48 degrees during the colder season and 65-82 degrees during the warmer season. The terrain consists of mainly mountains and grassland.

• Herbs/Plants

• Grass/Clover

• They tend to graze throughout the day

• No special foods

• Found in Switzerland and few parts of Germany 

• Not an invasive species 

• Tend to mate once a year

• Mate for life

• They are nonseasonal breeders

• Kicking and Nudging is considered a mating ritual for these sheep

• 1 offspring per year

• The females tend to breed with the less aggressive males

• They first multiply their weight by 70%, start to grow spiral horns, then females go into their first heat around 18 months

• At 18 months they can begin breeding 

• Fawns tend to stay near their mother during the first year or so

• The only difference between the males and females is whether they have spots under their tail or not

• Because the wolf popualtion is increasing, they are lowering the Blacknose sheep popualtion 

• Their is not much sexual competition within this breed 

• Footrot is the most common disease in this breed 

• No other causes known

• There is some competition between the males specifically

• There is minimal competition between Blacknose sheep and other species 

• When they compete, it is normally over a mate 

• There is not any invasive species effecting the blacknose sheep

• Humans have damaged their population by using the animal for their wool and meat

• This has decreased the popualtion and because the popualtion is already low, it could potentially be the cause of the species go extinct 

• Humans started interacting with this animal in the late 1800's

• People are now starting to lower the amount of resources they are using from the sheep