In Pictures: The Markhor — Pakistan’s National Animal

On the sheer cliffs of the Karakoram lives an animal whose horns rank among nature’s most astonishing designs. The markhor — Pakistan’s national animal — is a rare wild goat found only in a handful of the world’s high mountain ranges.

FAKTA: The markhor

• Signature: Long corkscrew horns, up to 1.5 metres in males
• Habitat: The mountains of Chitral, Gilgit-Baltistan and Balochistan
• Status: Pakistan’s national animal; UN International Day of the Markhor on 24 May
• Skill: A supreme rock-climber, feeding on grasses, leaves and shrubs

King of the cliffs

The markhor’s horns twist like a corkscrew — in males they can reach a metre and a half. The animal climbs near-vertical rock with astonishing skill, where predators cannot follow. Seen in golden morning light, it is a wildlife photographer’s dream.

Life of the herd

Markhor typically live in small herds, moving down to the valleys in winter and up to high pastures in summer. Chitral Gol National Park is their best-known stronghold, where careful protection has helped numbers recover.

On the sunset ridge

In the evening, as shadow fills the valleys, markhor appear on the high ridges. Conservation efforts — including community-based programmes — have helped pull this rare animal back from the brink. It is a living emblem of Pakistan’s natural heritage.

A conservation success

The markhor’s story is a conservation success: when local communities became partners in protection, poaching fell and numbers began to climb — a model for wildlife projects worldwide.

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