Alpine ibex
Scientific name: Capra ibex Linnaeus, 1758
Overview
The Alpine ibex, also known as the steinbock, is a European species of goat which lives in the Alps. It is one of ten species in the genus Capra, and its closest living relative is the Iberian ibex. The Alpine ibex is a sexually dimorphic species; males are much larger and carry much larger, longer horns than females. Its coat is brownish-grey. Alpine ibexes tend to live in steep, rough terrain and open alpine meadows. They can be found at elevations as high as 3,300 m (10,800 ft) and their sharp hooves allow them to scale the steep slopes and cliffs of their mountainous habitat.
From the Wikipedia article “Alpine ibex”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.2.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China).
Common names
Also known in English as ibex.
Names in other languages (12)
- Arabic
- وعل ألبي
- Chinese
- 羱羊
- French
- bouquetin des Alpes
- German
- Alpen-Steinbock, Alpensteinbock
- Indonesian
- Ibex alpen
- Japanese
- アイベックス
- Persian
- بز کوهی آلپ
- Portuguese
- Íbex
- Russian
- Ибекс
- Spanish
- Íbice De Los Alpes
- Turkish
- Alp dağ keçisi
- Urdu
- الپائن مارخور
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, names in other languages. Q168327, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Alpine ibex”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Ibex73, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — Jürgen at Dutch Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026