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Walia ibex in Semien Mountain National Park

Walia ibex

Walia ibex are a type of goat that live 2,500-4,500m up the steep cliffs of the Ethiopian highlands. They remained immune to human interference until modern firearms made hunting a feasible activity in their almost impassible rocky homes. Since then, their numbers have declined sharply.

Scientific name: Capra walie

Rank: Species

Distribution

Map showing the distribution of the Walia ibex taxa

Species range provided by WWF's Wildfinder.

The Walia ibex can be found in a number of locations including: Africa. Find out more about these places and what else lives there.

Habitats

The following habitats are found across the Walia ibex distribution range. Find out more about these environments, what it takes to live there and what else inhabits them.

Behaviours

Discover what these behaviours are and how different plants and animals use them.

Additional data source: Animal Diversity Web

Conservation Status

Endangered

  1. EX - Extinct
  2. EW
  3. CR - Threatened
  4. EN - Threatened
  5. VU - Threatened
  6. NT
  7. LC - Least concern

Population trend: Increasing

Year assessed: 2008

Classified by: IUCN 3.1

About

The walia ibex (Capra walie, Ge'ez: ዋልያ wālyā) is a species of ibex that is endangered. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Alpine ibex. Threats against the species include habitat loss, poaching, and restricted range; only about 500 individuals survived in the mountains of Ethiopia, concentrated in the Semien Mountains, largely due to past poaching and habitat depletion. If the population were to increase, the surrounding mountain habitat would be sufficient enough to sustain only 2,000 ibex. The adult walia ibex's only known wild predator is the hyena. However, young ibex are often hunted by a variety of fox and cat species. The ibex are members of the goat family, and the walia ibex is the southernmost of today's ibexes. In the late 1990s the walia ibex went from endangered to critically endangered due to the declining population. The walia ibex is also known as the Abyssinian ibex.

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