AnimalsGoats were among the first animals to be farmed. They are curious, agile climbers and will eat a very wide range of plants. Their eyes have rectangular pupils, which give a wide view of the land around them.
Quick facts
- Scientific name
- Capra hircus
- Group
- Mammals
- Diet
- Herbivore (eats plants)
- Lives in
- Worldwide, with people
- Habitat
- Farms, hills and dry country
- A young one is called
- kid
- A group is called
- herd or tribe
- Conservation status
- Domestic animal
How it is classified
Scientists sort living things into groups within groups. Reading down, each step is a smaller group, ending with the species itself.
- Kingdom Animalia
- Phylum Chordata
- Class Mammalia
- Order Artiodactyla
- Family Bovidae
- Genus Capra
- Species Capra hircus
Other members of the family Bovidae on this site: blackbuck, cow, gaur, nilgai, sheep, water buffalo, yak.
More distant relatives in the order Artiodactyla: Bactrian camel, chital, dromedary camel, giraffe, hippopotamus, moose, pig, reindeer, sambar, wild boar.
Classification follows the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Other reference works arrange some groups differently. How classification works.
Is it in danger?
The goat is a domestic animal, kept and bred by people. Domestic animals are not assessed for the Red List of threatened species.