Animal profile

Chamois

Rupicapra rupicapra

MammaliaAlpine meadow, rocky slope and montane forestLeast Concern

Field profile

The chamois is a small goat-antelope with short hooked horns in both sexes and a dark face stripe. It moves fast over broken ground, changes to a dark winter coat, and lives in female groups with males solitary outside the rut.

Published field notes

2024-09-12

Chamois

Chamois leather no longer comes from chamois

The soft yellow cloth sold for drying cars takes its name from this alpine animal, whose skin was once oil-tanned for the purpose. Almost all of it is now made from sheepskin, and the connection survives only in the word.

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