Mountain Goat, Male
Mountain Goat
Oreamnos americanus
(Bovidae)
Global Rank:
G5
State Rank:
S5
Agency Status
USFWS:
USFS:
none
BLM:
none
General Description
Coat white; horns and hooves black; tail may have a few brown or black hairs; long hair of winter coat forms a beard under the chin and pantaloons around the front legs; body compact and chunky, legs short; horns smooth, sharp, and curved slightly backward, 8-10 inches long; horns of nannies curve less and are thinner, but sometimes longer, than those of billies; hooves have hard outer edges with soft centers that "stick" to rocks; old billies may weigh 300 lbs. or more, nannies about 150 lbs. Nannies, kids and immature billies form small herds; mature billies often alone except during rut; females dominant over males.
Migration
Occ. discrete wint. & sum. ranges 5-10 mi. apart in Bitter- roots (Smith 1976). Males show little home range fidelity (Rideout 1977).
Habitat
Precipitous terrain; steep, south-facing slopes in winter, sometimes enter subalpine forest (FWP). Snow cover an important influence on winter distribution. Winter habitat: cliffy terrain, s. facing canyon walls, windblown ridgetops. Spring: s. and w. facing cliffs. Summer: meadows, cliffs, ravines, & forests (Chadwick 1973, Burleigh 1978, Joslin 1985).
Food Habits
Grasses, sedges, lichens, forbs and shrubs (FWP). Dominant items vary dep. on range/season: grasses, sedges, shrubs and forbs. Conifer. trees, mosses and lichens also used (Saunders 1955, Chadwick 1973, Smith 1976, Burleigh 1978). May congregate at mineral licks (Joslin 1985, Singer 1978).
Ecology
Vehicle access linked to pop. declines (Joslin 1985). Low productivity and sociobio. char. combine to make sensitive to overharvest (Smith 1976, Burleigh 1978). May leave traditional areas in response to disturbances--logging (Chadwick 1973, Joslin 1985).
Reproductive Characteristics
Breed in November and December; usually one kid, but sometimes two on good range; billies fight head to tail, sometimes inflicting serious wounds to hindquarters and flanks; nannies usually breed at 2 1/2 years of age (FWP). Breeds at 2 yrs. Courtship beg. late Oct. Breed Nov-Dec. Give birth late May-early Jun. Gestation 182 days. Neo- nates highly precocious (Smith 1976). 1-2 young, usually 1. Hunting tends to be additive. Low-to-now compens. resp.
Citations & Sources
- Burleigh, W. E. 1978. Seasonal distribution and historical decline of the Rocky Mountain goat in the Cabinet Mountains, Montana. M.S. thesis. University of Montana, Missoula. 110 pp.
- Chadwick, D. H. 1973. Mountain goat ecology--logging relationships in the Bunker Creek drainage of western Montana. M.S. thesis. University of Montana, Missoula. 262 pp.
- Foresman, K.R. 2001. The wild mammals of Montana. Special Publication No. 12. American Society of Mammalogists
- Joslin, G. 1980. Mountain goat habitat management plan for the Cabinet Mountains, Montana. MT. Dept. Fish, Wildl. and Parks and Kootenai National Forest.
- Joslin, G. 1985. Montana mountain goat investigations, Rocky Mountain front. Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, Helena. 212 pp.
- Mussehl, T. W. and F. W. Howell (eds.). 1971. Game management in Montana. Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Helena, Mont. 238 pp.
- NatureServe Explorer: An online encyclopedia of life [web application]. 2002. Version 1.6 . Arlington, Virginia, USA: NatureServe. Available: http://www.natureserve.org/explorer. (Accessed: March 20, 2003 ).
- O'Gara, B. Identification of Montana's Big Game Animals. Montana Outdoors.
- Rideout, C. B. 1977. Mountain goat home ranges in the Sapphire Mountains of Montana. Pp. 201-211. in: Proc. Int. Mountain Goat Symposium. S. W. and W. G. MacGregor (eds). Brit. Col. Min. of Recr. and Conserv., F& W Branch.
- Smith, B. L. 1976. Ecology of Rocky Mountain goats in the Bitterroot Mountains, Montana. M.S. thesis. University of Montana, Missoula. 203 pp.
- Smith, B. L. 1977. Influence of snow conditions on winter distribution, habitat use and group size of mountain goats. IN: W. Samuel and W. G. MacGregor (eds). Proc. of 1st Int. Mt. Goat Symp. Brit. Col. Minist. of Rec., Fish and Wildl. Branch.
- Smith, B. L. 1988. Criteria for determining age and sex of American mountain goats in the field. J. Mamm. 69:395-402.
