 Originally given subspecific status to the bharal ("Pseudois nauyar"), morphological research conducted in the 1970s led it to be considered a distinct species.However, recent molecular analysis has shown the difference between the two species is slight, and suggests it should be treated as a subspecies of the bharal.The dwarf blue sheep differs from the bharal primarily in size, with adult males weighing around 35 kg, half as much as the bharal.