Wild goats: species, description, distribution, nutrition

Few people know that the ancestors of ordinary domestic goatsare wild goats. Outwardly, there is a significant difference between them even in the same behavior. But nevertheless they have common roots. The millennia spent near a man had their influence on domesticated animals. However, to this day on earth live wild goats. We want to talk about them in our article.

Wild mountain goats

Wild goats, which still live inconditions of the wild nature, for certain are the ancestors of modern domestic goats. They are divided into different species, subspecies. In this article we want to talk about some of them. Wild goats are ruminant mammalian animals, which at present, depending on the classification, number from eight to ten species. They mostly live in mountainous areas. Such animals are very mobile, hardy, can survive on lands with very scarce vegetation. Conditionally they can be divided into three types: tours, goats and ibex. Let's talk about some of them.

VINTOROGY GOAT

Where lives the screwdriver goat? Marhur lives in Turkmenistan (in the mountains of Kugitang), Tajikistan (in the Darvaz, Babatag and Kugitangtau ranges), Uzbekistan (in the upper Amudarya), Afghanistan, East Pakistan and in the north-western part of India.

Externally, marchur is not like the rest of the mountaingoats. Its horns have a special shape, which is why, actually, it got the name of a screwdriver. The horns are twisted in several turns, the right is twisted to the right, and the left one is to the left. Males have distinctive features in the form of a long beard and lush wool on the chest. The color of the animals varies from red to gray. Representatives of the male can reach 80-120 kilograms, exceeding the females by weight in half. In height, the marchur reaches one meter.

Where there is a gnarled goat, not so richthe choice of food, so in the summer, the basis of the diet is herbaceous vegetation, but in the winter months in the course are thin twigs of trees. Even at the sight of a dangerous enemy, the goats continue to graze, occasionally raising their heads and watching the situation. But if they only lose sight of the predator, they instantly disappear from sight. The Marhurs live, as a rule, in small groups, and in the period of the rut they unite into flocks consisting of 15-20 individuals. In conditions of wild nature, vinehorn goats, as a rule, do not live more than ten years. But the animals that are kept in zoos live happily to twenty.

Western Caucasus, or the Kuban tour

These animals are very graceful. The West Caucasian tour resides on the border of Georgia and Russia. The range of its habitat is not very large and represents only a narrow strip of about 4,500 km square, which is constantly shrinking due to human activity.

Kuban tour is considered internationalUnion of Nature Conservation as a species that is in great danger. Currently, there are no more than 10,000 individuals worldwide. In conditions of wild nature the West Caucasian tour often meets with the East Caucasian, as a result of which hybrid individuals appear that are not capable of giving offspring. This is also one of the reasons for the decrease in the number of livestock.

Kuban tours are genetically close to Bezoar goats, and their external resemblance to Dagestan tours can be explained by hybridization, which is confirmed by recent scientific studies.

Appearance and behavior of the West Caucasian tour

The West Caucasian tour has a very strong andmassive build. Adult males weigh from 65 to 100 kilograms. But females are a bit inferior in weight (not more than 60 kg). Accordingly, the horns of females are considerably less than in males. The horns of the male are quite massive and heavy, reaching a length of 75 centimeters. But their diameter is not so great, as, for example, with the East Caucasian representatives. But the tails of females and males are the same. The upper part of the Kuban tour has a red-brown color, and the lower part is yellow. In winter, wool has a greyish-brown hue, which allows the animal to merge with the environment.

Western Caucasian tours are very cautious. Adults all summer spend far in the mountains, not allowing anyone to approach them. But females live in small herds, in their communities there is matriarchy. Female individuals are engaged in raising young animals, helping each other in this. It is noticed that females are very caring mothers, in case of danger they will never abandon their offspring and until the last they will try to take the kids away from hunters.

Males are raised in the herds until puberty,and at the age of 3-4 they are expelled, but they still do not know how to live independently, because they unite in small groups. But already at the age of 6-7 years, male individuals become strong enough to fight for the female.

In winter, the Kuban tours periodicallyunite in large, heterogeneous herds, because together they can easily bear the cold. In such periods, the feed becomes very small, so animals not only eat dry grass found under the snow, but also eat bark from the coniferous trees, gnaw on young shoots of birch, willow and needles, with an incredible appetite they eat ivy and blackberry leaves.

Himalayan Tara

The Himalayan tar is a goat, which sometimescalled a goat antelope. The animal is really very similar to a goat, but it has a long brownish-red coat, reaching a height of one meter. Tara, as a rule, try to keep small family groups. Sometimes they unite in herds, the number of which reaches 30-40 individuals. The containers are very cautious and, at the slightest danger, run through the woods through the rocks, easily passing steep slopes. During the mating season, animals fight each other with horns, fighting for the female.

Arabian tar

Arabian tar lives in just one region onthe land is the mountainous area of ​​Hajar on the Arabian Peninsula, which is partly located in the territory of Oman, and partly on the lands of the UAE. Animals live in mountains and rocks in an extremely arid climate.

Tar Arabian has a dense physique,Strong legs, suitable for climbing steep rocks. The animal is completely covered with a length of hair of a rust-brown color, and along the back a dark stripe stretches. Female and male have long, bent horns.

Siberian Capricorn

Siberian ibex are the inhabitants of the rocky mountains. Their southern and western brethren live mainly on treeless highlands, and northern - in the forest zone. Animals have large sizes and strongly developed legs, as well as long saber-like horns. Males are larger than females, and reach a hundred kilograms, and their height at the withers varies between 67 and 110 cm. Siberian ibexes dwell on rocks and mountain slopes at different altitudes. They can be found in Mongolia, Sayans and Altai.

Alpine goats

Alpine mountain goats are representatives of the genusmountain goats, which can only be seen in the Alps. They dwell at an altitude of 3.5 thousand meters and adore surprising tourists with their ability to climb steep rocks. Animals perfectly feel themselves in the mountains, on the border of forest and ice. In winter, in search of food, goats are forced to go down a little lower, but they do it rarely, because alpine meadows are dangerous for them in terms of predators. But the capricorns also show unprecedented caution. Going to the watering place or just to the pasture, they always leave a guard who can warn the others in time about the danger.

Alpine goats are quite largeanimals, whose weight can reach one hundred kilograms with a growth of one and a half meters. The females, naturally, are much more modest in size, their weight hardly reaches forty kilograms. Like their Siberian relatives, they can boast impressive horns. In males, they can reach one meter, but in females this part is slightly smaller.

Horns for animals are not just an ornament,but a very serious weapon. In the period from November to January, the marriage season begins. At this time, single males begin to look for a suitable herd of females, driving away all rivals from them. Often they have to participate in real serious battles, the main weapons in which are powerful horns. Having won a herd of goats, the animal remains for a while in it, and in the spring each female gives birth to one or two kids. Over the next year they feed their offspring with milk.

In the future, the younger generation behaves like thisthe same as other wild goats, the types of which are given in the article: females do not abandon their herd, but the grown-up males will have to leave. At the beginning of an independent life, male individuals try to create their own herds, but, as a rule, they quickly disintegrate.

History of alpine goats

At present, there are about30-40 thousand of such animals. And in the early nineteenth century Alpine goats were almost on the verge of destruction. And the whole point is that medieval people believed that Capricorns were mystical and sacred beings. Their wool, bones and blood sometimes attributed the most extraordinary properties, including the ability to heal ailments. All this led to the fact that the animals began zealous hunting.

By 1816 the Alpine goats were left no morehundreds. It was their miracle that managed to be preserved. All the Alpine goats that have now existed originate from that hundred. In the future, the animals were taken under protection, due to which their numbers gradually increased.