But these squabbles about IQ's seem unimportant when tour- 

 ists first catch sight of the snowy-bearded Old Man of the Moun- 

 tains standing on a high crag, in characteristic silhouette against 

 the sky. Always shy and aloof, these animals are found on the 

 highest peaks of the Cascades, the Rockies, and other north- 

 western ranges. 



Although the Old Man is called a goat, he is really a goat-like 

 antelope related to the Alpine chamois and the Himalayan 

 serow. He is- a sturdy beast, set on short, stout legs and weighing 

 up to three hundred pounds. A fleece of fine wool next to the 

 skin, with an outer covering of long hair, insulates him against 

 the freezing mountain winds. A chin whisker beard gives him an 

 air of antiquity which, combined with a solemn expression, 

 makes him look profoundly wise. 



Both sexes are armed with slender black horns, curved near 

 the tips and slightly flared apart, and these are as deadly as twin 

 daggers when it comes to infighting. A full-grown male will be 

 5 feet in length and stand 3 feet at the shoulder. His black hoofs 

 are a combination of rubber-pad inside and knife-edge outside 

 to give him solid traction on snow, ice, or bare rock. 



Aside from man, a mountain goat's principal foes are bald 

 eagles and cougars. How can an eagle possibly conquer a goat? 

 One wonders. It is estimated that the bald eagle, with its 7-foot 

 wingspread, is powerful enough to carry off a young mountain 

 goat weighing up to 20 pounds. While the average cougar prob- 

 ably prefers a toothsome young mountain goat to a tough old 

 billy, the big cat will not hesitate to attack even the herdmaster, 

 despite the latter's dangerous horns. 



Occasionally a cougar will make a mistake in judgment and 

 timing, with disastrous results to himself. A sheepherder grazing 

 his flock in the high summer-range of the Okanogan country 

 last year found a very dead cougar at the base of a 5o-foot cliff. 

 The cat's belly appeared to have been slashed open with knives. 

 Draped from its cruel claws were strands of white goat-hair. 

 Obviously the cougar had taken on a veteran battler who knew 

 a few fighting tricks himself, and had been tossed to its death 

 on the rocks below. 



150 



