Overview
This subspecies is bigger than the Cantabrian chamois, with longer, thicker horns. The reddish summer coat darkens to brown in the winter. Underparts are pale. rump, throat, lower jaw, and front of face are yellowish.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammal
- Order
- Artiodactyla
- Family
- Bovidae
- Genus
- Rupicapra
- Species
- Rupicapra pyrenaica
Habitat
They live at moderately high altitudes and are adapted to living in rocky terrain. Distribution- Pyrenees Mountains of northeastern Spain and southern France.
Diet
Chamois both graze and browse, eating many types of vegetation depending on availability throughout the year.
Behavior
This is a graceful and agile mountain animal. Chamois usually use speed to escape predators and can run at 31 mph (50 kph) and jump 6.6 ft (2 m) vertically into the air or over a distance of 20 ft (6 m). They are gregarious, living in herds of up to 20-30 animals. Older males are usually solitary except during the rut in May-June when they join the females. Chamois are diurnal, feeding early and late, with the middle part of the day spent resting. A sentinel (usually a female) is posted to watch for danger, and will warn the others with shrill whistles.
Hunting
It is best to hunt chamois from above, as their natural instinct is to scan for danger from below.
Conservation Status
Stable, with numbers estimated at 20,000 in 1981.