What is a mountain goat?

The mountain goat ( Oreamnos americanus ) is a stocky North American ruminant belonging to the family Bovidae. These surefooted animals are close relatives of sheep and true goats and are well-adapted to steep cliffs, ranging from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops, where they can evade predators. Mountain goats are agile climbers with muscular legs and broad hooves, standing about 1 meter (39 inches) at the shoulder. Males can weigh over 120 kg (260 pounds), while females weigh about 60–90 kg (130–200 pounds). Both sexes have coarse, white, shaggy hair over a thick, woolly underfur and bear sharp, slightly backward-curving, black horns.

Where do mountain goats live?

The mountain goat, Oreamnos americanus , is a stocky North American ruminant well-adapted to steep cliffs, from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops. They are primarily found from the Yukon and Alaska down to Utah, with the majority residing in British Columbia. Mountain goats have been introduced to areas where they weren't originally native, such as Kodiak Island, the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, and the Black Hills of South Dakota.

What do mountain goats look like?

The mountain goat ( Oreamnos americanus ) is a stocky North American ruminant mammal that dwells on steep cliffs from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops. They have muscular legs and broad hooves, with males weighing over 120 kg and standing about 1 meter at the shoulder. Both sexes have sharp, slightly backward-curving, black horns that are 5–25 cm long. Mountain goats have coarse, shaggy, white hair over a thick, woolly underfur, and a beard frames their slender muzzle.

How do mountain goats adapt to living on steep mountains?

Mountain goats are well-suited for life on steep, mountainous terrain. They are methodical and agile climbers, possessing muscular legs and broad hooves that provide secure footing on icy and snow-covered cliffs, which deters predators. To compensate for their habitat, mountain goats eat a variety of plants, including grasses, herbs, twigs, foliage, lichens, and conifers. They will even dig through the snow to find food. They also supplement their diet with visits to mineral licks to obtain inorganic sulfur and other minerals.

What do mountain goats eat and how do they find food?

Mountain goats are herbivores that eat a variety of plants such as grasses, herbs, foliage, twigs, lichens, and conifers like alpine firs. They compensate for their preference for cliffs by eating a wide variety of available plants. To find food, mountain goats may dig through deep snow at the timberline to reach plants. They also leave the safety of cliffs to visit mineral licks for nutrients like inorganic sulfur, which helps them synthesize amino acids needed for hair growth.

How do mountain goats care for their young and protect themselves from predators?

Female mountain goats are very protective mothers. A single kid (rarely two) is born in late spring and joins a nursery group within a week after birth. To protect themselves, mountain goats can be agile and methodical climbers, which allows them to maneuver the insecure footing of snow-covered and icy cliffs, where predators are loath to follow. They readily turn on their pursuers, including humans, and stab each other with their horns, which can cause severe injury.

mountain goat

Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics

Images

Mountain goats on Mount Evans in Colorado

An adult Rocky Mountain goat and a kid stand on rocky outcrops with forested mountains in the background at Olympic National Park, Washington.

An adult mountain goat and a kid, Oreamnos americanus, are on large artificial rocks at a zoo, with trees and blue sky in the background.

A young mountain goat, Oreamnos americanus, stands on rocky terrain in a zoo enclosure with artificial rocks and sparse trees in the background.

Mountain goats in southeastern North Cascades National Park, northwestern Washington, U.S.

Quick Facts

Also called:: Rocky Mountain goat

On the Web:: Alaska Department of Fish and Game - Mountain Goat (Nov. 02, 2026)

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mountain goat

mammal

Also known as: Oreamnos americanus, Rocky Mountain goat

Written by

Valerius Geist

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Nov. 2, 2026 •History

Top Questions

What is a mountain goat?
The mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) is a stocky North American ruminant belonging to the family Bovidae. These surefooted animals are close relatives of sheep and true goats and are well-adapted to steep cliffs, ranging from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops, where they can evade predators.

Mountain goats are agile climbers with muscular legs and broad hooves, standing about 1 meter (39 inches) at the shoulder. Males can weigh over 120 kg (260 pounds), while females weigh about 60–90 kg (130–200 pounds). Both sexes have coarse, white, shaggy hair over a thick, woolly underfur and bear sharp, slightly backward-curving, black horns.
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1. Pamirs: Animal life
2. mountain goat
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Where do mountain goats live?
The mountain goat, Oreamnos americanus, is a stocky North American ruminant well-adapted to steep cliffs, from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops.

They are primarily found from the Yukon and Alaska down to Utah, with the majority residing in British Columbia. Mountain goats have been introduced to areas where they weren't originally native, such as Kodiak Island, the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, and the Black Hills of South Dakota.
4 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
What do mountain goats look like?
The mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) is a stocky North American ruminant mammal that dwells on steep cliffs from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops. They have muscular legs and broad hooves, with males weighing over 120 kg and standing about 1 meter at the shoulder. Both sexes have sharp, slightly backward-curving, black horns that are 5–25 cm long. Mountain goats have coarse, shaggy, white hair over a thick, woolly underfur, and a beard frames their slender muzzle.
2 Britannica Sources
1. Definition of mountain goat
2. mountain goat
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
How do mountain goats adapt to living on steep mountains?
Mountain goats are well-suited for life on steep, mountainous terrain. They are methodical and agile climbers, possessing muscular legs and broad hooves that provide secure footing on icy and snow-covered cliffs, which deters predators.

To compensate for their habitat, mountain goats eat a variety of plants, including grasses, herbs, twigs, foliage, lichens, and conifers. They will even dig through the snow to find food. They also supplement their diet with visits to mineral licks to obtain inorganic sulfur and other minerals.
1 Britannica Source
1. mountain goat
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
What do mountain goats eat and how do they find food?
Mountain goats are herbivores that eat a variety of plants such as grasses, herbs, foliage, twigs, lichens, and conifers like alpine firs. They compensate for their preference for cliffs by eating a wide variety of available plants.

To find food, mountain goats may dig through deep snow at the timberline to reach plants. They also leave the safety of cliffs to visit mineral licks for nutrients like inorganic sulfur, which helps them synthesize amino acids needed for hair growth.
3 Britannica Sources
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
How do mountain goats care for their young and protect themselves from predators?
Female mountain goats are very protective mothers. A single kid (rarely two) is born in late spring and joins a nursery group within a week after birth.

To protect themselves, mountain goats can be agile and methodical climbers, which allows them to maneuver the insecure footing of snow-covered and icy cliffs, where predators are loath to follow. They readily turn on their pursuers, including humans, and stab each other with their horns, which can cause severe injury.
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Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

mountain goat, (Oreamnos americanus), a stocky North American ruminant of the family Bovidae (order Artiodactyla). Surefooted relatives of the chamois, mountain goats cling to steep cliffs in habitats ranging from ocean shores to glaciated mountain tops. They are agile, methodical climbers, adapted to the insecure footing of snow-covered and icy cliffs, where predators are loath to follow. On these cliffs, they readily turn on their pursuers, including humans.

Mountain goats belong to the goat antelope tribe, Rupicaprini, of the bovid family. Despite their unusual appearance and behaviour, they are close relatives of sheep and true goats. Mountain goats occur from the Yukon and Alaska to Utah, but most are found in British Columbia. They have been successfully restored to their former abundance in some areas and have also been introduced to some areas where they were never native, including Kodiak Island, the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, and the Black Hills of South Dakota. They occurred in early postglacial times on Vancouver Island but became extinct; recent restoration efforts failed. Mountain goat populations fluctuate and are sensitive to human impacts. Consequently, they are constantly being watched to ensure the timely application of corrective management.

Stocky climbers with muscular legs and broad hooves, mountain goats stand about 1 metre (39 inches) at the shoulder. Large males can weigh more than 120 kg (260 pounds), and females weigh about 60–90 kg (130–200 pounds). The hair is coarse, white, and shaggy over a thick, woolly underfur; a beard frames the slender muzzle. The sexes look alike and bear sharp, slightly backward-curving, black horns that are 5–25 cm (2–10 inches) long. Unlike true goats, mountain goats do not butt heads but instead stab each other with their horns. Since the horns can cause severe injury, mountain goats are highly reluctant to fight. Nevertheless, males grow a very thick skin as a body armour against attacks by rivals or females.

Sea otter (Enhydra lutris), also called great sea otter, rare, completely marine otter of the northern Pacific, usually found in kelp beds. Floats on back. Looks like sea otter laughing. saltwater otters

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To compensate for their narrow preference for cliffs, mountain goats eat a great variety of plants: grasses, herbs, foliage, twigs, lichens, and, in particular, alpine firs and other conifers. They may excavate these plants at the timberline from beneath deep snow. In summer when lactating or growing new coats of hair, mountain goats may reluctantly leave the security of their cliffs to supplement their nutrient intake with visits to mineral licks. Among other minerals, inorganic sulfur is used by the goat’s rumen flora to synthesize the rare amino acids cysteine and methionine, which are essential to the goat’s hair growth at that time.

Mountain goats are unusual in that males readily defer to females. Females live in small bands but may become territorial in severe winters, while adult males are solitary. Courting males crawl to females and make sounds like those of baby goats. They mate in late November and December. After the mating season, females may drive the males off their wintering ranges. A single kid (rarely two) is born in late spring after about 180 days gestation and joins a nursery group within a week after birth. Adult female mountain goats are very protective mothers. In winter females with young may become territorial and lay claim to an area of favourable cliff habitat. They then chase all other goats from their territories and readily attack hesitating males. Females are more likely to fight than males.

Valerius Geist

mountain goat

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