Markhorn goat: description and lifestyle

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:47

In nature, each creation is beautiful in its own way and is a link in a huge single living system, where all creatures have their own habitat and corresponding way of life. The only one who does not fit into this “organism” is a person who, instead of living in harmony with nature, destroys it in every possible way.

The consequence of this attitude to the world is the creation of protected areas and the constant replenishment of the pages of the Red Book. So the markhorn goat - an unusually beautiful animal - fell into the category of endangered species.

Bovidae family

This family includes deer-like mammals, which include not only graceful antelopes, but also such large individuals as yaks, bison, buffaloes, bulls and their somewhat smaller counterparts - sheep, goats and musk oxen.

Regardless of size and habitat, all animals in this family share a number of common features:

• Male always have horns, while females may not.
• They are missing fangs and upper incisors.
• All of them are “equipped” with a three-chambered stomach and a caecum.

These herd animals prefervast steppes, except for the markhor goat, whose habitat is mountains.

Since ancient times, almost all representatives of this species were hunted, and some of them were tamed and domesticated, such as goats, sheep and bulls. This is evidenced by numerous rock paintings depicting scenes of hunting and grazing animals.

In our time, the shooting of representatives of the bovid family is allowed only in reserves, and then in limited quantities, since many of them are listed in the Red Book. The markhor goat, for example, is gradually declining in population, while species such as the saiga antelope, aurochs and bison have completely disappeared in several countries.

The biggest problem, according to experts in the protection of rare animals, are poachers. It is their illegal activities that cause the number of representatives of the bovid family to constantly decrease.

Description of the markhorn goat

Markhors belong to the order of artiodactyls from the family of bovids. The markhorn goat (the photo shows this) is so named because its horns are in the form of a spiral with almost symmetrical coils. Each of them “looks” in its own direction: the right one looks to the right, and the left one looks to the left.

Female horns are small, only 20-30 cm, but the coils are clearly defined. In males, they can reach 1.5 m with a body length of up to 2 m and a height at the withers of up to 90 cm. The weight of a male rarely exceeds 90 kg, in a goat it is even less.

Markhorn goat changes color and quality of its coat independing on the season. So, in winter it can be reddish-gray, gray or white. During this period, it is the warmest, with a thick and long undercoat. The “beard” of an animal also becomes thicker in cold weather. In summer, on the contrary, the hairline of markhor goats thins and becomes reddish.

These slender, agile and fast animals have an excellent sense of smell, sight and hearing, which helps them to smell hunters and predators at a fairly large distance. Markhorn goat, the description of which is unlikely to convey all the grace and extraordinary majesty of this animal, has chosen an unusual habitat for representatives of this family.

Habitat

The middle belt of mountains, covered with meadows, and gorges with sheer cliffs are the natural habitat of markhor. These animals easily overcome small abysses and jump on the most impregnable and sheer cliffs.

They avoid dense thickets of trees, but can climb to alpine meadows, located on the border with glaciers and eternal snows. Their range is the mountains of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan and India.

Markhorn goat easily endures both summer heat and cold winter with deep snows. These animals migrate as they need food or safety for their young. So, they can rise above the forest zone in the mountains or graze on its border, which often happens in winter, when food becomes scarce, and descend to the very lower reaches for the sake of herbs.

Lifestyle

Markhorn goats formsmall herds of 15 to 30 heads, consisting of females with young. Adult males for most of the year graze separately and keep apart in their chosen territory. Young goats cannot yet fight for females with a more experienced and strong older generation, so they organize their own bachelor group.

The diet of these animals is seasonal. For example, in summer they rise to the meadows, where they eat grass and leaves of undersized trees and shrubs. In winter, the whole herd descends from the mountains, as far as the snow allows, to the lower border of the forest, where the branches and leaves of the evergreen oak become the main food. For the sake of this delicacy, the markhor goat in Asia jumps from branch to branch of a tree, perfectly balancing at a height of 6-8 meters.

Reproduction

The rut for this species of bovids begins in November, when the animals have gorged themselves on summer pastures and are full of strength and energy to fight for females. Fights between males rarely end in injury, usually the weaker goat leaves the battlefield to try his luck with other females.

The winner stays to guard his harem and starts to mate with those goats that are in heat. These animals do not have a courtship period, as the winner simply takes their toll, so fertilization occurs quickly, after which the male leaves the females before the next rut.

Goats bear cubs for 6 months, and just before giving birth, they leave the herd. Babies are born in the spring, when the meadows and trees are green and there is a lot of food around. They quickly get to their feet and immediatelybegin to suck on the mother's udder.

Young animals develop in games and learning. Older goats teach them to search for food, jump and run on rocks, which accelerates their growth and gives them strength. Females are ready to mate at 2 years old, while males are only 4 years old and strong enough to acquire their own harem.

Natural enemies

The average life expectancy of markhor reaches 12-16 years, but despite this, their numbers are gradually decreasing. These beautiful animals are under protection, and the Red Book confirms this. The markhorn goat is nevertheless subjected to destruction by humans who kill it for its beautiful horns.

Some animals die of natural causes, but more often they become victims of attacks by predators - lynxes, wolves and snow leopards. Young animals are especially affected, so only 50% of the offspring can often survive, which also affects the population decrease.

Markhorn Goats Conservation

Wherever the markhor goat lives, hunting is prohibited, but this does not stop poachers. The animals themselves found a way to survive - they changed their way of life and began to graze either at the first rays of the sun, or at dusk and at night, remaining under the protection of rocks or trees during the day.

Climbing high into the mountains, they can be active during the day in alpine meadows, where predators rarely appear, but most of the time in summer they prefer the shade of rocks, and in winter they are secluded and hard to reachGorges.