Bharal
Pseudois nayaur (Hodgson, 1833)
The bharal (Pseudois nayaur), also called naur, blue sheep or greater blue sheep, is a mammal in the family Bovidae, subfamily Antilopinae and tribe Caprini. It is a large, terrestrial herbivore with a cathemeral activity pattern and an adult body mass of 45 kg, with values up to 52.33 kg reported.
Quick facts about the bharal
Gestation lasts 159.7 days, litters average 1.5 young, sexual maturity comes at 1.6 years, and its lifespan is 20.85 years, with values up to 24 years reported. The IUCN Red List classes the bharal as Least Concern in its global assessment, which is not a threatened category.
- Weight
- 45 kg – 52.3 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- 1.15 m – 1.65 msrc for Length
- Lifespan
- 20.9 years – 24 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Herbivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- rockysrc for Habitat
- Gestation
- 160 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1.5src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 18.6 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Active
- Day and night (cathemeral)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the bharal?
Photos of the bharal
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Where does the bharal live?
Not recorded
What is the bharal?
The bharal (Pseudois nayaur), also called the blue sheep, is a caprine native to the high Himalayas. It inhabits the Himalayan alpine meadows and rocky slopes across Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan, typically at altitudes of 2,200–5,500 m (7,200–18,000 ft).
The bharal is the only member of its genus Pseudois and is genetically closer to goats (Capra) than sheep (Ovis). Two main subspecies are recognized: the Himalayan blue sheep (P. n. nayaur) and the Chinese blue sheep (P. n. szechuanensis), with recent studies suggesting the Helanshan blue sheep may be a distinct subspecies. The dwarf blue sheep was once considered a separate species but is now classified as a variant of the Chinese blue sheep.
The bharal is a medium-sized caprine, measuring 115–165 cm (45–65 in) in length, and weighing 35–75 kg (77–165 lb). It has a slate-grey fur with white underparts. Both sexes have horns, with the males having larger curved horns measuring up to 80 cm (31 in). The Helanshan variant is smaller in size, with less pronounced sexual dimorphism and straighter horns.
The bharal is mainly a grazer, feeding on grasses, but also browses shrubs when food is scarce. It relies on camouflage and shelter under the cliffs to evade predators. Rutting occurs from late November to mid-January, with males usually engaging in various maneuvers to mate. Though it is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN, it face threats from poaching and competition with livestock, but these impacts are limited due to their often isolated and rugged habitats.
From the Wikipedia article “Bharal” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bharal&oldid=1365801056), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the bharal endangered?
The bharal is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the bharal classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderArtiodactyla
- familyBovidae
- genusPseudois
- SpeciesPseudois nayaur (Hodgson, 1833)
Synonyms Ouvis nayaur, Ovis barhal, Ovis burhel, Ovis burrhel, Ovis nahoor, Ovis nahura, Ovis nayaur
Other names and names in other languages (37)
- Blue sheepEnglish
- Blue sheepEnglish
- Greater blue sheepEnglish
- Greater blue sheepEnglish
- NaurEnglish
- BlouskaapAfrikaans
- Himalaja-blouskaapAfrikaans
- بيرالArabic
- خروف أزرقArabic
- deaxukolKotava
- ভরালBangla
- གནའ་བ་Tibetan
- NaTibetan
- nahur modrýCzech
- NahurGerman
- BlauschafGerman
- Großes BlauschafGerman
- Cabra Azul del HimalayaSpanish
- baraaliFinnish
- Grand bharalFrench
- भरलHindi
- भरड़Hindi
- バーラルJapanese
- ブルーシープJapanese
- 바랄Korean
- 바위양Korean
- BlåsauNorwegian Bokmål
- नाउरNepali
- BlauwschaapDutch
- nahur górskiPolish
- BaralPortuguese
- Carneiro-azulPortuguese
- Голубой баранRussian
- 岩羊Chinese
- QingyangChinese
- ShiyangChinese
- YanyangChinese
Relatives of the bharal
Other species in the same genus Pseudois.
Dwarf bharal
Pseudois schaeferi
CompareBharal vs Dwarf bharal
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the bharal?
The bharal is a mammal in the family Bovidae and the tribe Caprini, within the order Artiodactyla. It is also called the blue sheep.
How heavy is a bharal?
An adult bharal weighs 45 kg, and our sources report values up to 52.33 kg.
What does the bharal eat?
The bharal is a herbivore.
Is the bharal endangered?
No. The bharal is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
How long does a bharal live?
The bharal's lifespan is 20.85 years, with values up to 24 years reported by our sources.
How long is the bharal's gestation period?
Gestation lasts 159.7 days, with a highest reported value of 160 days, and litters average 1.5 young.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Bharal (Pseudois nayaur). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/bharal
“Bharal (Pseudois nayaur).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/bharal.
@misc{bharal_2026,
title = {Bharal (Pseudois nayaur)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/bharal},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}