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IBEX (EYE-bex)

Wild mountain goat with long, ridged, backward curving horns

Common clues: Wild goat; Surefooted goat; Mountain goat; Alpine goat; Goat with recurved horns; Eurasian goat

Crossword puzzle frequency: once a year

Frequency in English language: 72355 / 86800

Video: The Nubian Ibex


An ibex, also called steinbock, is a type of wild mountain goat with large recurved horns that are transversely ridged in front. Ibex are found in Eurasia and North Africa. The name ibex comes from Latin, borrowed from Iberian or Aquitanian, akin to Old Spanish bezerro "bull", modern Spanish becerro "yearling".



Nubian Ibex


Legend had it that the ibex's spine was rigid, so that the goat could not look back. If threatened from behind, it would jump off a precipice and land unharmed on its horns.







This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Ibex".