Munnar (Kerala), Sep 11 (IANS) About 150 participants from 20 countries will gather in this picturesque town for the four-day 4th World Congress on Mountain Ungulates that begins Tuesday.

An ungulate is a hoofed, typically herbivorous, quadruped mammal such as a swine, camel, hippopotamus or horse.

India is home to 18 species of mountain ungulates.

This is the first time an international conference of the Caprinae Specialist Group of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) is being held in Asia. The event will go on for four days from Sep 12-15.

Kerala is one of the 34 global biodiversity hotspots in the world and Munnar is a haven for the endangered Nilgiri tahr, a goat-like mammal with curved horns and bristly mane that is a mountain ungulate.

Of the nearly 2,000 Nilgiri tahrs in the world, the Eravikulam National Park at Munnar has more than 750.

"All of us are really excited because we can get to know the latest trends in ecology, habitat management and wildlife diseases associated with mountain ungulates," said Mohan Varghese, chairman of the High Range Wildlife and Environment Preservation Association that is organising the conference.