The Alpine ibex (Capra 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 (French), Steinbock (German), stambecco (Italian), and kozorog (Slovenian).
The Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica) and the Middle Eastern Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) are very close relatives of the Alpine ibex, and were formerly considered to be subspecies. Fossils of Alpine ibex dating back to the late Pleistocene, when it and the Spanish ibex probably evolved from the extinct Pleistocene species Capra camburgensis.
Read more about Alpine Ibex: Appearance, Distribution and Ecology, Life History, Conservation Status
Famous quotes containing the word alpine:
“The shades of night were falling fast,
As through an Alpine village passed
A youth, who bore, ‘mid snow and ice,
A banner with the strange device,
Excelsior!”
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1809–1882)