Sheep (Ovis aries) are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name "sheep" applies to many species in the genus Ovis, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries. Numbering a little over one billion, domestic sheep are also the most numerous species of sheep. Sheep husbandry is practised throughout the majority of the inhabited world, and has been fundamental to many civilizations. In the modern era, Australia, New Zealand, the southern and central South American nations, and the British Isles are most closely associated with sheep production. The domestic sheep is a multi-purpose animal, with more than 200 breeds now in existence. Flock behaviour in sheep is generally only exhibited in groups of four or more sheep; fewer sheep may not react as expected when alone or with few other sheep. Farmers exploit flocking behaviour to keep sheep together on unfenced pastures such as hill farming, and to move them more easily.
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Location: Malham Cove, Yorkshire
Photo credit: © John Porter LRPS / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
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