I saw my first Rocky Mountain Goat at the BC Wildlife Zoo in Kamloops BC in 2021, and after 32 years of soulless pedantic existence, I thought to myself, I just found my spirit animal. There's just something whimsical, inexplicable, and almost facetious about the creature that is so infectious that its elongated face with the beady eyes was literally burnt into my memory forever.
I can have a terrible day and the instant I look at photos or videos of the goat, I just can't help but curl the corners of my lip upward. So here's my reflection on the 7 surprising facts about the Rocky Mountain Goat that you probably didn't know, which also make the Goat the most fascinating and awesome animal.
7 Facts About the Rocky Mountain Goat That You Probably Didn't Know
1) Its game is confusion - because it's actually not even a goat
The Rocky Mountain Goat, or North American Mountain Goat, has a scientific name Oreamnos (pronounced ōrēˈamnəs) americanus. Its species officially belongs to the cattle family (Bovidae) due to its physicality. Though not technically a true goat, the Rocky Mountain goat can trace its lineage back to the Asiatic goat-antelopes and largely resemble the appearance of a goat, hence the name.
Drawings of six species of goat antelopes. Image credit of unknown via Wikipedia
2) Where you see one, you'll also see incredibly beautiful scenery
The Rocky Mountain Goat lives in high places - up in the steep ranges of the Rocky Mountain and Cascade Ranges, often exceeding the elevation of 10,000ft (3000 meters) They are primarily alpine species and prefer to stay above the tree line throughout the seasons. Some of these spots include Sulphur Mountain (BC, Canada), Icefield Parkways (AB, Canada), Blue Lakes (CO, US), Dealano Peak (UT, US), which are all fantastically gorgeous places.
Image courtesy of Pxhere
3) It's a true North American specialty
The Rocky Mountain Goat, as its name implies, resides in the Rocky Mountains and Cascade Range, and the mountainous areas of the Western Cordillera of North America. Within Canada, they are native to British Columbia (BC actually has 1/2 of the world's mountain goat population!), Alberta and southern Yukon. Within the US, they are native to south-central Alaska, Washington, Idaho and Montana, and were introduced to mountainous areas of Utah and Colorado. Unless introduced, they are not found in any other parts of the world. So the next time you visit Canada or the US and rack your brain for souvenir ideas, get some fun gifts related to the Rocky Mountain Goat as it truly is a special North American wonder. We have some ideas for you in the NAMGAC shop!
Distribution of Rocky Mountain Goats. Image credit of Ninjatacoshell via Wikipedia
4) It defies traditional gender roles (you go, goats!)
Perhaps one of the most fascinating fact about the goat: in their world, female goats with offspring trump everybody else and are the most dominant, even in the face of the largest males. Males are only dominant during the breeding season but then become submissive to females and youngsters the rest of the year. In fact, comparing to other goat types, the North American Mountain Goat's horns way more fragile in size and texture, and their skull bones are lighter in general, so adult male goats generally avoid head-to-head combat. There also isn't a significant difference in the horn size between male and female, perhaps another reason for the balanced dynamic between the genders.
Image courtesy of Pxhere
5) It defies gravity, literally
Their hooves are made for climbing! Rocky Mountain Goats can effortlessy scale rocky slopes exceeding 60° with the special architecture of their feet and the power anatomy of their upper body. I'll let these guys explain the science behind it as there's no way I can do it better!
6) It's not a huge fan of humans (something I can relate to from time to time)
The North American Mountain Goat is not currently considered an endangered species and its population has successfully grown over the past decades, due to both natural reproduction and deliberate preservation. Their selection of habitat in very high altitudes should be a clue of their unwillingness to engage with humans, and machines of the human world like helicopters, snow machines and all-terrain vehicles are highly unwelcoming disruptions to the goat as they can cause herd dispersion and nanny-offspring separation. While typically non-aggressive, nannies protecting offspring can be territorial and gregarious. In addition, keep in mind that the Rocky Mountain Goat is still a MASSIVE animal, with male weighing 125kg and females 110kg on average. There has been one reported human injury in 2010 as a result of a goat attack. Therefore, if you do end up trekking where the goat resides, be sure to exercise high degree of caution and keep a healthy distance - its grace is best observed from afar
7) It has an occasional salt addiction (another thing I can relate to, sadly)
The Rocky Mountain Goat's diet is that of a typical ruminant animal, with main stables including grasses, leaves, herbs, ferns, mosses, and twigs. However, like many other wildlife animals, in springtime it migrates to lower lands in search of saltlick, which is basically areas where they can go lick essential mineral nutrition (sodium, phosphorous, calcium, iron, zinc, minerals needed for bone and muscle development) from salt despots and other minerals. In the 90s, allegedly goats were (hilariously) terrorising tourists in Olympic Park in Washington state in search of human urine to get their salt fix. OK, I'm willing to drive 10 miles in a blizzard to buy Doritos to cure my uncontrollable salt craving, but urine I won't do.
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