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Capra hircus

Linnaeus, 1758

Goat

GNANot Applicable Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →
GNANot ApplicableGlobal Rank
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103788
Element CodeAMALE07010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassMammalia
OrderArtiodactyla
FamilyBovidae
GenusCapra
Other Common Names
Chèvre (FR) Chivo, Cabra (ES) Domestic Goat (EN)
Concept Reference
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
Taxonomic Comments
Domestic form of C. aegagrus and includes introduced populations in the Mediterranean (ASM 2025). Grubb (in Wilson and Reeder 1993, 2005) included C. aegagrus in C. hircus, whereas Jones et al. (1992) listed them as separate species.
Conservation Status
Review Date2016-04-04
Change Date2016-04-04
Range Extent Comments
Native to southwestern Asia. Domesticated worldwide. Feral populations in British Isles, Mediterranean islands, Canada, Chile, Argentina, Venezuela, Australia, New Zealand, Bonin, Galapagos, Seychelles, Juan Fermnandez Islands, other oceanic islands, on all main islands in Hawaii (except Niihau and Lanai), California, the southwestern U.S., and Puerto Rico (Grubb, in Wilson and Reeder 1993).
Ecology & Habitat

Ecology

High capacity for population increase (up to 10-35% per year) (Watts and Conley 1984).

Reproduction

Breeds year round in Hawaii (Kramer 1971). Gestation lasts about 5 months. Female may breed at 12 months, may breed twice annually. Litter size 1-2.
Terrestrial Habitats
Woodland - HardwoodShrubland/chaparralSavannaGrassland/herbaceousOld fieldBare rock/talus/scree
Other Nations (1)
United StatesNNA
ProvinceRankNative
HawaiiSNANo
New MexicoSNANo
CaliforniaSNANo
Roadless Areas (1)
California (1)
AreaForestAcres
Cactus Springs BSan Bernardino National Forest3,106
References (18)
  1. American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). 2025. Mammal Diversity Database (Version 1.13) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10595931. Online. Available: https://www.mammaldiversity.org/
  2. Bradley, R.D., L.K. Ammerman, R.J. Baker, L.C. Bradley, J.A. Cook. R.C. Dowler, C. Jones, D.J. Schmidly, F.B. Stangl Jr., R.A. Van den Bussche and B. Würsig. 2014. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 2014. Museum of Texas Tech University Occasional Papers 327:1-28. Available at: http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/publications/opapers/ops/OP327.pdf
  3. Gentry, A., J. Clutton-Brock, and C. P. Groves. 2004. The naming of wild animal species and their domestic derivatives. Journal of Archaeological Science 31(5):645-651.
  4. Georgiadis, N. J., P. Kat, H. Oketch, and J. Patton. 1991. Allozyme divergence within the Bovidae. Evolution 44:2135-2149.
  5. Hawaii Ecosystems at Risk Project. 2005. Information index for selected alien vertebrates in Hawaii. Internet resource available at http://www.hear.org/alienspeciesinhawaii/InfoIndexVertebrates.htm. Downloaded 31 March 2005.
  6. Johnson, T. H. 1988. Biodiversity and conservation in the Caribbean. Profiles of selected islands. ICBP Monograph No. 1.
  7. Jones, J. K., Jr., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, C. Jones, R. J. Baker, and M. D. Engstrom. 1992a. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1991. Occasional Papers, The Museum, Texas Tech University, 146:1-23.
  8. Kramer, R. J. 1971. Hawaiian land mammals. Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc., Rutland, Vermont, and Tokyo, Japan. 347 pp.
  9. Kraus, F., and M. M. Miyamoto. 1991. Rapid cladogenesis among the pecoran ruminants: evidence from mitochondrial DNA sequences. Systematic Zoology 40:117-130.
  10. Lever, C. 1985. Naturalized mammals of the world. Longman Group Limited, England.
  11. Taylor, D., and L. Katahira. 1988. Radio telemetry as an aid in eradicating remnant feral goats. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 16:297-299.
  12. Tirira, D. 1999. Mamíferos del Ecuador. Museo de Zoología, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, Quito.
  13. Tomich, P. Q. 1986. Mammals in Hawai'i. A synopsis and notational bibliography. Second edition. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 375 pp.
  14. Watts, T., and W. Conley. 1984. Reproductive potential andrates of increase for feral goat populations. J. Wildl. Manage. 48:814-822.
  15. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
  16. Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 2005. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Third edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Two volumes. 2,142 pp. [As modified by ASM the Mammal Diversity Database (MDD) at https://www.mammaldiversity.org/index.html]
  17. Woodward, S. L., and D. P. Sponenberg. 1992. Feral livestock in America: identification of populations important for the conservation of genetic diversity. Abstract, 6th Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology, p. 148.
  18. Zeiner, D. C., W. F. Laudenslayer, Jr., K. E. Mayer, and M. White, editors. 1990b. California's wildlife. Volume III. Mammals. State of California, The Resources Agency, Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, CA. 407 pp.