The Wild Goats of the Greek mountains
The wild goat (Rupicapra rupicapra balcanica)
The wild goat is the absolute ruler of the cliffs, it is a dynamic and proud animal. His characteristic feature is the upright horns that lean backwards, his face is dominated by white, while his body is strong, with a color that varies depending on the season. That is, it is light brown in spring and summer with short hair, which in winter becomes long and turns dark brown - almost black.
A necessary condition for its existence is the cliff, where it finds protection from predators. Slopes, rocky slopes, steep forests, plains, gullies and alpine meadows are the ideal habitat for the wild goat. In winter, wild goats prefer steep, southern slopes, where the snow melts faster. When spring comes, they begin to climb higher and to avoid the great heat of summer, they withdraw to the cool areas of the habitat.
They are more active in the morning, while when it is cloudy and low temperature, they move throughout the day. The wild animal manages to survive at high altitudes (2,000 and 3,000 meters), with sparse oxygen concentrations, because it has adaptive mechanisms. For example, his lungs are quite large in relation to its size, his heart is twice the size of a human, while his pulse can reach 200 in running.
Unlike males, females with young live in herds. They mate in the fall and that is when the strongest males become the masters of a harem of females for a "respectable" period of time.
The ibex, which lived three million years ago in the regions of Central and East Asia, is considered to be the ancestor of the wild goat. Members of the tribe, over the centuries, moved to Western Asia and Europe through the mountain ranges of the Himalayas, the Caucasus and the Pontian Alps, the mountains of the Balkan Peninsula, which were natural rocky corridors for these movements.
The wild goat is threatened with extinction, as it is now found in small local populations in our country, which belong to the subspecies of the Balkans, which is very rare. In Greece, today - according to estimates - there are 600-700 wild goats that are scattered in Pindos, Central Greece, Olympus, Rodopi and the mountains on the border with FYROM and Albania. On Mount Tymfi we find a large number for the Greek data, as according to recent data they reach 200, while in Grammos 30 and in Smolika 70 people.
Map of the distribution of wild goat populations in Greece
Wild goats are familiar to shepherds, as they meet them in the mountains during the summer months. They are also lucky to be seen by climbers and climbers, in the steep ravines and rocky peaks. Some hunters look for them even on the steepest slopes, because - unfortunately - they consider them "exquisite prey".
The ecological role of the ibex is particularly important. As a first-class consumer, the ibex "must" form large populations to be able to support predatory higher predators, such as the wolf and the golden eagle or even the lynx. Unfortunately, systematic poaching, facilitated by a number of forest and mountain roads, has decimated many of the wild goat populations in Greece.
Fortunately, at least 4 wild goat populations in Greece, mainly that of Tymfi, show a small but steady trend of recovery in the last 10 years. This particularly pleases the few scientists involved in this rare and protected mammal, as well as some mountainous local communities who are beginning to see this rare species as an "ecotourism outlet" in the current economic crisis.
Gorges and cliffs in Oiti. Typical habitat of the wild goat
The presence of the wild goat is the basis for a "healthy and complete mountain ecosystem". Such mountainous areas where the wild goat is present, with the appropriate handling and in combination with the spectacular landscapes included in its habitats, could be a strong attraction for special categories of tourists.