Mountain goats. Wild goat, ibex and forest goat, wild chamois Name of goats with large horns

The mountain goat is a very interesting creature, from which, if you didn’t know, our domestic goats originated. All species of this beautiful animal are similar, but have many differences. Because of this, scientists around the world cannot determine how many species there actually are. The mountain goat in the photo, if you look at our article, is very attractive. In addition, you will learn the history of its appearance and receive information about its types.

The beginning of hunting these animals dates back to ancient times. The place where people first took these animals into their homes is considered to be the north of Iran. The horns of a large male were coveted trophies among tribal peoples in different parts of the world. Finding and trapping such an animal was not an easy task.

From these animals, people learned to peel off the skins from which they made shoes and clothes, and used them as material for homes. Mountain goat meat was especially prized and was considered a delicacy by ancient people. People also used fat in food. After extracting so many useful products from goats, ancient man domesticated wild goats along with dogs. That is why there are now so many different breeds of this magnificent animal in the world, for example, meat, dairy, intended for fluff, and others.

In the Middle Ages, their skins were used to make containers for food and wine. Wild goat milk is still valued for its nutritional properties.

IN modern world Mountain goats can be found high in mountain cliffs, or in large zoos. There they easily take root and reproduce brilliantly.

Since ancient times, it was believed that goats are symbols of dark, evil or devilish power. However, they are actually very intelligent creatures and are highly trainable. One of the constellations is named after Capricorn, named after these representatives of the animal kingdom. Their outlines can be found in the drawings of many peoples inhabiting Eurasia.

Breed subspecies

Now let's take a closer look at several species of this animal, which lives at an altitude of more than 5000 meters above sea level, and then admire the pictures in our gallery. They are hardy and can survive in places where there is practically no vegetation cover.

Horned goat

The horned goat is considered, according to true connoisseurs of the animal world, one of the most beautiful creations in nature. This wild animal lives high in the mountains of America, Europe and Asia. It is also called markhor. This name comes from the fact that its horns look like the screw of a corkscrew.

A horned goat can weigh up to 90 kg and grow up to 1.5 meters. This gives him clear advantages: he is able to climb steep mountain cliffs with lightning speed, easily move at high speed, which is why he is so difficult to catch, and sometimes very dangerous.

If you look at pictures of this goat, the most beautiful and memorable thing for many will be its horns. In old goats they can grow more than 1.5 meters. In females they are no more than 30 cm. The horned goat has short hair, which is quite long on the front of the sternum and on the beard. Males and females often change colors throughout the year. Young individuals have a grey-red color, while older ones have a dirty white coat.

Their favorite habitat is the highlands of Tibet, the Himalayas, the mountains of Tajikistan and Pakistan. The horned goat is one of the symbols of Pakistan. Traveling along the rocks, the mark-horned goat looks for a meager lunch in the form of vegetation. The animal's second name, "markhor", is translated from Urdu as "snake-eating". It is worth saying that the mark-horned goat is under threat of extinction and is protected by the International Union for Conservation of Nature - it can be found in large zoos around the world.

Caucasian tour

By the name of the next representative of the mountain goat, you can immediately guess that its habitat is the Caucasus Mountains. Common names for this species are Caucasian mountain goat or Western European tur. Outwardly, this animal immediately attracts the human eye. It is large in size. Its color is reddish, and its horns are huge, they diverge to the sides. Interestingly, the surface of the horns is ribbed.

The Caucasian Tur can weigh up to 100 kg, and reach a height at the withers of 110 cm. Females of this species are lower, and their body length is shorter than that of males. Unfortunately, this species is seriously at risk of extinction, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are now about 10,000 individuals worldwide.

The Caucasian mountain goat is divided into three more subspecies. These are the Kuban Tour, the East Caucasus Tour and the Severtsov Tour. All of them live on the eastern and western slopes of the Caucasus.

The Kuban subspecies lives on the border Russian Federation and Georgia. The animal has an amazing golden color. The weight of adult males reaches 100 kg, and their height is more than a meter. The horns, like everyone else's, curl back, but in females they are sharp and small.

Its brother, the East Caucasian Tur or Dagestan Tur, lives in the mountains of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia. Their coat is the densest among all representatives, it is nut-colored. The weight is standard - usually 100 kg, reaching a height of 90 cm. A small goat of the East Caucasian Tur usually does not weigh more than 60 kg.

The last subspecies - Severtsov's tur - its habitat is in the western Caucasus. The tur's horns are smaller, the fur is very coarse but thick, and in weight it surpasses its relatives.

Capricorn

A distinctive feature of this genus is its unique, saber-like horns. In their appearance, they strongly resemble their fellow aurochs. One of the prominent representatives of this clan of goats is the Ibex, whose main habitat is located between the Italian provinces of Savoy and Piedmont in the Apennines. To the mountain, Pyrenean and Siberian goats. All of them are quite common in nature and produce good offspring.

The Nubian ibex has the most amazing horns of all its brethren. No one else has horns like his. In terms of body size, this subspecies is much smaller than the others. It has a golden color with a brown tint, as well as a thick beard.

The Iberian ibex, or as it is also called, the Iberian ibex, has unique horns, but its coloring. The front of the muzzle, belly and legs are black, and the back and neck are snow-white. The horns are thin, but also spread in different directions. Body weight is about 70-80 kg. It lives on the territory of the Iberian Peninsula - the territory of modern Spain and Portugal.

The last subspecies of ibex lives in the vastness of Russia, India, Afghanistan and its name is Siberian. This subspecies is not in danger of extinction. It has a pronounced beard, tail and long legs.

Now let’s look at these types of mountain goats in the pictures and see their exceptional beauty.

Photo gallery

Photo 1. East Caucasus tour Photo 2. West Caucasus tour Photo 3. Kuban tour Photo 4. Young goat of the West Caucasian subspecies

Ibexes are a mountain breed of climbing goats who climb rocks so masterfully that they give even climbers a head start. This breed of goat lives in inaccessible Alpine mountain regions at an altitude of up to 3500 meters above sea level.

The history of the existence of Ibexes is very interesting and instructive. At the beginning of the 19th century, this amazing creation of nature almost disappeared from the face of the Earth: the number of Ibexes in the entire Alpine region barely exceeded 100 individuals. And these “climbers” survived in the Italian Gran Paradiso. In 1854, King Victor Emmanuel II took the Ibex under his personal protection.

Switzerland began to ask the king to sell her ibex, but the proud Emmanuel II did not allow the export of national property. But what about Swiss resorts without Capricorns? Therefore, the animals were smuggled into Switzerland, but only in 1906.

Why did the Ibexes disappear so quickly? In the Middle Ages, ibex was credited with the miraculous power of healing from all diseases, as a result of which all its commonly used attributes - from blood and hair to excrement - were used in medicine. All this led to the disappearance of Ibex in Europe.

Today their population is quite large, ranging from 30 to 40 thousand animals. Since 1977, even controlled shooting of ibex has been allowed.

But after these animals almost disappeared from the face of the earth, their miraculously restored populations were brought to other areas of Italy, to the mountains of Switzerland, France, Austria, as well as Germany and Slovenia. The settlement of new areas by Ibex meets with approval from local residents, since the presence of virtuoso animals is beneficial for the prosperity of Alpine resorts and attracts crowds of tourists.

Ibex ( Capra ibex), aka alpine goat, aka mountain goat, aka ibex - a cloven-hoofed animal from the genus of mountain goats.

The length of an adult Ibes reaches 150 cm and the height at the withers is 90 cm. Females weigh approximately 40 kg, and males can weigh up to 100 kg. Both females and males have a beard. Only the heads of males are decorated with magnificent horns about 1 meter long; females have only small horns.

Female Ibexes live in herds of 10-20 females and cubs. Young males also form herds. But adult goats jump across the mountains in splendid isolation. During the mating season, which in the Alps lasts from December to January, males arrange mating fights, and the winner gets the entire herd, so the battles get serious.

The winning male lives in the herd all winter and leaves it only in the spring.

And females give birth to one, sometimes two, cubs in May or June. The cub lives in a herd and feeds on its mother's milk for about a year.

Ibex can live about 20 years.

The favorite, almost permanent habitats of mountain goats are rocky highlands, where the artiodactyls feel safe. Mountain goats rush swiftly along the rocky scree,
They easily jump over rock crevices, climb cliffs and steep cliffs. Constant and very fast movement is the lifestyle of these amazing animals.

Looking at them, you never cease to be amazed at how animals can stay on scree, sharp stones and steep cliffs? It turns out that ibis hoof pads are constantly soft and constantly growing. Therefore, with their hooves they seem to stick to slippery stones and walk along cliffs inaccessible to enemies.

Goats graze on alpine or steppe lawns, and climb glaciers and steep cliffs to rest.

Goats are not only fast climbers, but also quite intelligent and observant animals. They are characterized by extraordinary caution. Ibises have a lot of enemies in the wild, but their excellent vision, keen hearing and sense of smell save them.

When grazing or resting a herd, a guard goat, climbing to the top of a rock or a huge stone, warns the herd of the slightest danger. When in danger, ibises quickly hide in the rocks.

At the same time, Capricorns are very curious. There have been cases when a herd of goats watched ski competitions from the top of the mountain, without being afraid of the mass of people.

A herd of Alpine goats or Ibexes. At the 50-meter almost vertical Cingino Dam in the Italian Alps. Horned climbers are attracted here by the salt they lick from the rocks.

Mountain goats are a genus of artiodactyl animals from the bovid family. On the one hand, all types of mountain goats have many common features, on the other hand, they are very variable. For this reason, scientists still cannot determine exactly how many species of these animals exist in nature: some believe that there are only 2-3 with many subspecies, others believe that there are 9-10 species of mountain goats. Mountain goats are closely related to mountain sheep, with which they have many similarities. Their more distant relatives are snow goats, chamois and gorals.

Mountain goats are medium-sized ungulates, their body length is 120-180 cm, height at withers 80-100 cm, weight from 40-60 kg in females of small species to 155 kg in goats of large species. They give the impression of slender and graceful animals, despite their not very long legs and strongly built body. The main distinguishing feature of these animals are the horns, which in females look like short conical daggers 15-18 cm long, and in males they look like sabers, reaching a length of 1 m or even more. In young animals, the horns are curved in a graceful arc, which becomes steeper with age, while in older males the horns are more reminiscent of a spiral. On the anterior surface of the horns there are transverse thickenings, which different types expressed in to varying degrees.

By the way, the horns of mountain goats, like all bovids, are hollow inside and never change. The tail of these animals is short; on its lower surface there are glands that secrete a very strong specific odor. The hooves of mountain goats are narrow, with a very hard hoof horn, which allows these animals to jump over hard rocks and stay on the tiniest ledges without injury.

The hair of mountain goats is short, but with a thick, dense undercoat that protects well from the cold. Mountain goats have well-defined sexual dimorphism: males are always 1.5-2 times larger than females, have more powerful horns and a tuft of long hair on the chin. Some species (such as the horned goat) also have a dewlap of long hair on the underside of the neck. The color of all species is uniform - gray, black, yellow, in some species the belly is white.

Mountain goats live exclusively in the Northern Hemisphere and only in the Old World - in Europe, Asia and North Africa. Compared to mountain sheep, they prefer to settle at high altitudes (1500-4200 m), in areas with rocky outcrops, gorges and steep walls (rams prefer flatter areas). Almost all species gravitate towards a sedentary lifestyle, although in harsh and hungry winters they can descend to the foothills and valleys. Mountain goats lead a herd lifestyle: in the summer, males and females stay separately, in groups of 3-5 individuals; by winter, the herds enlarge to 20-30 individuals. In the mountains, goats move extremely deftly: they storm the highest ledges in search of food, jump over cliffs several meters wide, manage to stand on almost vertical surfaces, and balance equally well both when walking slowly and when running. These animals are very careful; they communicate danger with a thin bleat.

Mountain goats feed on a variety of plants. They prefer alpine grasses - fescue and bluegrass, but on occasion they can eat branches of trees and shrubs, mosses, and lichens. In general, mountain goats are extremely unpretentious and can even eat poisonous plants and dry grass. These animals have an urgent need for salt, so whenever possible they visit salt licks and walk 15-20 km to them.

Mountain goats give birth once a year. The rut occurs in November-December. During this period, males join groups of females with young animals, drive away young immature males, and old ones engage in fights with each other. Mating fights follow strict rules and rarely result in injury. The fighting goats stand opposite each other, rear up and hit each other with the top of their horns. Mountain goats never butt heads like rams, do not hit an opponent in unprotected parts of the body, and do not pursue a fleeing person for a long distance.

The winner gathers around himself a harem of 5-10 females. Pregnancy in different species lasts from 150 to 180 days, so females always give birth in the spring, in the most favorable weather. Typically, a female gives birth to 1-2 kids, which can stand on their legs within a couple of hours after birth. However, the little goats are very vulnerable, so for the first week they rest in a secluded place. The female comes to feed them, and then the babies begin to accompany her. At the age of 1-2 months, kids are very active and playful; during this period of life they do not stand still for a minute; it seems as if there is a secret spring hidden in them that makes them jump, run, and climb onto their mother’s back. Kids become fully independent at 1-1.5 years, and goats reach sexual maturity at two years, and female goats at 3-4 years. They live in nature for up to 5-10 years, and in captivity for up to 12-15.

Since mountain goats are the predominant species of ungulates in the mountain systems of the Alps, Pyrenees, Caucasus, Pamir, Altai, Tibet, Sayan, Tien Shan, they form the basis of the diet of many predators - snow leopards, wolves, lynxes, golden eagles. In North Africa they are hunted by leopards. In addition to predators, mountain goats often die from lack of food and snow avalanches, but their high fertility allows them to quickly restore their numbers. However, some species of mountain goats (for example, the Iberian ibex) are on the verge of extinction due to the reduction of natural habitats under human pressure.

People have hunted mountain goats since ancient times. The horns of a large male have always been considered a valuable trophy, because it is not easy to detect and kill a cautious and dexterous animal. But people also derived quite practical benefits from mountain goats: the skins were used to make shoes and clothing, the meat was a very tasty and easily digestible product, fat was also used in cooking, and pellets of undigested wool from the stomach of mountain goats - bezoars - were considered healing. Such valuable qualities of mountain goats led to their domestication, and now in the world there are many different breeds of domestic goats (dairy, meat, down). Nowadays, mountain goats can be found in any zoo, as they are very easily tamed, tolerate captivity well and reproduce easily. Despite the fact that the goat is a symbol of an unclean, even devilish animal (as opposed to the image of a meek sheep), in reality these animals are very smart and easy to train (but mountain rams or sheep are not at all smart). The important role of mountain goats in the life of the peoples of Asia and the Mediterranean is reflected in the name of one of the zodiac constellations - the constellation Capricorn.

Despite the fact that hunting has long been relegated to the category of a man's hobby, for many people it is still a way of life and a way of earning money. One of its most frequent (and traditional) objects is the mountain goat. Its meat is eaten with pleasure, its skin is used for the production of fur and leather goods, and its horns are a very honorable hunting trophy, since not everyone can get this animal, which can climb steep mountain slopes. In addition, in some areas, mountain goats are still crossed with domesticated goats in order to freshen the blood of a particular breed. It has been noticed that mountain goats mate equally effectively not only in freedom, but also in captivity.

Typology of mountain goats

The genus of mountain goats includes eight species, which, in turn, are divided into three groups - ibex, aurochs and goats themselves. Their main difference is appearance horns, and a common feature is the presence of internal cavities in them and immutability. In young animals, the horns are usually curved in the form of an arc, which turns into a spiral with age. The largest and most numerous group of ibex has wide, saber-shaped curved horns in front with a large number of roller-like thickenings. These include:

1. Ibex (also known as the Alpine ibex or common ibex), which lives in the Italian Alps between Savoy and Piedmont and in part of the Swiss Alps, where it was smuggled at the beginning of the 20th century. The height of its habitat runs exactly along the border of ice and forest.
2. Nubian goat.
3. Pyrenean
4. Siberian mountain goat.

In turn, these species have ten subspecies: four each in the Iberian and Siberian goats and two in the Nubian goat.

What do Capricorns look like?

Despite their relationship, these subspecies have some differences that relate not only to different habitats. For example, an ibix can be distinguished by the following characteristics:

1. long and thick arched horns, somewhat diverging from each other in different directions. In males, their length can reach up to one meter, while in goats they look like small, slightly curved horns.
2. the presence of a short beard in males and females.
3. coarse, thick wool, whose color depends on the season. In winter, the coat of both sexes is gray, but in summer, the front of the neck and chest, as well as the legs and genital area of ​​males are dark brown (in females they are reddish and golden), the belly and anal area are white.
4. the average body length is up to 150 cm, height is about 90. The weight of goats usually does not exceed 40 kg, and the weight of males reaches hundreds of kilograms.

The appearance of the Nubian goat is as follows:

1. long thin horns curved back and down. Like other subspecies, their length is related to the gender of their carrier: for males - up to one meter, for females - up to 30 cm.
2. the general color - yellowish-brown - corresponds to the color of the territory in which it lives (northern Africa east of the Nile, Arabia and the Simien Mountains in Ethiopia). Starting in August, it can change, varying on different parts of the body from dark brown to black.
3. A characteristic feature of male Nubian goats is a dark stripe on the back.
4. the weight of females is 26.5 kg, males - three times more: up to 62.5 kg. Body length is 105 and 125 cm, respectively, and height is 65 and 75 cm.

The Iberian goat boasts slightly curved horns that point upward and inward, shaped like a lyre. Finally, the Siberian mountain goat has the following characteristics:

1. massive, strongly curved back horns over one meter long.
2. more defined beard.
3. coat color that depends on the season, but always has a brown base. In males, the neck and back may be covered with white spots.
4. animal parameters: height from 67 to 110 cm, weight from 35 to 130 kg, body length - from 130 to 165 cm.

Brief description of tours

The second group, called “turs,” is represented by one Western Caucasian species and three of its subspecies, the list of which differs in different sources. For example, the Great Soviet Encyclopedia considered the names “Severtsov’s tur” and “Kuban tur” to be synonyms for the title species, but distinguished the so-called. “Güldenstedt tour” (or “Central Caucasian tour”). Other sources, on the contrary, combined this subspecies with the main one, but distinguished Severtsov’s tour separately. Undoubted for all classifications is the division of the species into the main Western Caucasian and Eastern Caucasian subspecies, living in different parts of the Caucasus in a small area of ​​​​just over 4 thousand square meters. km. General external sign for them, they have horns curved in the form of a wide spiral, which are strongly rounded in cross section, but among themselves the subspecies differ somewhat in the direction of the horns and the manner of curvature: for example, in the East Caucasian aur, the tips of the horns are directed back and up, and in the West Caucasian aur - down and inward. However, apparently, there are other differences - morphological, genetic, etc. - representatives of these subspecies, since scientists have long noted with alarm that their mating with each other leads to the birth of infertile individuals in both populations. According to the latest data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the number of animals of both subspecies is estimated at 10 thousand individuals, which is why the International Red Book has assigned them the status of “endangered” (for the West Caucasian tour) and “close to endangered” (for the East Caucasian one).

Goats as they are

Finally, the third group, called “goats,” consists of two species (the horned goat, or markhor, and the domestic goat) and one subspecies – the bezoar goat, which is the ancestor of the domestic goat. In turn, markhor has three subspecies, differing from each other only in habitat and minor structural features of the horns. Living in the mountainous regions of Tajikistan, the Western Himalayas, Afghanistan, Little Tibet and Kashmir, it has:

1. helical horns (from which it got its name), reaching a length of up to one (according to some sources, up to one and a half or more) meters.
2. a long black-brown beard (sometimes called a dewlap), which, gradually becoming lighter, turns into a hanging mane.
3. dark color of the head and legs and light color of the belly.
4. The body length is up to one and a half (sometimes up to 1.7) meters, and the tail is up to 18 cm. The height of markhor does not exceed 90 cm, weight usually fluctuates around 90 kg.
5. a reddish-gray coat color that turns to off-white with age.

The domestic goat is characterized by laterally compressed horns, forming a sharp leading edge. Their protruding rib is not as pronounced as that of representatives of other groups, and in some goats it is not there at all. Other general characteristics cannot be established for the reason that there are many breeds of domesticated goats, which differ from each other in size, coat color, etc. More distinguishable and recognizable is the bezoar goat, which lives in the Caucasus, Asia Minor and Persia, Afghanistan, Baluchistan (the historical southeastern region of the Iranian plateau, the border region between the Middle East and Hindustan, currently part of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan) and on a number of Mediterranean islands. It has the following characteristics:

1. strongly keeled, with the tips of the horns approaching each other, arched backwards.
2. stocky build with strong legs and wide hooves.
3. long hair, the color of which in males depends on the time of year. In winter it is silvery-white, on the underside, chest and part of the muzzle it is black-brown, and in summer it becomes red in color. Females have yellowish-brown fur.
4. two stripes running along the fur: one along the back, the second from the back to the chest. Goats have one such stripe.
5. black twenty-centimeter tail.
6. The body length on average is about one and a half meters, although there are individuals with sizes from 1.2 to 1.6 meters. Weight, depending on gender and age, ranges from 25 to 95 kg, height - from 70 cm to 1 meter.

Despite its rather extensive habitat, the bezoar goat is also included in the Red Book.

Visiting mountain goats

Already in the name of the genus the main feature of all its representatives is noted. They avoid flat places, preferring to settle on steep mountain slopes, in gorges and other hard-to-reach places at an altitude of one and a half to five and a half kilometers above sea level. They spend almost the entire year at this altitude, descending into the valleys and foothills only during severe winters. Mountain goats are perfectly adapted to life in the mountains, they are strong, resilient and dexterous, they can jump over cliffs several meters wide, manage to stand almost on sheer surfaces, have excellent balance when walking and running, and often demonstrate to their unwitting spectators the wonders of rock climbing, especially when they have to escape from being chased. You can see one such demonstration without leaving your room in this video. The amazing agility of mountain goats is explained by the presence of narrow hooves with hard horns in all subspecies, which allows them to stand even on the smallest ledges.

Interesting fact: the habitats of almost all subspecies and groups do not overlap with each other. Where the ibex lives, the Pyrenean goat cannot be found, and the markhor, although adjacent to the bezoar goat, avoids the places where the bezoar goat settles. The exception, which (as well as its consequences) we have already mentioned, is only the Caucasian mountain goat and its subspecies. Perhaps one of the reasons for such territorial mutual respect is the secretion secreted by special glands that every goat has and are located in the lower part of the tail. The secretion, especially intensified during estrus, has a pungent odor known as “goaty”, and, apparently, is easily sensed by these animals over considerable distances. This smell even entered human culture and mythology: in the Middle Ages, the goat was perceived as a symbol of the unclean and even Satan himself. It was even believed that his appearance in any form was always accompanied by such a smell, which gave him away.

These animals are characterized by a herd and sedentary lifestyle. Males and females prefer to live in separate groups of 3-5 individuals, although in the Himalayas, for example, mixed herds of Siberian mountain goats were found. In herds of males, a strict hierarchy has been observed, which the goats achieve through fights and certain behavior. Goats most often live with kids. In winter, these groups increase in size and turn into herds of several dozen or even hundreds of animals. Bucks join female goats only for the duration of mating. Males of some subspecies - for example, ibix - stay in such a herd all winter and leave it only in the spring.

They graze early in the morning or late in the evening, and in those places where they are intensively hunted, even at night. During the day, animals rest, choosing the most inaccessible areas for rest. They are characterized by extreme caution, since their enemies include not only humans, but also predators such as leopard, snow leopard, lynx, wolf and even golden eagle (even striped hyenas are among the enemies of the Nubian goat), but sometimes they are capable of showing amazing courage. They “inform” each other about the existence of danger with a clearly audible special bleat. Not only a developed sense of smell helps them in recognizing a threat, but also the presence of large, sensitive and mobile ears, pointed at the ends.

Mountain goats are not picky when it comes to nutrition - they are “accustomed” to this by the flora of their habitat (as you can see, most subspecies live in the Asian mountains, which are characterized by sparse vegetation). With equal success they feed on both grasses such as bluegrass and fescue, and branches and bark of bushes and trees, mosses and lichens, they do not disdain dead wood and poisonous plants, and markhor is even capable of eating tree foliage. Goats give particular preference to the bark of young trees, which they gnaw so that it often cannot be restored, which makes it difficult to regenerate the forest after sanitary and planned fellings. One of their features is the constant need for salt. To satisfy it, animals are able to not only walk long distances of 15-20 km to the nearest salt lick, but also climb dams in search of salty surfaces.

The rutting period for mountain goats occurs in November-December. At this time, the males join the females and begin to engage in mating fights with each other for the right to own them. The sounds of battle in the form of the cracking of horns can be heard a kilometer away, so an ignorant person may well imagine an almost bloody battle, but in practice everything is much calmer. Goats even have their own rules for conducting a mating fight. No matter how fierce he may be, goats will never:

1. don't butt heads.
2. do not injure unprotected parts of the body (that is, relationships are clarified only with the help of horns).
3. do not pursue a fleeing opponent over long distances.

The winner receives a harem of 5-10 goats as a reward - polygamy is inherent in mountain goats. A goat's pregnancy lasts 5-6 months, after which one to two babies are born. The babies develop quickly and within a few hours are able to stand on their feet, and after some time they are able to accompany their mother in search of food. Wild mountain goats have a well-expressed maternal instinct: in the first week of life, they hide weak and vulnerable kids in secluded places and regularly go to feed them. Until the cubs grow up and become independent (and this happens at the age of one to one and a half years), goats protect and protect them in every possible way, and generally treat them with love and tenderness. Sexual maturity in mountain goats occurs in the second year of life.

Man and goat

The “relationship” between man and mountain goat goes back hundreds of years. Wild goats, descendants of the bezoar goat, were domesticated by humans about 8.5 thousand years ago, and goat breeding is still one of the most profitable branches of agriculture in various parts of the Earth. Of no less importance in human life is the hunting of mountain goats, which we mentioned at the beginning of this material, and they were hunted not only for food and for the extraction of skins and horns. In the Middle Ages, camping containers for wine and water were made from mountain goat skins and fur, in national cuisine Many peoples still actively use goat fat, and the people of Afghanistan believe that markhor meat can neutralize the effects of snake venom and that markhor generally seeks out and eats snakes. Found in the stomachs of some goats, bezoars (dense stones made from tightly matted hair or plant fibers) were considered healing and capable of drawing out poison from the bite site.

In pre-Christian Europe, as well as among eastern peoples, the mountain goat was associated primarily with male sexual power. It is known that amulets were made from the horns of representatives of the Capricorn group, which were designed to encourage and facilitate childbearing; archaeologists have found many rock paintings of this theme, which performed the same function of encouragement. Even in ancient times, the ibex was considered almost a sacred animal, which is why absolutely everything that had to do with it - from blood and hair to excrement - was used in medicine. With the spread of Christianity and the advent of the Inquisition, the attitude towards ibex acquired a dual form: on the one hand, its traditional deification continued, on the other, thanks to its smell, it became associated with Satan and the creatures of hell, which led to tragic consequences. History has recorded cases of executions of Ibex and Pyrenean goats according to the verdicts of the Inquisition on the grounds that they, as the embodiment of the devil, allegedly led earthly women into temptation and copulated with them. Such sentences applied not only to animals, but also to people. Carnal pleasures with goats in general were one of the most favorite accusations of the Inquisition, among others, brought against women condemned as sorceresses and witches. This led to the almost complete extinction of the Alpine goats by the beginning of the 19th century, and only the intervention of two scientists - a topographer (in some sources he is called a forester), an employee of the Italian Academy of Sciences located in Turin, Joseph Zumstein and naturalist Albert Girtanner - led to the fact that since 1816, the last hundred individuals began to be protected by the authorities. In 1854, King Victor Emmanuel of Piedmont (1820 – 1878) took the surviving animals under his personal protection, which ensured a slow revival of the species. The modern Ibex population is the descendants of this miraculously saved hundred.

In some areas, goat hunting is so intensive that, in addition to the Transcaucasian subspecies, one of the subspecies of markhor and the Nubian ibex are on the verge of extinction. The population of the latter as of 1997 was generally estimated at two and a half thousand animals, which is why it was assigned the status of “vulnerable” in the Red Book. However, unfortunately, its presence does not protect the Nubian goat from poaching by the Bedouins, who, hunting for it, often watch for it at watering places. In 2000, the last individual of one of the subspecies of the Pyrenean mountain goat, the “Spanish”, was found dead, which is why there are currently only two subspecies instead of the four known to science (the second subspecies became extinct at the end of the 19th century). Despite the ability of mountain goats to quickly restore their numbers, it does not always contribute to their survival: they often die not only at the hands of humans and the paws of predators, but also from avalanches, landslides, and also from hunger. The Siberian mountain goat (its population as of the mid-1990s was about 250 thousand animals) and ibex (from 30 to 40 thousand individuals) are still relatively safe, however, uncontrolled hunting and poaching can radically change this situation way. The international scientific community is taking a number of measures to avoid the complete extinction of all species of these animals. For example, mountain goats can increasingly be found in various zoos, and their hunting in many places is strictly regulated by law. Since 1977, the authorities of Switzerland and Italy have allowed controlled shooting of ibixes; At the same time, they are populating the alpine regions, which is subsequently used as a marketing ploy when advertising the most famous resorts.

Eastern culture still maintains a respectful attitude towards the mountain goat. In Tibet and Indian Ladakh, for example, on the occasion of the birth of a child, it was customary to give his parents a figurine of a goat made of flour. In modern Pakistan, markhor is considered the national symbol of the country, and Arab scientists in honor of mountain goats in ancient times named one of the zodiac constellations - Capricorn.

Finally, so that you can fully understand the hero of our material, we invite you to look at a small selection of different subspecies of mountain goats, many of which are unique.

Since childhood, we have become accustomed to watching domestic goats grazing outside the window. Behind their lifestyle and behavior in various situations. But not many people know that these artiodactyls also come in wild breeds. Today we will talk about their differences and diversity.

Wild goat - roe deer

This animal comes from deer. It can also be called European roe deer, roe deer and roe deer. This is a very graceful and small deer with a short body. The height of males can reach up to 81 centimeters at the withers., and their body weight is 22-32 kilograms. Females are slightly smaller than males. The largest sizes are found in wild goats living in Sweden and the mountains of the North Caucasus. It is for this reason that roe deer hunting is so popular in Sweden. In Crete, female wild goats are called sanada, and males are called agrimi. The wild goat was brought to Crete during the heyday of the Minoan civilization.

If there are bodies of water nearby, then roe deer will become their regular visitors. During pregnancy of females and growth of horns in males, the need for mineral salts increases and animals begin to visit salt licks. It is for this reason that in hunting grounds you need to arrange salt licks and constantly add salt to them.

In the summer, all wild goats and goats live separately, but as soon as it starts to get colder, the artiodactyls gather in groups. Joins females:

But adult males try to stay separate. If the snow cover reaches 50 centimeters, then the groups stay in one place for a long time. Groups in forest areas consist of approximately 15 individuals, and in forest-steppes - a significantly larger number of individuals. Groups break up in March. The rut begins in mid-July and continues until the end of August. During this time, a buck can impregnate approximately 6 goats. During this period, males are very aggressive and can fight over one goat.

There are also Siberian wild goats. They differ in the following indicators:

1. Coat color - red;
2. The length of the horns is 27–34 centimeters;
3. Height at the withers can reach 94 centimeters;
4. An adult can reach 48 kilograms.

Siberian wild goats have a short, small, wedge-shaped head that tapers toward the mouth. Their ears are oval shaped and well mobile. Their length can be 12 - 14 centimeters. Their eyes are bulging and round. The head goes into a long neck.

Their behavior is very interesting. Due to the fact that they are constantly in the herd, they information needs to be exchanged. This happens in various ways. They can use visual contact (twitching of the tail or ears), marking the territory (scratches on trees, scent marks). They also actively use sound signals:

1. A squealing sound comes from the injured roe deer;
2. Worried goats make a rhythmic sound;
3. A sign of aggression is hissing;
4. A squeak signals a threat. Most often it is produced by queens with kids.

Gallery: wild goat (25 photos)

Wild chamois

She belongs to the bovids. This animal can reach 135 centimeters in length and up to 80 in height. Weight females can reach 40 kilograms, and males - 60. They have a short, almost invisible tail. The distinctive features of chamois are:

1. Backcurved horns;
2. Pointed ears;
3. Short muzzle;
4. The legs are strong, thin and long;
5. In winter they are light gray in color, and in summer they are brown;
6. There are black stripes near the eyes;
7. Along the ridge there is a solid black stripe.

Where do they live?

Chamois live in southern Europe and its central part, the Pyrenees. In the wild they can be found in the Caucasus and Turkey. They have adapted well to life in mountainous areas, where there are a lot of screes and stones. Throughout the summer, they live on meadow slopes located slightly above the line in the mountains of forests at altitudes of 3.6 kilometers. When V winter time food becomes less, they can fall to a height of 0.8 kilometers. But they prefer to stay in the forests.

These animals are also common in New Zealand. Today they are of particular hunting interest to New Zealanders.

Chamois nutrition and lifestyle

Chamois live in a herd. Their number in it can vary from 20 to 100 pieces. There are no males in the herd. There are only cubs with their mothers. Males live separately throughout the year. Their lifestyle is called hermitic. They breed between late November and early December. At this time, the male becomes aggressive and enters into battle for the female. The fighting is very fierce. There are also deaths of one of the participants.

They feed on all the vegetation they can get their hands on. In summer there is an abundance of young shoots and grasses, and in winter there is the bark of young trees and pine needles.

Animals rest during the daytime and are active at night. If you have to save your life from a predator, the chamois can reach a speed of 50 kilometers in 1 hour. If it is necessary to break away from pursuit, the chamois is capable of jumping up to 2 meters in height and 6 meters in length. The main enemies and predators are wolf and Iberian lynx. Today there are approximately 400 thousand chamois in Europe.

This period begins in late November or early December. The average length of pregnancy is 170 days. After this period, 1 kid is born. Very rarely the number of babies can reach 2 or 3 pieces. The average weight of a baby is 3 kilograms. The baby is constantly close to his mother. Breast-feeding ends in approximately 6 months. After this, the small chamois begins to eat food familiar to this species. If the mother dies and does not have time to feed the baby, then other females in the herd will take care of it.

Mountain goats are graceful, medium-sized animals with a tightly built body, a thick neck, a convex wide forehead, strong limbs and wide hooves adapted for mountaineering activities. Their body length reaches 100-180 cm, height is 70-100 cm, and weight, depending on gender, ranges from 30-60 kg (females) to 155 kg for males of the most massive species. Both sexes have horns, which are considered main feature of these animals, but they differ markedly in shape and length. The horns of females are short (15-18 cm), thin and slightly curved; in males they are strongly bent back or twisted into a spiral, reaching more than one meter in length. The anterior wall of the horns has transverse thickenings, which are expressed to varying degrees in different representatives of this genus of artiodactyls. They are hollow inside and never change. The ears are large, pointed at the ends, and very mobile. The tail of mountain goats is short, triangular in shape, its lower surface in males has no hair and is equipped with glands that secrete a strong specific odor. The animals' hooves are narrow and have a hard hoof horn, which allows them to gallop on various hard surfaces and stand on the smallest ledges without any injury.

Mountain goats have well-defined sexual dimorphism - females are usually 1.5-2 times smaller than males, have short horns and are distinguished by the absence of a tuft of hair on the chin. Occasionally, some species may exhibit elongated hair on the lower part of the neck and chest.

The coat consists of short, coarse hair and a well-developed thick undercoat. Coat color is available in brown, grey, yellow and black. There is often a seasonal change in coat with changes in length and color.

The most common classification divides mountain goats into eight species, which are usually included in three groups, mainly differing in the structure of the horns: ibexes (Siberian ibex, ibex, Ethiopian ibex, Iberian ibex, Nubian ibex), aurochs (Western Caucasian tur,), goats (winter-horned goat (markhor), domestic goat).

Goats are exclusively mountain animals, avoiding vast flat areas and preferring steep slopes, gorges, rocky, inaccessible places at an altitude of 1500 to 5500 meters above sea level. Their habitat covers the mountains of Europe, Asia and northern Africa. Almost all wild goats belong to allopatric species, i.e. their distribution areas do not overlap. Only some species' ranges are partially in contact.

Mountain goats are animals that lead a herd and sedentary lifestyle. Most of During the year, males and females live separately, in small groups of 3-5 individuals. In winter, herds can increase to several tens or even hundreds of animals in areas where the species are especially numerous. Mountain goats always live with their children in groups, and polygamous goats join females only for the mating period. In summer they live high in the mountains, and in winter, in particularly harsh and snowy weather, they descend into the valleys and foothills. They prefer to graze early in the morning or late in the evening, spending the hottest period of the day on vacation. In places where animals are intensively hunted, they go out to pasture at night, hiding in the most inaccessible areas.

Mountains are a native element for goats, so it is natural that they move with great endurance, strength and extremely dexterity along the highest ledges, jump over huge cliffs and balance on almost vertical surfaces, conquering them equally well both while running and while walking slowly. Mountain goats are very cautious animals, but show amazing courage when necessary. The occurrence of danger is reported with a thin bleat.

The diet of mountain goats is based on food of plant origin - they prefer alpine grasses - bluegrass and fescue, but can also feast on branches and bark of bushes and trees, mosses and lichens. They have a high need for salt and, whenever possible, climb steep dams in search of salty surfaces, often covering about 15-20 km.

The mating period for goats begins in November-December. Males join groups of females with young animals, engaging in fierce fights with rivals. Mating fights are conducted in compliance with strict rules, which eliminates the possibility of serious injury. When starting a battle, the goats stand opposite each other, rear up and strike with the top of their horns, producing a loud crack that can be heard a kilometer away. They never butt heads, as rams do, do not harm unprotected parts of the body, and do not pursue a fleeing opponent over long distances.

The winner has the opportunity to gather a group of 5-10 mountain goats around him. Pregnancy in these animals lasts from five to six months. Females bring offspring in May-June, in the most favorable weather. Wild goats usually give birth to 1-2 cubs, which can stand on their feet within a few hours after birth. Domestic goats can give birth to up to 4 babies. The vulnerable goat kids are kept in a safe place for the first week, where the mountain goat regularly comes to feed them. Soon the babies may accompany the female. At the age of one month, goat kids are very playful and active, tirelessly frolicking and playing. Young individuals become independent at the age of 1-1.5 years, and reach sexual maturity in the second year of life.

Mountain goats, as the predominant species of ungulates in the mountain systems of the Pyrenees, Altai, Alps, Caucasus, Tibet, Pamir, Tien Shan and Sayan, form the basis of the diet of the predators living in these places - wolves, snow leopards, lynxes and golden eagles. In North Africa, they are hunted by leopards. Predators are not the only threat to the life of mountain goats; they often die from avalanches and hunger, but thanks to their high fertility, they quickly restore their numbers. Unfortunately, some species are still on the verge of extinction (for example, the Ethiopian goat) due to the reduction of natural habitats under the negative influence of human activity.

Goats were domesticated by humans in ancient times - approximately 9-10 thousand years ago in an area that is today called northern Iran. The main motive was easy access to meat, milk and goat hair. Goatskins were widely used in the Middle Ages for making containers for water and wine during travel, and in some regions as parchment for writing. Mountain goat horns have always been considered valuable trophies, since they are not at all easy to obtain due to the incredible caution and dexterity of these animals. Later, their skins began to be used as material for fur and leather products. Goat meat is considered a very tasty and easily digestible product, milk is very healthy. The valuable qualities of some of the oldest domesticated animals have led to the development of various breeds - meat, dairy and fur. Mountain goats easily tolerate captivity, are quickly tamed and reproduce well, and they are very smart animals.

Regarding the role of the goat in human history as a symbol, there is evidence of the use of rock paintings and ibex horns as amulets to encourage childbearing. In Tibet and Ladakh, it was customary to give a figurine of a goat made of flour on the occasion of the birth of a child. In Asia and the Mediterranean these animals played very important role, therefore, one of the zodiac constellations was even named in their honor - the constellation Capricorn.