Goat is an agile, hollow-horned ruminant of the family Bovidae. It is closely related to sheep, native to rocky and mountainous regions. Goats are widely distributed wherever they are domesticated, and there are different varieties of them.
In astronomy and astrology, Goat, initial capital letter, refers to the constellation and to the sign Capricorn.
Informally, goat refers to a licentious or lecherous man, lecher; a victim, a scapegoat.
“I think most of us are raised with preconceived notions of the choices we’re supposed to make. We waste so much time making decisions based on someone else’s idea of our happiness – what will make you a good citizen or a good wife or daughter or actress. Nobody says, ‘Just be happy – go be cobbler or go live with goats.’” –Sandra Bullock
Billy Goat and Nanny Goat:
Goat is also known as billy, buck, and kid.
Nanny: A female goat is called nanny. Nanny goat is also called doe. Mother goat is called dam. Young female goat is a doeling.
Doeling is a female goat that did not conceive.
Billy: A male goat is called billy. Billy is also called buck. Young male goat is called buckling.
A new born goat either male or female is called kid.
WETHER:
A castrated goat is a wether.
Wether is a male goat or male sheep castrated before sexual maturity.
NILGIRI TAHR:
Nilgiri tahr is type of goat endemic to the Nilgiris district in the Western Ghats and to some parts of Eastern Ghats in peninsular India.Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) is an ungulate found in the Nilgiri Hills and in the southern parts of the Western & Eastern Ghats in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Nilgiri tahr is the state animal of Tamil Nadu. Nilgiri tahr is related to the sheep of the genus Ovis than the ibex and wild goats of the genus Capra. It is an endangered caprid (ruminant) listed the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972. The animal is identified as an ‘endangered’ species by the IUCN. It is endemic to the hill ranges of peninsular India in pockets such as montane grasslands, rugged terrains, fringes of the grassy plateaus, steep slabs and cliffs.
Nilgiri Tahr is related to the Himalayan Tahr and the Arabian Tahr. Nilgiri tahr avoids sholas but forages along its periphery and visits shrub lands along the base of the cliffs. It is a stocky goat with short, coarse fur, bristly mane and curved horns. Males are larger than the females. Adult male develops a light grey area or ‘saddle’ on their backs so known as saddlebacks.
Nilgiri tahr inhabits montane grassland habitats at elevations from 1200 to 2600 m of the South Western Ghats in the range of 400 km from north to south.
Eravikulam National Park is home to the largest population of tahrs followed by the Nilgiri Hills. They are found in smaller population in the Anamalai Hills, Periyar National Park, Palni Hills and other pockets in the Western Ghats south of Eravikulam.
Photo Credit: Eravikulam National Park
