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Markhor
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Markhor
The markhor (Capra falconeri) /ˈmɑːrkɔːr/ is a large wild Capra species native to the mountain regions at the crossroads of Central and western South Asia, including the Karakoram and Himalayas. It occurs in parts of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. It has been listed on the IUCN Red List as Near Threatened since 2015.
The markhor is the national animal of Pakistan, where it is also known as the screw-horn or screw-horned goat. The word "markhor" is derived from the Persian word markhar, meaning "curly" because of its curly horns. This comes from both Pashto and mainly classical Persian languages, referencing the ancient belief that the markhor would actively kill and consume snakes.
Markhor adults stand 65 to 115 cm (26 to 45 in) at the shoulder, are 132 to 186 cm (52 to 73 in) long and weigh from 32 to 110 kg (71 to 243 lb). They have the highest maximum shoulder height among the species in the genus Capra, but is surpassed in length and weight by the Siberian ibex. The coat is of a grizzled, light brown to black colour, and is smooth and short in summer, while growing longer and thicker in winter. The fur of the lower legs is black and white. Markhor are sexually dimorphic, with males having longer hair on the chin, throat, chest, and shanks. Females are redder in colour, with shorter hair and a short, black beard, and are maneless. Both sexes have tightly curled, corkscrew-like horns, which close together at the head, but spread upwards toward the tips. The horns of males can grow up to 160 cm (63 in) long, and up to 25 cm (9.8 in) in females.
The markhor is adapted to mountainous terrain and lives at elevations of 600 to 3,600 m (2,000 to 11,800 ft). It inhabits shrub forests made up primarily of oaks (Quercus ilex), pines (Pinus gerardiana), and junipers (Juniperus macropoda).
In Central Asia, the Bukharan markhor formerly lived in most of the mountains stretching along the north banks of the Upper Amu Darya and the Panj Rivers from Turkmenistan to Tajikistan; two to three scattered populations now occur in a greatly reduced distribution. It is limited to the region between lower Pyanj and the Vakhsh Rivers near Kulyab in Tajikistan, and in the Kugitangtau Range in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
In Afghanistan, the markhor is limited to the east in the high and mountainous monsoon forests of Laghman and Nuristan. Until 1978, it survived in the country only in the Kabul Gorge and the Kohe Safi area of Kapissa, and in some isolated pockets in between. It now lives the most inaccessible regions of its once wider range in the mountains of Kapissa and Kabul Provinces, after having been driven from its original habitat by intensive poaching.
In Pakistan, it is restricted to the Indus River and Kunar River and their tributaries; its present range consists of many small, isolated areas in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Dera Ghazi Khan District. Along the Indus, it inhabits both banks from Jalkot in Kohistan District upstream to near the Tungas village in Baltistan, with Gakuch being its western limit up the Gilgit River, Chalt up the Hunza River, and the Parishing Valley up the Astore River. It occurs also around Chitral and the border areas with Afghanistan, where it inhabits a number of valleys along the Kunar River from Arandu on the west bank and Drosh on the east bank, up to Shoghor along the Lutkho River, and as far as Barenis along the Mastuj River. The largest population currently lives in Chitral National Park in Pakistan.
In India, the markhor is restricted to a portion of the Pir Panjal range in southwestern Jammu and Kashmir. Throughout this range, markhor populations are scattered, starting east of the Banihal Pass about 50 km (31 mi) from the Chenab River on the Jammu–Srinagar highway westward to the disputed border with Pakistan. It still occurs in catchments of the Limber and Lachipora Rivers in the Jhelum Valley Forest Division and around Shupiyan to the south of Srinagar.
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Markhor
The markhor (Capra falconeri) /ˈmɑːrkɔːr/ is a large wild Capra species native to the mountain regions at the crossroads of Central and western South Asia, including the Karakoram and Himalayas. It occurs in parts of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. It has been listed on the IUCN Red List as Near Threatened since 2015.
The markhor is the national animal of Pakistan, where it is also known as the screw-horn or screw-horned goat. The word "markhor" is derived from the Persian word markhar, meaning "curly" because of its curly horns. This comes from both Pashto and mainly classical Persian languages, referencing the ancient belief that the markhor would actively kill and consume snakes.
Markhor adults stand 65 to 115 cm (26 to 45 in) at the shoulder, are 132 to 186 cm (52 to 73 in) long and weigh from 32 to 110 kg (71 to 243 lb). They have the highest maximum shoulder height among the species in the genus Capra, but is surpassed in length and weight by the Siberian ibex. The coat is of a grizzled, light brown to black colour, and is smooth and short in summer, while growing longer and thicker in winter. The fur of the lower legs is black and white. Markhor are sexually dimorphic, with males having longer hair on the chin, throat, chest, and shanks. Females are redder in colour, with shorter hair and a short, black beard, and are maneless. Both sexes have tightly curled, corkscrew-like horns, which close together at the head, but spread upwards toward the tips. The horns of males can grow up to 160 cm (63 in) long, and up to 25 cm (9.8 in) in females.
The markhor is adapted to mountainous terrain and lives at elevations of 600 to 3,600 m (2,000 to 11,800 ft). It inhabits shrub forests made up primarily of oaks (Quercus ilex), pines (Pinus gerardiana), and junipers (Juniperus macropoda).
In Central Asia, the Bukharan markhor formerly lived in most of the mountains stretching along the north banks of the Upper Amu Darya and the Panj Rivers from Turkmenistan to Tajikistan; two to three scattered populations now occur in a greatly reduced distribution. It is limited to the region between lower Pyanj and the Vakhsh Rivers near Kulyab in Tajikistan, and in the Kugitangtau Range in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
In Afghanistan, the markhor is limited to the east in the high and mountainous monsoon forests of Laghman and Nuristan. Until 1978, it survived in the country only in the Kabul Gorge and the Kohe Safi area of Kapissa, and in some isolated pockets in between. It now lives the most inaccessible regions of its once wider range in the mountains of Kapissa and Kabul Provinces, after having been driven from its original habitat by intensive poaching.
In Pakistan, it is restricted to the Indus River and Kunar River and their tributaries; its present range consists of many small, isolated areas in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Dera Ghazi Khan District. Along the Indus, it inhabits both banks from Jalkot in Kohistan District upstream to near the Tungas village in Baltistan, with Gakuch being its western limit up the Gilgit River, Chalt up the Hunza River, and the Parishing Valley up the Astore River. It occurs also around Chitral and the border areas with Afghanistan, where it inhabits a number of valleys along the Kunar River from Arandu on the west bank and Drosh on the east bank, up to Shoghor along the Lutkho River, and as far as Barenis along the Mastuj River. The largest population currently lives in Chitral National Park in Pakistan.
In India, the markhor is restricted to a portion of the Pir Panjal range in southwestern Jammu and Kashmir. Throughout this range, markhor populations are scattered, starting east of the Banihal Pass about 50 km (31 mi) from the Chenab River on the Jammu–Srinagar highway westward to the disputed border with Pakistan. It still occurs in catchments of the Limber and Lachipora Rivers in the Jhelum Valley Forest Division and around Shupiyan to the south of Srinagar.
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