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Image: Unknown photographer via Pixdaus

The English language is quite unforgiving when it comes to sheep – it turns them into black ones or even casts sheep’s eyes on them. But far from being sheepish, these bovids like to have it their way, literally. As the following pictures show, roads, rivers and even steep, narrow bridges cannot deter a herd of sheep. And those surrounded and stuck better show some patience.

Easy does it – sheep crossing a narrow foot bridge in Nepal:

Image: David Green

Sheep in Tusheti, Georgia crossing the Alazani River:

Image: Hans Heiner Buhr

Have you ever wondered if a group of sheep is called a herd or a flock? Well, it’s both actually. And those a little more adventurous can even say a mob of sheep.

A flock of sheep blocking the road near Gold Hill, Utah:

Image: Tony Huegel

Out of the way, you ugly can-on-wheels:

Image: tiagawolf

As respected members of the traffic community, sheep even have their own street signs.

A sign in Dublin, Ireland warning of impending sheep traffic:
Image: mcaronnd

Sheep overrunning a bus stop in Northern Ireland:

Image: Kym Pearce

Traffic jam on a road in New Zealand:

Image via photostuff.org

And near Patearoa in Otago, New Zealand:

Image: Phillip Capper

Here’s an interesting statistic: There are about one billion(!) domestic sheep in the world. No wonder really, if one considers that the sheep was one of the earliest animals domesticated for agricultural purposes.

I see sheep on the horizon:

Image: airic33

What are you looking at? Sheep stopping traffic in Sanpete County, UT:

Image: Ann Torrence

Of those one billion sheep, about 158 million live in China (that’s about one tenth of a sheep per inhabitant), just a bit over 100 million in Australia (five sheep per inhabitant), 63 million in India (about one twentieth of a sheep per inhabitant; maybe one lamb shank?), 54 million in Iran, 48 million in Sudan (pretty much exactly one sheep per inhabitant), 39 million in New Zealand (a record 9 sheep per inhabitant), 36 million in the UK and 25 million in South Africa (according to UN FAO 2004 figures). Wow, that’s a whole lot of sheep!

Sheep can even stop trucks, here in India:

Image via India Mike

A sheep herd on a road in Ireland:

Image: Rambling traveler

Round the bend – don’t come the wrong way:

Image: Unknown photographer via Pixdaus

For those who started counting sheep – stop yawning and watch the following video of a family stuck in sheep traffic in Ioannina, Greece.

Source: 1, 2

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