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Rocky Mountain Goat

Rocky Mountain Goat line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Rocky Mountain Goat full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Rocky Mountain Goat was completed on May 9th, 2009. White animals with fur are still very tough to render for me. The variance of the coloration of the white (ivory in some places) mottled with the dark blue shadows makes for a tricky subject. These are gorgeous animals and I would very much like to see one in the wild some day. The drawing is based on a photo by Ian Racine.

Information about the Rocky Mountain Goat:

The Rocky Mountain Goat is a large hoofed mammal found only in the Rocky Mountains and Cascade Mountain Ranges of North America. These even-toed ungulates range from Alaska and the Yukon in the north, to the mountains of Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Colorado in the south. This alpine species prefers to dwell on rocky, windswept slopes with little snow. The Mountain Goat is the only species in the genus Oreamnos. Despite it's name, it is not actually true goat. Although shows of aggression have been noted, Mountain Goats in fact spend much of their time quietly grazing in mountain meadows and wherever else grasses, ferns, moss, and leaves can be found. Mountain goats typically weigh between one and three-hundred pounds. Females generally weigh about 10-30% less than males.