Himalayan Ibex proven to be a distinct species

Scientists recently proved that the Himalayan Ibex, a wild goat species, is a distinct species from the Siberian Ibex.

Himalayan Ibex

The Himalayan Ibex is a wild goat species found in India and Pakistan in the Western Himalayan region. They are mainly found in high elevation habitats (3,800m and above) such as those in Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh.

Siberian Ibex

The Siberian Ibex is also a related wild goat species. It mainly lives in the central Asian countries like Mongolia, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, parts of Russia, etc. These are large goats with horns in both sexes. They are the largest and heaviest members of their genus.

National Mission on Himalayan Studies

The study was conducted by the scientists under the National Mission on Himalayan Studies. The NMHS is implemented by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. It is a central sector grant-in-aid scheme in line with the National Environment Policy of 2006.