We are often asked about the CIC and SCI scoring systems for the Spanish ibex and more than once we realized that there is not enough info provided on them, and more importantly, this information is not in the same place.
Every time a hunter or huntress plans a hunting trip to Spain for the Spanish Ibex, at one particular moment they will be asked if they want to hunt a representative animal or they want to harvest a medal class Spanish Ibex. According to the scoring of the animal, this person will have to pay the extra points of their animals.
This article will explain the CIC and SCI scoring systems and measurements for the 4 different species of the Spanish ibex.
CIC and SCI scoring systems for the Spanish ibex
Both scoring systems use their own formulas that determine the final score of a hunting trophy.
SCI scoring system for harvested trophies
There are 2 main scoring systems: CIC and SCI. If you live in the US, Canada and Mexico you may be familiar to the SCI scoring system. There are also many official SCI measurers that take the SCI measurer course and they can tell you how much your animal scores.
Mainly, for the Spanish Ibex, the SCI formula takes into account the circumference of the horns at the base to which it adds the length of the horns, in inches, and the total score represents the total number of inches. When measuring you have to pay attention to where you place the measuring tape, as you have to follow the ridge when the horn is spiraled.
SCI recognizes 4 subspecies of the Spanish Ibex in Spain: Beceite: North-East of Spain; Gredos: Central-West of Spain; Southeastern: South-East of Spain and Ronda: South of Spain. SCI also scores differently the Spanish Ibex, depending on if it was shot with a rifle or with a bow.
CIC scoring system for harvested trophies
The CIC scoring system is used in Europe for the European species. The name for the measuring system is an acronym for the “International Council for Game and Wildlife conservation”, Conseil International de la Chasse in French: CIC.
As I usually like to joke about this, in Europe we like to complicate things.
The CIC formula determines the score of the Spanish Ibex and it also takes into account the circumference at the base and the length, just like the SCI formula, but the measurements are taken in centimeters. To this we also add the age of the animal if it is over 10 yrs old, and then we measure the span of the horns. The ideal is that the length and the width(span) of the horns should be almost the same. If the difference is too big then the trophy is penalized. Then, it is also important that the horns are not only large, but also spiraled a little. Depending on how many twists the horn has, that is, how many times the direction of the angle of the horn changes, the trophy receives more or less points. For some cases, we don´t only measure the circumference at the base, but also at the first, second and third quarters, like SCI normally does for sheep. As I said before, a little more complicated than the SCI scoring system as it takes more aspects into account.
CIC doesn´t score differently the trophy depending on if it was harvested with a rifle or a bow.
Are these CIC and SCI scoring systems for the Spanish ibex independent?
Yes, completely independent. There is no direct conversion between them either. However we have gathered measurements from different Ibex and in this way we can give you a relatively close equivalence. Keep in mind that this is not a final equivalence, but only an approximation.
Medal measurements according to the CIC and SCI scoring systems for the Spanish ibex
In order to summarize the measurements according to the CIC and SCI scoring systems for the Spanish ibex, and all the info as clear as possible, we have put together this following chart:
Conclusions about the SCI and CIC scoring systems
If you paid attention to the chart above, you can reach these final conclusions of the CIC and SCI scoring systems for the Spanish ibex:
- Within the CIC scoring system animals have to score a bit more in order to be medal trophies
- Sometimes these measuring systems almost coincide, like for instance: the Gold CIC medal for the Gredos Ibex and Beceite ibex is also Gold according to the SCI scoring system.
- But in some cases, they are complete opposites. Like for instance the Ronda Ibex: a Gold SCI Ronda Ibex is still a Representative, Non medal CIC Ronda Ibex.
- The measurements for the Spanish Ibex hunted with a bow are way lower than taken with a rifle, and in all cases but the Gredos Ibex, a Representative Non medal CIC Spanish Ibex can be a Gold, Silver or Bronze in the SCI scoring system.
Free tip, because we like you and because you have read this article completely: nothing in this life is for free (although sometimes it doesn´t cost any money). Every assertive outfitter and professional hunter, as any other business person, values their possessions. If you are given the chance to hunt a trophy without any score limit that almost always means that in that particular concession or hunting area there are no big animals. You´re welcome! 🙂
We hope you found this article interesting. If you know someone that could be interested in this article make sure to send them the link to it. If you have any question or inquiry, send us an email at info@cazahispanica.com. We will reply in no time.