Siberian Ibex
Encyclopedia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. It has traditionally been treated as a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the Alpine Ibex
Alpine Ibex
The Alpine ibex, , is a species of wild goat that lives in the mountains of the European Alps. In its habitat region, the species is known as bouquetin , steinbock , and stambecco ....
, and whether it is specifically distinct from other ibex is still not entirely clear. It is the longest and heaviest members of the genus Capra
Capra (genus)
Capra is a genus of mammals, the goats or wild goats, composed of up to nine species including the wild goat, the markhor and several species known as ibex....
, though its shoulder height is surpassed by the Markhor
Markhor
The Markhor is a large species of wild goat that is found in northeastern Afghanistan, Pakistan , India, southern Tajikistan and southern Uzbekistan...
.
Appearance
Individual sizes vary greatly, from heights between 67–110 cm (26.4–43.3 ) and weights between 35–130 kg (77.2–286.6 ). Typical colouration is a light tan; mature males becoming much darker with white patches. Both sexes have beards and horns. While the female's horns are small, those of a mature male can grow to a length of 130 centimetres (51.2 in). Though recent authorities often treat it as monotypicMonotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
, some have recognized four subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
, C. s. sibirica, C. s. altaiana, C. s. hagenbecki and C. s. sakeen, based mainly on differences in total size, size of horns and colour of pelage.
Reproduction
The female's gestation period lasts between 5–6 months, after which a single kid (sometimes 2 or even 3) is born. After 1.5–2 years, the kid is sexually mature. It can live for up to 16–17 years.Behavior
Usually living at high elevations, sometimes at the vegetation line and well above the tree line, they seek out lower slopes during the winter in search of food. When snow is heavy, they have to paw away snow to reach the vegetation below. Its main predators are wolves, snow leopardSnow Leopard
The snow leopard is a moderately large cat native to the mountain ranges of South Asia and Central Asia...
s, and brown bear
Brown Bear
The brown bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It can weigh from and its largest subspecies, the Kodiak Bear, rivals the polar bear as the largest member of the bear family and as the largest land-based predator.There are several recognized...
s, young ibex may also fall prey to lynx
Lynx
A lynx is any of the four Lynx genus species of medium-sized wildcats. The name "lynx" originated in Middle English via Latin from Greek word "λύγξ", derived from the Indo-European root "*leuk-", meaning "light, brightness", in reference to the luminescence of its reflective eyes...
es, fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
es, and eagle
Eagle
Eagles are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just two species can be found in the United States and Canada, nine more in...
s.
Habitat and distribution
Its habitat is alpine meadows in central and northern Asia, where found in AfghanistanAfghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, western and northern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, north-western India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, south-eastern Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
, Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
, Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
, eastern Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
, northern Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, and south-central Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
There is also an introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
population in the Florida Mountains
Florida Mountains
The Florida Mountains are a small 12-mi long, mountain range in New Mexico. The mountains lie in southern Luna County about 15 mi southeast of Deming, and 20 mi north of Chihuahua state, Mexico; the range lies in the north of the Chihuahuan Desert region, and extreme southwestern New...
in Luna County, New Mexico
Luna County, New Mexico
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*77.7% White*1.1% Black*1.3% Native American*0.5% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*2.6% Two or more races*16.8% Other races*61.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
.