Mountain goat

"See, up there? That's them mountain goats, locals call them steinbecks. I know, looks impossible right? Yaltur knows how they stick to the side of the cliff. Good eating, if you can catch one, but good luck with that!"

The Eastern border The Empire of Belyos is marked, like the other borders with mountains, but unlike the others, its main feature is the Great Escarpment , a cliff running for hundreds of kilometers, and averaging almost a kilometer high. It's not always a sheer vertical drop, and several plants and animals have taken advantage of its remote location to carve out a secure niche. The most famous of these is the mountain goat, or steinbeck.

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Basic Information

Anatomy

The mountain goat has brownish-grey hair over most of the body, a pale abdomen, and slightly darker markings on the chin and throat and in a stripe along the back. They moult twice a year when they replace the short summer coat with thicker hair and a woolly undercoat.
Males commonly grow to a height of 90 to 101 cm, with a body length of 149 to 171 cm and weigh from 67 to 117 kg. Females are noticeably smaller, with a shoulder height of 73 to 84 cm, a body length of 121 to 141 cm, and a weight of 17 to 32 kg. Both male and females have large, backwards-curving horns with numerous ridges along their length.

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Ecology and Habitats

Found almost exclusively along the Great Escarpment, mountain goats range its entire length and can be found in smaller numbers further back in the mountain range, but exploration of this region is limited. Their biological adaptations mean they are found at any height, although most will descend to lower altitudes when the winter weather gets too severe.

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Dietary Needs and Habits

Entirely herbivorous, these goats eat the various plants that grow in the rocks and crevices of the cliff face.

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Additional Information

Domestication

Some attempts have been made to domesticate the goat, as its sure-footedness would enable exploitation of a wide range of environments. However, aside from a few small scale farms right up against the Escarpment, any mountain goats taken away from the region sicken and die. Its postulated that there is some essential micronutrient in the region that is not found elsewhere.

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Lifespan

Up to 19 years

Conservation Status

Not threatened