82 Sport and Life in the Further Himalaya 



pay addresses to the ladies, but when these 

 became too conspicuous, in spite of the fact that 

 ibex are rather heavier beasts than markhor, the 

 old buck of the herd used to drive him off without 

 difficulty. It was evident, too, that his attentions 

 were not acceptable to the females : perhaps they 

 disliked the shape of his horns, for these must 

 mainly be of use in precisely this manner, as dis- 

 tinguishing marks for the preservation of species. 

 There is a story that some females of a herd of 

 tame goats crossed with ibex in the Yasin district, 

 but as Capra sibirica is not believed to have 

 anything to do with the ancestry of the domestic 

 breed, the story would require a good deal of 

 confirmation before it could be accepted. It is 

 curious that the horns of all domestic goats in 

 the Himalaya are either scimitar-shaped like ibex 

 or twisted like markhor, but in the former case 

 they have a front keel like the wild goat of Persia 

 and Sind, and in the latter the twist is in the 

 opposite direction to that of the markhor. 



It has been said that the early spring is the 

 best time for ibex stalking, but this is also the 

 avalanche season, and great care has to be taken. 

 In some glens, for a few days in the year, the 

 thunder of near and distant avalanches is almost 

 incessant. Ibex at this season fully appreciate 

 the risk, and they assemble for safety on the 



