Ibexes in an African Environment : Ecology and Social Systems of the Walia Ibex in the Simen Mountains, Ethiopia

The Caprinae are characteristic ungulates of palaearctic mountain regions. The Walia ibex, Capra ibex walie, a member of the Caprinae, has colonized successfully the Simen mountains in Ethiopia, and as such presents an interesting act in the history of the Caprinae. Apart from the question of how the Walia ibex or its ancestors ever reached the Simen mountains, the only place it occurs, I would like to stress a further point: about half of the existing ungulate species in the world are endemic to Africa. Eightyseven species of the Artiodactyla are reported to live in this continent, while there are only 17 in South America (Haltenorth 1963, Delany and Happold 1979). Such abundance of ungulate forms must have been attended by optimal utilization of the various habitats and form co-adaptation of sympatric species (Lamprey 1963, Bell 1970, Gentry 1970). Despite such intense com­ petition however, the Walia ibex found its natural niche still open. Obviously, its adaptations to living on steep cliffs have favoured its establishment over the already existing ungulate fauna in an afroalpine mountain area. In fact, none of the Cervids has achieved a similar successful colonisation on the African continent, even though they are much older as a group, and have already shown themselves to be well established on the American and Eurasian continents. Front Matter....Pages I-IX Introduction....Pages 1-4 Front Matter....Pages 5-5 The Simen Mountains: Geography and Climate of the Study Area....Pages 7-14 The Vegetation in the Simen Mountains and Human Utilization of the Area....Pages 15-27 The Walia Ibex....Pages 28-38 Two Possible Competitors of the Walia Ibex: the Klipspringer and the Gelada Baboon....Pages 39-43 Further Mammals and Birds Living in the Simen Mountains....Pages 44-49 Front Matter....Pages 51-51 Methods of Obtaining Data and Field Techniques....Pages 53-66 Methods for the Analysis of Data on Habitat Selection of the Included Species....Pages 67-76 Estimates of Population Size and Changes of the Walia Ibex....Pages 77-81 Front Matter....Pages 83-83 The Habitat Selection of the Walia Ibex, the Klipspringer and the Gelada Baboon According to the Frequencies of Their Visits to the Hectare Fields....Pages 85-91 The Habitat Selection of the Walia Ibex, the Klipspringer and the Gelada Baboon with Regard to Particular Environmental Factors....Pages 92-110 Separation in the Habitat of the Walia Ibex, the Klipspringer, the Gelada Baboon, the Bushbuck, the Colobus Monkey, the Simen Fox and the Golden Jackal....Pages 111-120 The Plot of the Residuals of the Regression Equation — a Test for Detecting Overlooked, but Decisive Independent Variables....Pages 121-123 The Theoretical Distribution Pattern of the Walia Ibex and the Klipspringer Within the Study Area....Pages 124-131 Summary to Chapters 10 to 14....Pages 132-133 Front Matter....Pages 135-135 Towards the Social System of the Walia Ibex: Approach, Inferences and Predictions....Pages 137-145 The Social System of the Walia Ibex; Evidence for and Tests of the Above Predictions....Pages 146-168 Summary to Chapters 15 and 16....Pages 169-169 Front Matter....Pages 171-171 The Simen, an Ecosystem in Danger....Pages 173-177 Back Matter....Pages 179-192