"Mountain Goats" redirects here. For the band, see The Mountain Goats. ? Rocky Mountain Goat Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Genus: Oreamnos Rafinesque, 1817 Species: O. americanus Binomial name Oreamnos americanus ( Blainville, 1816)
The Rocky Mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus), often called simply mountain goat, is a large hoofed mammal found only in North America. Although it resembles a goat, it is actually more closely related to the antelope family. It resides at high elevations and is a sure-footed climber, often resting on rocky cliffs that predators cannot reach.
Mountain goats are even-toed ungulates of the order Artiodactyla and its subdivision, the Bovidae family. They belong to the subfamily Caprinae, along with thirty-two other species, and are the only species in the genus Oreamnos. The name Oreamnos is derived from the Greek term "ore," mountain (or, alternatively, "oreas," mountain nymph) and the word "amnos," lamb.
Both male and female mountain goats have beards, short tails, and long black horns, 15-28 cm in length, which contain yearly growth rings. They are protected from the elements by their woolly white double coats. The fine, dense wool of their undercoats is covered by an outer layer of longer, hollow hairs. In warmer seasons, mountain goats molt by rubbing against rocks and trees, with the adult billies (males) shedding their extra wool first and the pregnant nannies (females) shedding last. In the winter, their coats help them to withstand temperatures as low as -50 Fahrenheit (-46 Celsius) and winds of up to 100 mph (161 km/h).
A billy stands about 1 meter (3'3") at the shoulder and weighs about 90 kg (200 lbs.). It has longer horns and a longer beard than the nanny. Adult males typically weigh between 45 and 100 kg, while females are usually 10-30% lighter.