---
title: "What the sources say about the Alpine Chamois | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "30 claims from the Alpine Chamois profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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---

# What the sources say about the Alpine Chamois (*Rupicapra rupicapra*)

> 30 claims from the Alpine Chamois profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Alpine Chamois](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/alpine-chamois/)

## Rupicapra rupicapra (chamois). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Rupicapra_rupicapra/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| belongs to the same family as goats, sheep, cattle and antelopes | Family Bovidae antelopes, cattle, gazelles, goats, sheep, and relatives (note: ADW's classification block; family Bovidae) |
| A chamois stands 70 to 80 cm at the shoulder, weigh 25 to 50 kg, and measure 110 to 135 cm long | Weight: 25 to 50 kg; Shoulder Height: 70 to 80 cm; Length 110 to135 cm. (note: ADW's Range mass field gives 30 to 50 kg; the physical description's wider 25 to 50 kg is used) |
| It lives in the mountains of south and central Europe, Turkey and the Caucasus, in alpine and subalpine meadows above the treeline. It spends winter in forests and on steep slopes where snow does not pile up | The range of
Rupricapra rupicapra
, or chamois, includes the Pyrenees, the mountains of south and central Europe, Turkey,
and the Caucasus in Asia. ... R. rupricapra
lives in alpine and sub alpine meadows above the timberline. It winters in forested
areas and steep slopes where snow does not accumulate. (note: Pyrenees left out: Commons and the image 1 caption file the Pyrenean animal as Rupicapra pyrenaica) |
| People also introduced it to New Zealand's South Island | It has been introduced on the South Island of New Zealand. |
| Its hooves are excellent for gripping slippery rock. When alarmed, a chamois flees to the hardest places to reach, often making huge leaps | The hooves of the chamois are excellent for gripping slippery rock. ... When alarmed, these animals flee to the most
innaccessible places, often making prodigous leaps. (note: source spells 'innaccessible'/'prodigous'; 'the hardest places to reach' paraphrases 'the most innaccessible places') |
| Females and young males are gregarious, meaning they live in groups | Females and young males are gregarious (note: definition of gregarious added) |
| Adult males are mostly solitary except in the breeding season, and they join the herds in late summer | Males are generally solitary except during the breeding season. They join herds during the late summer. |
| In its native mountains, the rut, or mating season, runs from October through December, and a single kid is usually born the next May or June | There is usually only one kid born to a female ... Breeding occurs from October through December, with young born in May and June. (note: 'native mountains' scopes ADW's months, which the New Zealand page shows do not hold there; 'a single kid' paraphrases 'only one kid') |
| Breeding males turn aggressive, driving younger males away from the herds of mothers and young and sometimes killing them | adult males are solitary and aggressive in the rutting season. These breeding males drive younger males away from the maternal herds, occasionally killing them. (note: 'maternal herds' paraphrased as herds of mothers and young) |
| A newborn kid can follow its mother almost straight after birth, and within its first few days it is rapidly getting better at leaping | The precocial kids are able to follow their mother almost immediately after they are born and they rapidly improve their leaping ability within the first few days of life. |
| Its known predators include Eurasian lynx, gray wolves and humans | Known Predators Eurasian lynx ( Lynx lynx ) gray wolves ( Canis lupus ) humans ( Homo sapiens ) (note: ADW's Known Predators list) |
| A chamois signals danger with a whistle and by stamping its feet | Chamois announce danger with a whistling sound and foot stamping. |
| In summer it eats mostly herbs and flowers, and in winter it eats lichens, mosses and young pine shoots | During the summer months the diet consists chiefly of herbs and flowers, but in winter the chamois eats lichens, mosses, and young pine shoots. |
| Its chestnut coat is lighter in spring and summer. In winter it grows long guard hairs, the outer layer of a coat, over dark brown underfur | Chamois are
a chestnut color but are lighter in the spring and summer. In the winter these
animals grow long guard hairs over their dark brown under fur. (note: definition of guard hairs added) |
| It signals danger with a whistle and by stamping its feet, then flees to the hardest places to reach, often making huge leaps. Its hooves are excellent for gripping slippery rock | The hooves of the chamois are excellent for gripping slippery rock. ... Chamois announce danger with a whistling sound and foot stamping. When alarmed, these animals flee to the most
innaccessible places, often making prodigous leaps. (note: faq 1; 'the hardest places to reach' paraphrases 'the most innaccessible places') |
| Mountain relative of goats and antelopes, with hooves that grip slippery rock | Family Bovidae antelopes, cattle, gazelles, goats, sheep, and relatives ... The hooves of the chamois are excellent for gripping slippery rock. (note: tagline) |
| Mostly herbs and flowers in summer; lichens, mosses and young pine shoots in winter | During the summer months the diet consists chiefly of herbs and flowers, but in winter the chamois eats lichens, mosses, and young pine shoots. (note: stats.diet) |
| Hooves that are excellent for gripping slippery rock, and a habit of fleeing to the hardest places to reach, often with huge leaps. | The hooves of the chamois are excellent for gripping slippery rock. ... flee to the most
innaccessible places, often making prodigous leaps. (note: stats.superpower; 'the hardest places to reach' paraphrases 'the most innaccessible places') |
| Alpine and subalpine meadows above the treeline in the mountains of south and central Europe, Turkey and the Caucasus, wintering in forests and on steep slopes where snow does not pile up; introduced to New Zealand's South Island | The range of
Rupricapra rupicapra
, or chamois, includes the Pyrenees, the mountains of south and central Europe, Turkey,
and the Caucasus in Asia. It has been introduced on the South Island of New Zealand. ... R. rupricapra
lives in alpine and sub alpine meadows above the timberline. It winters in forested
areas and steep slopes where snow does not accumulate. (note: stats.habitat) |

## AnAge entry for Rupicapra rupicapra. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15, 2023.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Rupicapra_rupicapra

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Its potential lifespan has been estimated at 22 years, but the oldest chamois on record in captivity lived 17.6 years | Potential longevity has been estimated at 22 years [ 0434 ], which is possible. Record longevity in captivity, however, is 17.6 years [ 0671 ]. |
| Its potential lifespan has been estimated at 22 years, but the oldest chamois on record in captivity lived 17.6 years | Potential longevity has been estimated at 22 years [ 0434 ], which is possible. Record longevity in captivity, however, is 17.6 years [ 0671 ]. (note: faq 3 restates the body's lifespan claim) |

## Chamois. New Zealand Department of Conservation.

https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/things-to-do/hunting/what-to-hunt/chamois/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Males there stand 65 to 90 cm at the shoulder and weigh 25 to 45 kg, while females stand 60 to 80 cm and weigh 19 to 35 kg | Males are 650-900 mm (shoulder height) and weigh 25-45 kg. Females are smaller at 600-800 mm shoulder height and weighing 19-35 kg. (note: mm converted to cm; the page describes New Zealand's chamois) |
| Both males and females grow slender black horns that rise straight up, then curve backward into sharp hooks at the tips. A male's horns are usually stouter, with more strongly developed hooks | Both male and females have horns which are black and slender. They arise straight up before curving backwards to form sharp hooks at the ends. Male horns are usually stouter and their hooks more strongly developed than females. |
| In New Zealand the rut comes in May and June | The rut (May-June) |
| Both sexes grow slender black horns that rise straight up, then curve backward into sharp hooks at the tips. A male's horns are usually stouter, with more strongly developed hooks than a female's | Both male and females have horns which are black and slender. They arise straight up before curving backwards to form sharp hooks at the ends. Male horns are usually stouter and their hooks more strongly developed than females. (note: faq 2) |
| hook-tipped horns on females as well as males | Both male and females have horns which are black and slender. They arise straight up before curving backwards to form sharp hooks at the ends. (note: tagline) |

## Mason et al. (2014). Predicting potential responses to future climate in an alpine ungulate: interspecific interactions exceed climate effects. Global Change Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.12641

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A 2014 study compared two things that move chamois uphill: hot weather and domestic sheep. Chamois did climb higher when it was hotter, but only a little compared with their response to sheep | we investigate the relative influences of ambient temperature and an interaction with domestic sheep (Ovis aries) on the altitude use and activity budgets of a mountain ungulate, the Alpine chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra). Chamois moved upslope when it was hotter but this effect was modest compared to that of the presence of sheep (note: 2014 is the paper's publication year (Global Change Biology); 'only a little compared with' paraphrases 'modest compared to') |
| With sheep around, they moved 89 to 103 meters upslope, into a band of altitude they did not otherwise use | to which they reacted by moving 89-103 m upslope, into an entirely novel altitudinal range. |
| Across the European Alps, a shift that size would mean 46% less suitable feeding ground | Across the European Alps, a range-shift of this magnitude corresponds to a 46% decrease in the availability of suitable foraging habitat. |

## Anderwald et al. (2025). Rupicapra rupicapra. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2025: e.T39255A215860127.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2025-1.rlts.t39255a215860127.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). (note: GBIF's copy of the Red List category for the assessment DOI (assessed 2023, published 2025); covers stats.conservationStatus) |