Alpine Ibex

Curious about the ibex, the so-called Lord of the Alps?

We can watch this animal today during fine hikes. It was not always like that: the ibex had vanished from the Vercors, hunted down to the last individual, as in every French Alpine massif.

Since the late 1980s, the Vercors park has supported regular reintroductions and watches over the populations. Today, those populations number in the hundreds and delight hikers while helping restore the balance and biodiversity of our massif.

Want to know a little more about this wild animal lounging in the sun on the Vercors summits?

The Pied Vert mountain leaders offer a hiking-watching outing starting from Villard-de-Lans or Corrençon.

The ingredients of an ibex outing:

• A real climb! Between 400 and 800 m of positive elevation. Taking our time and going up steadily, we will get there at a pace adjusted to the physical level of your group.
• A playful, animated introduction to the biology of the species and its history (disappearance, reintroduction, opening of the hunt...).
• A sighting with binoculars or a spotting scope (lent by your guide) if we are lucky. As with all our Vercors wildlife outings, the mountain leader running the outing maximises the chance of an encounter through their knowledge of the area and the species. Sightings cannot be guaranteed: the regional nature park of the Vercors is not a wildlife park.

Book

During the outing we will look at several questions:

• What is the difference between a chamois and an ibex?
• Where does the ibex live?
• What is the ibex's young called?

What is the difference between a Chamois and an Ibex?

Both are bovids (ruminant herbivores) and Caprinae (adapted to the mountains), two very close species. The chamois has a two-tone head and small horns that clearly set it apart from its cousin the ibex with its very large, slightly curling horns.

We will practise telling them apart visually.

Where does the ibex live?

High up in the mountains and across the Alps. To catch a glimpse, you have to hike.

Does it move up in altitude during the day? Or stay high all year round? We will also look at how the ibex adapts to winter.

What is the ibex's young called?

A kid.

You may have known that already. The outing will also be a chance to talk about the life cycle of the ibex, the rut (a little after the red deer rut) and maybe to see those kids.

How do you estimate the age of an ibex?

Very good binoculars are a great help to look at the horns in detail. Will we manage to count the growth rings? It is a difficult observation.

We can however estimate its age from horn size, or try to tell male from female.

Booking

To arrange an ibex hike, call us on 07 66 64 90 96 or write to (contactpiedvert.com pbagnpg@cvrqireg.pbz).

Our rates slide: from 42€/person for a group of 6.

Small groups make for better watching.

You can also gift this outing with a nature gift card.

Note: late [autumn](/vercors-autumn) is an ideal time to hear ibex horns clashing during the rut.

Ibex photos

Taken on outings run near Villard-de-Lans and Corrençon-en-Vercors:

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Reviews

Our outings on mountain wildlife and our nature activities in Corrençon-en-Vercors: