Ropiquet & Hassanin, 2005 The Nilgiri tahr, Nilgiritragus
hylocrius, known locally as the Nilgiri ibex or simply ibex, is
an ungulate that is endemic to the Nilgiri Hills and the
southern portion of the Western Ghats in the states of Tamil
Nadu and Kerala in southern India. It is the state animal of
Tamil Nadu. Despite its local name, it is more closely related
to the sheep of the Ovis genus than the ibex and wild goats of
the Capra genus. In the Tamil Language it is called varaiaadu,
the term being composed of two Tamil words, wurrai a precipice,
and aadu, a goat. It is also the state animal of Tamil Nadu. The
ancient word in classical Tamil was "varudai" (வருடை: Natrinai,
359; Ainkurunuru, 287; Pattinappalai, 139). It was previously
named Capra warryato by Gray. Its closest relatives are sheep
(genus Ovis). Until 2005, it was placed with the Himalayan tahr
(Hemitragus jemlahicus) and the Arabian tahr (Arabitragus
jayakari) in the genus Hemitragus. However, it has recently been
transferred to a new genus Nil