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Capra hircus
Cabra cimarron (Sp), Verwilderte Ziegen (G), Chèvre sauvage (F).
These are domestic goats living in the wild, some having escaped from domesticity, others having been abandoned or released by their owners. Some populations in Europe have been feral for centuries. Domestic goats are believed to be descended from the bezoar ibex or wild goat (Capra aegagrus) of the Middle East.
DESCRIPTION (male) Shoulder height about 32 inches (81 cm). Weight 100-140 pounds (45-64 kg), occasionally considerably more. Females are smaller.
These are sturdy, powerful animals with an outer coat of long, coarse hair and an undercoat of fine wool. Because of their mixed origin, there is no fixed type of color or pattern. Color varies from black to white, although most individuals are a mixture of black, gray, brown and white. Males grow a large, shaggy chin beard. The horns (both sexes) are of two principal types. One type rises upward and backward from the skull, then spreads sideways in a tight homonymous spiral. In the other type, the horns grow straight backward in a semicircle (scimitar-shaped), similar to those of the bezoar. Besides being smaller than males, females grow much smaller horns, do not have beards, and are more likely to be multicolored.
BEHAVIOR Social herd animals. Females and young in good-sized herds that tend to remain in the same area. Old males in separate groups of 3-4, and may wander considerable distances, especially during the rut. Goats will breed all year, but main activity is in the fall. Breeding is promiscuous, with males of all ages participating, no harem formation, and little fighting among males. The young are born five months later, normally one but occasionally twins. Both sexes are able to breed when less than a year old.
Goats are browsers of leaves, twigs and weeds and are highly destructive feeders. Able to climb trees and feed in the branches. They are diurnal, and all senses are good.
DISTRIBUTION Widely but locally distributed in the British Isles, especially Scotland. Also on a number of Mediterranean islands including Ibiza, Majorca, Corsica, Crete, Cyprus, and certain islands in the Aegean Sea.
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