Snow Leopard Elegy

Chapter 20 Opening the Leopard Cage (2)
I think that the reason why the Hongya sheep flock split into several small groups is that apart from the fact that mammals are inherently territorial, the key is that the food resources in the Nahu River Valley in winter are limited. In the past, when there were only 66 Hongya sheep, They can only live half-starved and half-fed, and now the number of the group has suddenly increased to a hundred or so, and the food is even more tense.Out of a panic of hunger, the sheep bullied the weak and occupied the woods.

I want to use the method of diversion to help half of the weak sheep who have no fixed food source to survive the famine.Specifically, they were moved out of the narrow Nahuk Valley and into the neighboring Black Forest.From the Nahu River Valley to the Black Forest, the distance is not far, as long as you turn over the double hump-shaped snow-capped mountain pass in the west, you will arrive.I used the method of food to lure, and used grain to spread a line on the snow, which continued to the Black Forest.The hungry sheep picked up the grains and walked to the pass of the snow mountain, which is the dividing line between the Nahu River Valley and the Black Forest. They were about to finish their work, but suddenly they stopped and refused to leave.At this time, there were faint howls of wolves in the black forest, and the sheep turned their heads and ran away in panic, and fled back to the Nahu River Valley.Then I tried two more times, both failed.Hongya sheep lack the spirit of pioneering and enterprising by nature. They would rather stay in poor families and starve than venture out of the Nahu River Valley.

The weather is getting colder and the snow is getting bigger and bigger.Half of the weak sheep are getting more and more miserable. They either sneak into the woods to eat a couple of bites of bark, or rely on me to donate limited grains, or use sheep's hooves and snouts to break through the snow layer and eat decayed grass.In mid-winter, the strong sheep occupying the woods stepped up their vigilance, and it was difficult to steal the bark. However, because the mountain road was blocked by heavy snow, the grain could not be transported in. The stored grain was only enough to maintain the life of Qiangba and me. Help them again.The snow layer on the ground is getting thicker and thicker, and some places form ice that is difficult to dig, and they are in a desperate situation.Almost every day I can find a red cliff sheep that has turned into starvation.Their hind legs are kneeling in the snow, their front hooves are still planing, their mouths are full of ice, their eyes are flickering with hunger, but their bodies have long been frozen into hard lumps of ice.It's not hard to imagine that at the last moment of their lives, they still yearn to dig out some dead grass from under the ice and snow to make a living. The snow is so thick that their weakened lives are like candlelight in the wind. Stopped beating, like the wind blowing out the faint candlelight...

These snow lands were starving, so they had to be dragged here as food for the two snow leopards in the cage.

When the first spring thunder exploded, I picked up a total of 33 Hongya sheep that died of hunger and cold in the snow.

That day, I went to Yunwu Cliff to investigate the life of golden eagles. When I came back at dusk, I passed through the birch forest. The gray beard of the sheep bleated at me in a sad and angry tone, full of complaints and reproaches.Oh, old man, don't be discouraged, look, the sun is shining, the snow is melting, the trees are green, the grass is green, spring is here, and everything will be all right.

When food is plentiful, all evils caused by hunger will automatically cease, I think.

Five Docile Red Cliff Sheep Turned War Mad
The bright spring is like a peaceful Buddha light shining on the flock of Hongya sheep.The strong ram voluntarily gave up the woods they had occupied for the whole winter and came to the grassy hillside.The separatist situation was broken. At least on the surface, more than 70 Hongya sheep formed another group.The sheep, who were tortured physically and mentally by hunger, had no time to care about other things. They buried their heads in grazing all day long, and when they were full, they would lazily lie on the stones to bask in the sun.

To survive winter is spring; to survive war is peace; to survive turmoil is tranquility; to survive hardship is happiness.

However, the peace and tranquility of the Red Cliff flock only lasted for more than a month, and new turmoil and wars began again. Moreover, the scale was larger than the food war in winter, and the fighting was more brutal and the consequences were more tragic.

After more than a month of rest and recuperation, and more than a month of eating and sleeping, all the Hongya sheep are fat and strong, and they are full of energy.When the season enters mid-spring, the biological clock in the Hongya sheep also points to the estrus and courtship period.The ambitious big white-horned ram took the lead in provoking trouble again, driving several young and beautiful ewes in the flock to a platform halfway up the mountain, then shook the horns on its head, and faced the sheep aggressively. The group of bleats and roars seemed to be announcing in public: These ewes belong to me!

Da Baijiao's overbearing behavior was like lighting the fuse on the dynamite package, and the flock of sheep exploded into a mess.Many big rams followed the example of Big White Horn and guarded their favorite ewes, roaring like declaring war.In only half an hour at most, the ewes in the flock were divided up like property.Originally, the number of male and female sheep in the Hongya flock was equal, but among the 33 sheep that starved to death in winter, most of them were female sheep, and the ratio of male to female was seriously out of balance.Hongya sheep practice polygamous marriage customs, at least half of the male sheep are shut out of love.Those single male sheep that didn't trap the ewes in time kept sharpening their horns on the tree trunks and rocks, staring at a pair of bloodshot eyes, and ran violently on the mountain path, from time to time, they rushed towards those that were trapped and The ram guarding the ewe bleats, venting its resentment and jealousy.

Thus began the prelude to the war.

The reason why the Ya sheep are called Ya sheep is because this type of sheep is good at climbing steep mountain roads and likes to live on high cliffs.I don't know whether it is due to the habits of the species, or out of safety considerations, those lucky rams have settled their ewes on steep slopes or cliffs, and the terrain is very steep.

I could see clearly through the binoculars that a ram I named Big Butt jumped to the platform halfway up the mountain and challenged the big white horn.The big buttocks are also excellent big rams in the Hongya flock, with thick horns, especially well-developed hind limbs, round hips like drums, and strong legs like pillars.The big buttocks and the big white horns are more than 20 meters apart, staring at each other's blood-red eyes, bleating, lowering their heads and straightening their necks, showing their horns, and rushing towards each other with hooves raised, boom, the horns collided violently, A string of sparks burst out, echoing in the valley, startling the birds in the bushes to flee in all directions.The two rams were shaken back several steps, the big buttocks staggered, and the big white horn fell to the ground.They struggled to get up, roared and rushed towards each other...

A few ewes stood on the sidelines quietly watching the fierce fight between the big buttocks and the big white horns, waiting for them to decide the winner. According to the sheep's habit, the winner is the groom and the loser is a wimp.

After more than a dozen rounds, the face of the big buttocks was covered with blood, the tip of the horn was broken, the neck of the big white horn was twisted, and a long bloody hole was knocked open on the bend of the front leg.Unexpectedly, the Hongya sheep, who was very weak in front of the carnivorous beasts, was extremely brave in the nest fight, full of heroic spirit of facing death as home.Although they were all wounded, none of them refused to back down, still holding their horns and desperately charging towards each other.

The more cowardly you are externally, the more violent you are internally. This may be a rule in the animal world, I think.

After more than thirty rounds, the strength of the big buttocks gradually ran out, and he was forced to the edge of the cliff.It tried its best to reverse the defeat, kicked its two hind hooves on a stone, stretched its body, trying to push back the big white horn by pushing a bull.Unfortunately, the rock it was stepping on with its hind hoofs suddenly became loose, and it was unprepared, and it stumbled and fell from a cliff tens of feet high.

"Baa-baa-" Da Baijiao raised his neck excitedly and hummed.

Between the cliffs and the crags, the desperate fight between ram and ram can be seen everywhere.

The Nahu River Valley became a veritable battlefield, and the clashing sound of horns and horns kept coming and going.I slept in the tent in the middle of the night, and I could hear the sound of the failed ram falling from the cliff into the abyss.

A week later, I counted them with a telescope, and the number of Hongya sheep dropped sharply, from more than 70 to about [-].As far as I know, the estrus period of the Hongya sheep flock lasts for more than a month, and lasts from mid-spring to late spring. If the number of people is reduced at this rate, by the end of the estrus period, there may be very few Hongya sheep left.

What shocked me the most was that many sheep, especially those born last year, have also had changes in the color of their body hair; in previous springs, although their body hair was not as brightly red as in winter, it was still brownish-yellow to reddish , without losing the characteristics of Hongya sheep; but now, the body hair of the old sheep is mostly brownish-yellow to blue, and the red luster on the body has obviously faded; and the sheep born last year, God knows what is going on, the body hair is gray-brown, Only a faint layer of water-red phantom remains on the tip of the hair.I read many reference books and learned that if animals are in an anxious and irritable mental state for a long time, their endocrine will be out of balance, which will cause their body hair to become dull and discolored.

The reason why Hongya sheep is precious and unique is that it has a docile personality and red body hair.The docile personality has long since ceased to exist. If even the coat color becomes the same as other types of Ya sheep, grayish brown and blue, then the unique value of the Red Cliff sheep will disappear.

what to do?what to do?I am at a loss.

Six flocks demand release of snow leopards

My Tibetan guide Jamba went to the town yesterday afternoon to purchase the daily necessities we need, and I slept alone in the tent.It was already dawn, and I was too lazy to get up. I read a monograph on Ya sheep in the bed, hoping to find a solution to the survival crisis faced by the Hongya sheep herd.

"Baa—" There was a sheep cry next to my ear, followed by the chaotic sound of sheep hooves.Through the yak skin, I saw the shadows of several sheep swaying outside the tent.Red Cliff sheep often come to the observation station to lick the salt water we spilled on the ground, but I don't care.

Suddenly, there was a bang, as if a sheep was hitting the wooden stakes that fixed the tent. The tent trembled, and the shotguns, chopsticks holders, and satchels hanging on it fell down.You guys are a little too naughty. I yelled loudly, trying to scare them away, but instead of driving them away, my yelling attracted more violent impacts.Boom, boom, the tent is shaking and tilting, falling down.I hurriedly turned over, picked up a cowhide whip, lifted the door curtain, and rushed out of the tent, preparing to teach those mischievous Hongya sheep a lesson.

I stepped out of the tent and was stunned.Greybeard, the head sheep, and three old goats were trying to knock down my tent with their horns and hoofs in a rage.Their eyes were full of hatred, as if my tent was a sworn enemy, and they trampled and bumped violently.I realized that a cowhide whip would not help, and I should change to a shotgun. I was just about to turn around, wow, the yak leather tent was knocked down by them, and I couldn't find my shotgun in a short time.

At this time, the gray beard raised his head and let out a bleat, staring at two bloodshot eyes, hooking his head, sticking out his pair of horns, all the muscles in his body were tense, snorted, and rushed towards me with a bang. .That posture is exactly the same as the fight between two rams for a mate.These old guys, who have suffered a defeat in love, want to take it out on me.I don't have any ewes here, and I'm not interested in ewes at all, but can they understand reasoning with them?I don't have horns on my head. If I collide with Gray Beard, I'm afraid I'll get a concussion.

The hero doesn't suffer from immediate losses, and the 36 plan is the best. I dodged to the side, and the gray beard hit the air, and I ran away.But after running for a few steps, I was overtaken by three other old sheep. Four sheep stood in four directions, surrounded me in the middle.Boom, I was hit on the back and fell forward involuntarily. The gray beard standing in front hit a guy on my chest. I fell crookedly to one side and was pushed hard by the impolite old sheep out...

I seem to be a meat ball, they are playing with the ball.They had a good time, and I had a hard time.After being pushed twice, my ribs started to ache. My heart was filled with all sorts of messes, and I felt so bored that I wanted to vomit. "Meaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa is" Graybeard yelled in a steady voice, and the other three old goats stopped bumping me.I couldn't stand and fell to the ground.Baa baa, the gray beard yelled close to my ear, as if urging me to stand up quickly.I prefer not to get up on the ground, how can you still treat me like a meat ball?Greybeard saw that I was cheating, so he raised one of his front hooves high, and raised it to my face, making a stampede.The hooves of the Hongya sheep are as hard as iron and as big as a hammer, and the sixteen hooves are like sixteen hammers. If they were really hammered down on my face, it would be no wonder that my face would not be flattened by the hammer.In comparison, standing up as a meatball seems to suffer less.Helpless, I had to struggle to stand up.

The strange thing is that they stopped prodding me with their horns. The gray beard came up to me and looked at me with sad and begging eyes, "baa-baa--" one after another, in a desolate way.The other three old goats also bleated at me with the same expression and the same tone.They don't seem to want to kill me, but are venting their dissatisfaction with me, pouring out their resentment, and then hoping that I can do something for them.If they really wanted to take my life and slammed into each other violently, I would have been wailing long ago.But I didn't understand what they wanted me to do, and I looked at them blankly.

The gray beard of the sheep put his horns on my waist, twisted my neck, and turned my body ninety degrees, facing the grassy path behind the tent.Then, its horns pressed against my back and pushed me down the path.At the end of the path is the Leopard Cage.The two snow leopards, which have been imprisoned in the cage for ten months, are lying on the stake, looking anxiously at the path, waiting for me to feed them.

When we were about [-] meters away from the cage, the two snow leopards smelled the scent of the red cliff sheep, couldn't hold back their inner excitement, and let out earth-shattering roars.The old goats were scared and trembling. The other three old goats stopped, not daring to go any further. Only the gray beard still had the guts to push me all the way to the leopard cage. "Baa—" it called to me in a strange tone of despair and longing.

I shuddered, and suddenly had an inspiration. The reason why Graybeard pushed me to the leopard cage was because he wanted me to open the leopard cage?In order to verify my idea, I tremblingly took out the key, pretended to unlock it, and looked back at Graybeard's reaction.Greybeard jumped five or six feet backwards, bleating in panic.Maybe, I misunderstood their intentions, they just want to see the natural enemy that I have detained for ten months, just like ordinary prison visits.But when I put down the key, the gray beard turned around and ran back, hooked his head at me, bleating viciously, and that move was clearly forcing me to complete the unlocking action.

I put the key into the lock, and with a crisp click, the lock opened.Greybeard turned around again and fled five or six feet away, then stopped, his front legs stretched and his rear legs bent, his body was still in a fleeing posture, his neck was turned back, and he bleated at me with a deep and powerful voice, It exudes an unwavering flavor.

It couldn't be more clear, it just wants me to open the leopard cage!

My heart fluttered.I think back when I put these two snow leopards in the cage, these red cliff sheep were as happy as a festival, and the gray beard still licked my shoes to thank me, but after only ten months, these red cliff sheep used force Threatening me to open the leopard cage.Everyone knows what it means for Hongya sheep to open the leopard cage.The devil came out of the hole, the god of death came, and the bloody slaughter started again!However, they wanted to invite the two snow leopards back like a god.

I unlocked it, opened the leopard cage a little, and then climbed up the tree.

The two snow leopards stepped out of the cage majestically and stretched their waists in the sun.Greybeard bleat in horror, and fled quickly to the Nahu Valley with the three old sheep.The snow leopard roared and chased after it.In the Nahu River Valley, a life-and-death chase unfolded.

Like a sudden power outage, the sound of horns clashing between cliffs and cliffs stopped.In the next few days, I never saw the ram who fell off the cliff and died because of the fight.Perhaps, for Hongya sheep who lack pioneering spirit and are obsessed with fighting in the nest, the existence of natural enemies is not a bad thing.

Life has gone in a circle, from the end to the beginning.

More than three months later, I met the Hongya sheep again on the river beach. They had reddish hair, grazing quietly, and surrounded the head sheep with gray beard docilely.I counted, no more, no less, exactly 66.Perhaps, in the narrow Nahu River Valley, two snow leopards and 66 Hongya sheep are the best balance point.

Animal Archives - Leopard
[Latin name of leopard] Leopard: Pantherapardus
Snow Leopard: Pantherauncia
[Zoological classification of leopards]

Leopard, Mammalia, Carnivora, Felidae.Common name for leopards.It belongs to the same cat family as lions and tigers in classification, but it belongs to another genus-Panthera.

The largest group of leopards is the leopard. Because they have many round spots in the shape of copper coins used in ancient times, they are named leopards.In addition, there are snow leopards, jaguars and so on.Some scientists also classify pumas as leopards, but the jury is still out.

The African cheetah, known as the animal sprint champion, is not a leopard, although it bears the word leopard. It can only be said to be a distant relative of the leopard.It is not a different genus or species from the leopard in classification. It belongs to the genus Cheetah.

The beautiful clouded leopard is also known as black clouded leopard, tortoise-shell leopard, tortoise-striped leopard, and lotus-leaf leopard. Although their names all have the word leopard attached to them, they have nothing to do with leopards. In animal taxonomy, it belongs to the genus Clouded Leopard of the cat family.

[Geographic distribution of leopards]
The leopard is widely distributed, and it can be found in most parts of Asia and Africa.Due to different origins, different body sizes, and different shades of coat color, leopards have many names.

For example, those produced in the African savannah with large stripes are called leopards or African leopards; those produced in Somalia, Africa, and the smallest are called Japanese leopards; those produced in America are called jaguars; those produced in China are commonly called leopards.

(End of this chapter)