The Himalayan goral (''Naemorhedus goral'') or the gray goral, is a bovid species native to the Himalayas. It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List because the population is thought to be declining significantly due to habitat loss and hunting for meat.

Characteristics

The Himalayan goral is in length and weighs . It has a gray or gray-brown coat with tan legs, lighter patches on its throat, and a single dark stripe along its spine. Males have short manes on their necks. Both males and females have backward-curving horns which can grow up to in length. In addition to certain peculiarities in the form of the skull, gorals are chiefly distinguished from the closely related serows in that they do not possess

preorbital gland The preorbital gland is a paired exocrine gland found in many species of hoofed animals, which is homologous to the lacrimal gland found in humans. These glands are trenchlike slits of dark blue to black, nearly bare skin extending from the med ...

s below their

eye Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conv ...

s, nor corresponding depressions in their skulls.

Distribution and habitat

The Himalayan goral occurs in the Himalayas from Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, southern Tibet, and the states of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh in India to possibly western

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

. It inhabits most of the southern slopes at elevations from , but has been recorded in Pakistan at elevations of ; its presence in Punjab, Pakistan is doubtful. In Pakistan, a minimum of 370–1017 Himalayan goral lived in seven isolated populations as of 2004.

Behaviour and ecology

Himalayan Brown Goral pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 14

Himalayan Brown Goral Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 13

Himalayan goral group home range size is typically around , with males occupying marked territories of during the mating season. Himalayan goral often form small bands of four to twelve individuals, although they are also known to pair off or, especially in the case of older males, be solitary. The animal is

crepuscular In zoology, a crepuscular animal is one that is active primarily during the twilight period, being matutinal, vespertine, or both. This is distinguished from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, where an animal is active during the hours of daylig ...

, being most active in the early morning and late evening. After a morning meal, it often drinks and then rests on a rock ledge through the day. It feeds on leaves and associated softer parts of plants, mainly grasses. The Himalayan goral is very agile and can run quickly. Due to its coloration it is very well camouflaged, so that it is extremely difficult to sight it, especially since it spends much of the day lying still. However, it is hunted by various predators, notably the Himalayan wolf. Himalayan goral can live for 14 or 15 years. The female gives birth after a gestation period of 170–218 days, usually to a single offspring. The young are weaned at 7 or 8 months of age and reach sexual maturity at around 3 years.

Conservation

''Naemorhedus goral'' is listed in CITES Appendix I.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q494436 Caprids Fauna of the Himalayas Mammals of Pakistan Mammals of India Mammals of Nepal Mammals of Bhutan Himalayan goral