But they cant live there at all times, because there is no food up there.
Once winter arrives, the Ibex retreats to the safety of their homes in the clouds.
So the Ibex has to seek outnatural salt licks.
Dam walls are anotherprecious sourceof salts and minerals.
Up totwenty percentof hardened concrete is composed of ettringite.
Only the Alpine Ibex can exploit this resource.
Photo credit: Adriano Migliorati
Photo credit:Andreas Kay/Flickr
Photo credit:Fulvio Spada/Flickr
Photo credit: Paolo Seimandi
