A muvra, the Corsican mouflon, is ovis ammon musimon var. corsicana, a wild and reticent mountain sheep, whose origins lie in the Middle East and has been in Corsica since the Stone Age when they were domesticated, about seven thousand years BC. The moufflon was used for its meat and their coats. Their coats are shed naturally and consist of hair and kemp, which is coarser. It was used to make non-woven felt. Such felt was used to make the peloni, the traditional Corsican shepherds' capes.
The mouflon is presumed to have been widespread on the island in the middle ages, with middle eastern origins. The so-called Corsican mouflon generally includes Sardinian and Cypriot variants. However, the local population has been subject to hybridisation and thus has remained a specific subspecies.
There are many place names taken from the Corsican word muvra, for the race in general and the female, or u muvrone, the male and the young mouflon, i muvrini. Hence the name of the singing group, I Muvrini - the plural form. The 'corsiste' newspaper founded in 1920 was named after the animal - A Muvra - so that its intent could be easily appreciated. The mouflon is emblematic of Corsica, yet most Corsicans have never seen one and many human factors contribute to the risks the mouflon faces.
Sadly they are now reduced to an estimated 1000 animals, while there were about 4000 head in 1900. Hunting moufflon has been forbidden since 1955, but the increasing numbers of people and activity in the mountains put their survival at risk. The current rate of reproduction is insufficient to ensure the avoidance of the extinction of the species.
The threats include poaching - males for their horns and kids for meat; genetic impoverishment of the two separated herds; fire; wild boar hunting (the dogs/noise); extreme sports; catarrhal fever. Help is at hand with support from the EU Life Nature programme. The Parcu di Corsica is running a scheme to conserve (better surveillance; threat reduction; offer alternative food sources to the bearded vulture; public information) and to increase the population of Corsican mouflons (involving capture, breeding and then re-introducing specimens: 10-20 per year from 2006/7).
Mouflons live well away from people - nowadays mainly in the massifs of Bavella and Monte Cinto massif, including the higher parts of the Bonifatu forest. Apparently they can jump 2 metres, though I can't confirm this, for although I done a lot of walking in the mountains, I have never seen one. They are sheep after all and as César Mattei of the Parcu di Corsica tells me, they have been pushed by man into the mountains and have had to adapt; they are not naturally sure-footed like the deer. Their small numbers have had a negative effect upon the bearded vulture, for whom fallen mouflons are a significant food source!
They live on shoots of trees and shrubs, fruit such as chestnuts, berries, acorns and beechnuts, mushrooms, bracken and most of all, grass. The male grows to to about 2ft 6in at the shoulder and the female is slightly shorter. The male has wonderful horns, which are triangular at their base. They grow to an almost complete circle. These horns are often depicted in graphic form to symbolise the island. The special place of the moufflon in Corsican symbolism is based on its severe unconquerable wildness.
From: http://www.corsica-isula.com/symbols.htm
See also: http://www.corsica-isula.com/downloads/Corsican_Mouflon.pdf
