We have 4 Turkmenian markhor here at Paignton Zoo, 4 females (Bramble, Heather and Daisy) and one male (Bud). You can find them up at the limestone quarry exhibit, behind the Giraffe House.
Markhor are adapted to mountainous terrain between 600 and 3,600 metres elevation, inhabiting scrub forests made up primarily of oaks, pines, and junipers. This markhor subspecies (also known as Bukharan markhor or Tadjik markhor) can be found in the mountain regions of Central Asia, across Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Markhor are herbivores that feed on various grasses, leaves, twigs, and shrubs, with their diet shifting seasonally – grazing on grasses in spring and summer, then switching to browsing on leaves, twigs, and shrubs during autumn and winter. They often stand on their hind legs to reach high vegetation.
Interesting facts!
- These wild goats are expert mountain climbers, possessing flexible hooves with hard, horny edges that provide traction and act like suction cups on rocky surfaces. They have even been observed climbing trees up to 20 feet tall using their specialised hooves and dewclaws for leverage on rough bark.
- Both sexes possess spectacular tightly curled, corkscrew-shaped horns, with males’ horns growing up to 160 centimetres in length whilst females’ horns reach approximately 25 centimetres.
- The name “markhor” derives from Persian, where “mâr” means “snake” and “khor” means “eater”, referencing ancient folklore that these animals can kill and eat snakes. It is more likely that markhor can kill snakes with their strong hooves, and that their horns actually resemble coiling snakes due to their shape.
- Markhor are the national animal of Pakistan.
Conservation
The IUCN previously classified markhor as endangered, but following conservation efforts, the status was downgraded to Near Threatened in 2015.
Current population estimates place markhor numbers at approximately 5,000-6,000 individuals as of 2022. The greatest threats to markhor survival are habitat loss, illegal hunting and poaching, and competition with domestic livestock for grazing areas. Poaching, with its indirect impacts including disturbance and reduction of effective habitat size, is by far the most important factor threatening markhor populations, causing fragmentation into small isolated subpopulations prone to extinction.
In Pakistan, a controversial but highly successful community-based trophy hunting programme has been implemented, where expensive hunting licenses allow the hunting of old, non-breeding males, with 80% of revenues directed to local communities and 20% to conservation efforts. This regulated approach has helped markhor populations grow dramatically – for example, in Chitral the population increased from a mere 600 animals to approximately 4,000-5,000 in three decades, and overall numbers rose from 275 in 1993 to around 3,500 by 2018.
The programme has proven more effective than protection of lands that lack enforcement and security, as local communities now have financial incentives to protect the species and combat illegal poaching.