Known as Beijing’s “native goat,” it’s actually a little-known “rock climbing expert”!

Recently, nine trapped Chinese gorals, a national second-level protected wild animal, were successfully rescued in Mentougou, Beijing. This is the largest wild population monitored in Beijing so far. They are alert and sensitive, good at climbing rocks and walls, and are agile elves in the mountains and forests.

Chinese goral. (Photo provided by Beijing Municipal Bureau of Landscape and Greening)

□ Zhong Zhenyu

In recent years, the Chinese goral has appeared many times in the deep mountainous areas of Mentougou, Miyun, Pinggu, Yanqing and other places in Beijing, and even appeared in the shallow mountainous areas of the National Botanical Garden and Changping Ming Tombs Forest Farm near the urban area, and seems to have entered the public life circle. So, what kind of animals are they that often live on steep cliffs in dense forests?

Avoid natural enemies, cliffs are a unique habitat

The Chinese goral, also known as the blue goat or goat, is a herbivorous animal of the genus Goral in the family Bovidae of the order Cetacea. It is similar in appearance to a goat, with a body length of 81-130 cm, a shoulder height of 50-76 cm, a tail length of 17-20 cm, and a weight of 23-42 kg. Both males and females have horns, which are short and pointed, with 8-9 obvious ring edges at the base. The fur color of different individuals varies greatly, with a variety of colors such as light gray, yellow-brown, and gray-brown. There are obvious light-colored spots on the throat, a long dark black dorsal stripe in the center of the back, light-colored limbs that contrast sharply with the body color, and a short tail with black tufts of hair.

As a typical forest-dwelling mammal, the Chinese goral lives mostly in mountain forests, often appears on steep cliffs in dense forests, and is good at climbing and jumping on bare rocks. It likes to live alone or in small groups, and is active mainly in the morning and evening. Its main food is young leaves of shrubs, green grass and wild fruits.

The reason why the Chinese goral chooses to live on cliffs is that there are fewer competitors and natural enemies there. Although it is easier to get food in low-altitude mountains and plains, there are also many food resource competitors, natural enemies such as tigers and wolves, and even more dangerous humans.

In order to obtain enough food and have a higher probability of survival and reproduction, the Chinese goral evolved into a species that adapts to steep cliffs during the long process of natural evolution. Such cliffs are too steep for most competitors and natural enemies to climb, so the gorals have exclusive access to such habitats.

Flexible jumping, moving freely on the nearly vertical cliff

As an ungulate animal, the Chinese goral has strong limbs and pointed hooves. The hard hoof shell is wrapped with soft pads and strong ligaments. As long as there is a small flat fulcrum, the tips of their hooves can step on it like nails.

The Chinese goral is also very flexible and has amazing jumping ability. It can easily jump over gullies several meters wide, allowing it to move freely on nearly vertical cliffs. It is a well-known rock climber.

What is particularly special is that the fur color of the Chinese goral is very similar to the color of the cliff. This protective color almost makes them invisible in the surrounding environment, making it difficult for natural enemies to find them easily. In the wild, the Chinese goral is usually found on steep cliffs or exposed rocky mountains. When moving, it looks like a moving rock, and when still, it hides in a pile of rocks.

The nine Chinese gorals successfully rescued in Beijing were trapped in a cement-walled pool. Their unique rock climbing skills were not effective due to the smooth cement walls around them. To protect wild animals, it is recommended that when building deeper ditches and pools in the wild, a rough and gentle slope should be provided to allow wild animals to come and go freely.

The conservation effect is obvious, and the number of "native goats" in Beijing is gradually increasing

The Chinese goral is widely distributed in my country, from North China to East China, and then to Southwest China. Its traces can be found in environments with steep cliffs.

However, due to the expansion of human activities, climate change, habitat destruction, and overhunting, the number of gorals is decreasing rapidly. my country has taken timely protection measures such as establishing nature reserves, reducing habitat destruction, increasing crackdowns on illegal hunting, and promoting ecological protection education. At the same time, scientists are also studying how to better protect and manage rare species such as the goral. Fortunately, the protection work has achieved results. With the application of advanced technologies such as infrared cameras in protection monitoring, gorals are constantly being found all over the country.

The Chinese goral is Beijing's "native goat". With the continuous increase in ecological construction efforts, Beijing's shallow mountainous areas and deep mountainous areas have formed a smooth ecological corridor, and the ecological environment quality has continued to improve, giving wild animals a wider habitat. The frequent appearance of the Chinese goral is one of the good signs of the recovery and increase of wild animal populations. If you travel to the deep mountains of Mentougou, you may also be able to see this agile elf in the mountains.

(The author is deputy director of the Beijing Biodiversity Conservation Research Center)