Drive Thru Safari - Nubian Ibex

The Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) is a desert-dwelling goat species found in mountainous areas of northern and northeast Africa, and the Middle East. The wild population is estimated at 1,200 individuals. Nubian ibexes live in rough, dry, mountainous terrain, where they eat mainly grasses and leaves and are preyed upon by leopards, wolves, common foxes, eagles, and bearded vultures. They are social and herds tend to consist of females, young, and males up to the age of about three years. The males are solitary or form more transitory bands of up to eight individuals. During the breeding season, males join the female-based herds for the six- to eight-week rut. Large males then do battle with much clashing of horns.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature has classified the Nubian ibex as "vulnerable" on the basis that fewer than 10,000 mature individuals remain and the population is declining. Threats faced by the animal include competition with livestock for water and fodder, hunting pressure, and habitat destruction. In Israel, the historically dense ibex population, described in the Bible (Psalm 104:18), was decimated in the wake of the First World War when the sudden availability of rifles enabled Bedouin to hunt them to near extinction. After the establishment of the state, when hunting was outlawed and nature reserves were created in which they were protected, the ibex population rebounded. The Biblical heroine Yael's name means "Ibex" in Hebrew. The Nubian ibex in particular was in the BBC documentary Life, and featured prominently in the popular television documentary series Planet Earth (episode five, "Deserts"). In Yemen, the ibex is a longstanding symbol of national identity, representing many positive attributes of the Yemeni people. An annual National Ibex Day, on 22 January, has been proposed to help protect the animal.