With the aliases of Mongolian Wild Ass, Hungry Ass, and Wild Ass, it belongs to the Eqiodae family of Perissodactyla order. Its scientific name is Equus hemionus (Latin) and Asiatic Wild Ass (English).
It belongs to the large-size ungulate. Its appearance is like the mule, and the body length can reach up to 260 centimeters, with shoulder height of about 120 centimeters, tail length of about 80 centimeters, and body weight of about 250 kilograms. Its mouth is slightly slender, and ears are long and pointed. The tail is slender, with long brownish yellow hair. It has four powerful limbs, and hoofs are smaller than those of horses but slightly bigger than those of home ass. Its nape has short bristle, and cervical backside, shoulder, and back are pale yellow brown. There is a slip of tan back line extending to caudal basal portion on the middle of the back. Its belly is yellowish white. And color of its chest, the part below the neck and the belly is not obviously different form the color of backside hair.
Belonging to the kind of typical desert animal, it lives in wide prairie, semi-desert and desert belts on tableland at an elevation of about 3,800 meters, with a lifespan of about 25 to 30 years. It is able to endure thirst, feeding on grass genus such as grass family, sedge family and lily family. In winter it mainly eats snow to avoid thirst. Its yell is similar to that of a home ass, but brief and hoarse. Its oestrous and mating is between August and September. Vying females among the males is impetuous and the winner holds mating right first. Gestation period lasts about 11 months, with one baby per fetus. It grows to sexual maturity at the age of 3 to 4. In 1956, Beijing Zoo began to breed them, and in 1961 the breeding was successful.
Distributed in Asian hinterland, Asiatic Wild Ass is not the ancestor of the present home ass. Home ass originated from African Wild Ass. Asiatic Wild Ass is good at running, and even wolf group cannot catch up with them. But owing to its nature of "curiosity", it frequently follows hunters, and the bold ones may run up to neighborhood of the tent to pry, giving the poachers an opportunity.
It is distributed in Gansu Province, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The estimated quantity exceeds a hundred thousand heads. It has been listed in Appendix I ofInternational Trade Convention on Endangered Wild Animal and Plant Species.
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