Nilgiri Tahr (hemitragus hylocrius)

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Nilgiri Tahr

Also known as the Nilgiri ibex, the Nilgiri tahr is a short, stocky creature belonging to the sub-family caprinae, the same family as goats. Further up the family tree is bovidae, which holds most even-toed ungulates, meaning creatures that have two-piece cloven hooves, like cattle, antelope and, of course, goats. In appearance, the male Nilgiri tahr is fairly short, usually 3 feet tall at the shoulder. He weighs in at anywhere from 170 to 220 pounds, with him being decidedly larger than his female counterparts. A male hemitragus hylocrius will have short, coarse dark brown hair with a black tint, whereas the young and females tend more toward grey in color.

As he ages, he will develop a white grizzled look on his back that usually looks like a saddle. For this reason, he is sometimes referred to as a "saddleback" by locals and hunters alike. His horns may grow over 15 inches long when he's older and can be up to 8 inches around! The female however, will have much smaller horns, usually getting up to just over 11 inches with a smaller circumference.

The Nilgiri tahr, socially, is a herd animal, with males and females living in separate herds. The bachelor herds are usually found in the better grazing pastures, and the female herds are often found among high bluffs and along cliff edges. Once a year, however they usually come together for mating season. Male tahrs, like their other cousins, will ram head-first into each other to establish dominance. Most fights may end after only one head-butt, while others may last several hours!

Once a female hemitragus hylocrius is impregnated, it will take her about 180 days to go full term, delivering an offspring called a kid. Most of the time, tahrs will only give birth to a single kid, although there have been a few cases of twins. Females are generally only ready to mate once a year during what is commonly known as the rutting season, although, in cases of young dying during birth or shortly after, a female may go in heat again during a single year.

Once born, a kid will stay with the mother until it is independent. If it is female, it will most likely remain in the herd it was born in; if male, it will find a nearby bachelor herd to join. The largest and most viable population of Nilgiri Tahr is found in the Eravikulam National Park, which was originally created to protect the Nilgiri Tahr. Other known populations are fragmented, are mostly likely to die out due to predation, loss of habitat, disease, poaching and other factors.

Currently, the main threat to the Nilgiri Tahr is poaching and loss of habitat. Luckily, the Eravikulam National Park was established to protect the Nilgiri Tahr. Whether this effort will be effective or not remains to be seen, however, as sources, such as the notable UICN Redlist of Threatened Species, cite the Nilgiri Tahr population to be declining. What will the future hold for this intriguing creature? Only time will tell.

Amazing Fact:

The tahr is the only animal equally related to both sheep and goats!

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Bibliography:
CAMP Workshop, India 2000. Hemitragus hylocrius. In: IUCN 2003. 2003 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. . Downloaded on 30 October 2004.

Nilgiri Tahr Foundation (November 2004) http://www.tahrfoundation.org/html/ntahr.htm

ARKive | Images of Life on Earth http://www.arkive.org/species/GES/mammals/Hemitragus_hylocrius/more_info.html

WebIndia123.com http://www.webindia123.com/wildlife/parks/kerala/eravi.htm

Encyclopaedia Britannica Online http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9041890&query=ibex

Minu Seshasayee http://members.tripod.com/~cywen_nisarg/wildlife/wildlife5.html