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Capra nubiana
Ibice de Nubia (Sp), Nubischer Steinbok (G), Bouquetin de Nubie (F). Named for the Nubian region in northeastern Africa, which includes parts of Egypt and Sudan.
DESCRIPTION (male) Shoulder height 25-33 inches (64-84 cm). Weight 100-150 pounds (45-68 kg).
Smaller and more lightly built than other ibexes. General color is yellowish-brown, with a dark dorsal stripe and dark chest markings. Underparts and chin are whitish. Legs have conspicuous black-and-white markings from the knees and hocks down. The beard is narrow, long and dark; the short tail has a tuft of long hairs. Ears are large, measuring 4-5 inches (10-12 cm) in length. There are scent glands under the tail. The male's horns are long, relatively narrow, and scimitar-shaped, forming three-fourths of a circle. The front surface is flattened at an obtuse angle so that the outer edge is rounded and the inner edge sharp, and is strongly cross-ridged. Females are smaller and lighter in color than males, beardless (except that very old females may have small beards), and grow horns only 5-6 inches (12-15 cm) in length.
Distinguished from Asian and Alpine ibexes by its narrower horns with rounded outer edges, the white belly and contrasting black-and-white leg markings.
DISTRIBUTION Private properties in Texas.
REMARKS Native to the Red Sea Hills in Egypt and Sudan, the mountains of Eritrea, the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt, and Israel, Jordan and parts of the Arabian Peninsula. An excellent game animal in its native habitat, where it lives in some of the harshest, least hospitable terrain on Earth.
HYBRIDIZATION The Nubian ibex is either known or believed to crossbreed, or to be the result of hybridization, when in a game ranch environment.
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