Markhor Hunts

Hunting Markhor Goats

Markhors are the largest of the wild goat species. They have broad hooves and long spiral horns that can grow to five feet long on mature males. Female horns are smaller, usually under two feet. The markhor's coat is reddish gray with a dark stripe running down its back. Males have thick, long beards, manes, and areas of hair on their legs, while females may only have thin, short beards.

Size
Height: two to four feet at the shoulder
Length: four to six feet 
Weight: Females 70 to 88 pounds. Males are considerably larger at 170 to 242 pounds.

Diet
Markhors graze primarily on grasses and browse on leaves and twigs.

Reproduction
The markhor's breeding season is from April to June. One to two young are born after a 155-day gestation period. Females reach sexual maturity at two years of age. Males reach sexual maturity around 4 to 5 years of age.

Behavior
Female markhors live in herds, while males only join herds during breeding. Markhors are most active in the early morning and late afternoon. Their broad hooves help them maintain stable footing when climbing their hilly habitat. They migrate to higher mountain altitudes during the warm spring and summer months. In late fall, they descend to lower altitudes to graze on more plentiful vegetation at the tree line.

Habitat/Range
Markhors live in the Himalayan Mountain Range around or above the tree line. They range across northern India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Turkestan.

Threats
Markhors are poached for their meat, and their horns are believed to have medicinal qualities. They're also threatened by habitat loss and competition for forgeable lands by domestic livestock.

Interesting Markhor Hunting Information

• Markhor are a wild goat species found in Pakistan, India, parts of Afghanistan, the Himalayas and other regions of Asia.
• These magnificent animals are distinguished by their corkscrew-like horns
• Markhor are adapted to mountainous/cliff-like terrain between 2,000 to 11,800 feet.
• Their coat is of a grizzled, light brown to black color, smooth and short during the summer months, growing a longer, thicker coat in the winter. Males will have longer hair on their chin, throat, chest, and shanks.
• During mating season, males fight each other by lunging, locking horns while trying to butt each other off balance.
• Gestation: about five months and will result in one or two offspring.
• Lifespan: 10-19 years

Markhor hunting is done using the classic spot-and-stalk method, which is typical for most mountain hunts. The hunters use optics to spot the animals (usually in the morning, when they are most active), and when a suitable male is located, approach it to within shooting range. Mountain animals don’t usually expect danger from above, and the stalk often requires a long and weary hike to climb above the markhor and approach it from downwind. In the early years of markhor hunting, some hunters reported that local guides, while knowing the animals and the territory like the palm of their hand, were not too competent at trophy estimation and other requirements of trophy hunting. However, this problem seems to be a thing of the past.

Pakistan is famous for the markhor. They inhabit the highest mountains and can be found in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Province’s Chitral, Kohistan, and Kalam regions, as well as the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, southwestern Baluchistan Province and parts of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

There are five distinct species of Markhor: Suliman, Kashmir, Astor, Bukharan, and Kabul.

Suliman Markhor

Suleiman Markhor is the sub-specie of Markhor found in the Torghar Hills in the Hazara Division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The Suleiman markhor is also known as the straight-horned markhor. It has the most beautifully shaped horns of all the markhor species. In the past, it was not a huntable or exportable species. However, in 1999, a delegation of USFW and IUCN visited STEP (Society of Torghar Environmental Protection) and discussed starting a community-based hunting program. As a result, the population of Suleman markhors is rapidly increasing. For the hunt to be successful, the hunter has to be in excellent condition. The hills are milder than the Hindu Kush and Himalayas, but still a lot of work. A set of 26-32 inches horns is considered very good.

Astor Markhor

Astor markhor is the sub-specie of markhor found in Gilgit-Baltistan, a province of Pakistan. Animal body size is larger than all other markhor subspecies, and hair coats are long and thick in winter. This animal has a beautiful beard patch from the chin to the front legs, and the horns of Astor Markhor grow very wide. The habitat of this markhor is in the Gilgit, Skardu, and Astor regions of Northern Pakistan and the valleys of the River Indus. A hunter should be physically strong and can add Himalayan Ibex, Blue sheep, and Astor Markhor in a combo hunt. (I know I harp on body conditioning. However, almost all marker hunting involves hours and hours of climbing in some extremely rugged terrain. First-day blisters can ruin your hunt.)

Kashmir Markhor

Kashmir markhor is the sub-specie of markhor, also known as Pir Panjal Markhor. These markhors are found in the Chitral valleys of the Khyber Pakhtun Khawa Province of Pakistan. These markhors are hunted under a community-based hunting program. In the past, according to a survey conducted by CITES and WWF with the help of the Wildlife Department KPK, only 300 markhors were found. Then, the government started a community hunting program and issued only four hunting permits for Kashmir markhor per year. Eighty percent of the revenue collected through trophy hunting is donated to the local community, encouraging the locals to stop poaching it for food. This hunting program succeeded, and recently, a survey found 4000 markhors. It’s easier to hunt than the Astor markhor or Suleman markhor, but still, a hunter can find himself working above 10,000 feet. A 40-inch horn is considered an excellent trophy.

Bukharan Markhor

The Bukharan markhor, or Tadjik markhor (Capra falconeri heptneri ), is an endangered goat antelope native to Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and possibly Afghanistan. Today, it is only found in a few scattered populations, such as the Kugitang Nature Reserve in easternmost Turkmenistan. The population of the Bukharan markhor is estimated at 5,750 animals.

The only markhor that can be hunted outside of Pakistan is the Bukharan Markhor (Capra falconeri heptneri), which can only be hunted in Tajikistan. Getting a Markhor is an extreme challenge that should not be taken lightly. It is the world’s most expensive hunt and can be a significant undertaking due to the terrain and altitude it inhabits. Due to the massive value of mature male markhor, spotters from the villages usually know just where to locate a good one and where it will be resting. As a result, a hunter’s chances of success should be relatively high, even considering the scarcity of markhor. Hunters are advised to go for mature animals over animals with excessively large horns for its increased benefit to the species.

Kabul Markhor

 Kabul markhor (Capra falconeri megaceros) occurs in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Kabul markhor has horns with a slight corkscrew and a twist.

Until 1978, the Kabul markhor survived in Afghanistan only in the Kabul Gorge and the Kohe Safi area of Kapissa and in some isolated pockets in between. It now lives in the most inaccessible regions of its once broader range in the mountains of Kapissa and Kabul Provinces after having been driven from its original habitat by intensive poaching. Pakistan's present range consists only of small, isolated areas in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province, and Dera Ghazi Khan District (Punjab Province). The KPK Forest Department considered that the subspecies still inhabited the areas of Mardan and Sheikh Buddin. At least 100 animals are thought to live on the Pakistani side of the Safed Koh range (Districts of Kurram and Khyber).