Wild cattle

ghostgtr (58)in #animals • 8 years ago (edited)

Herds of cows and bulls are found on farms wherever there are grassy plains. They are called cattle. There are also wild cattle and their relatives, the buffaloes. All are heavily-built animals that eat grass. They chew the cud. That is, they crop the grass and, without chewing, swallow it. Later they bring it back into their mouths a little at a time, and chew it properly.

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Both the females and the males have horns that curve sideways and upwards. These are not like the antlers of deer, which are also animals that chew the cud. In cattle, each horn is made up of a core of bone covered with horn.

The wild ox of Europe, Asia and North Africa, known as the aurochs, died out in 1627. It was a large powerful animal 2m high at the shoulder. Most farm cattle are descended from it.

The gaur, of India, another species of wild cattle, is even larger – the bulls weigh up to 900kg. Yet, although so large, it rarely attacks, preferring to retire into the woods when disturbed.

Is it a buffalo or a bison?

Another animal of the same family is the European bison, also known as the wisent. It used to live in forests with the aurochs but only a few are now left. These are protected in a forest in Poland.

The second species of bison is the more famous. This is the American buffalo. It is not a true buffalo, although it has always been given that name since settlers from Europe first saw it. One hundred years ago the western plains of the United States and Canada were said to be dark with the herds of buffalo. The buffaloes were there in their millions. Now only a few are left – carefully protected.

The real buffalo:

True buffalo are found in Africa and India. The African buffalo stands over 1,5m at the shoulder. It has wide spreading horns and is very dangerous. A herd of African buffalo has been seen killing a lion. They tossed the lion from one buffalo to another, on their horns, until it was dead.

The Indian buffalo, or water buffalo, is a black powerful animal, which also has long wide-spreading horns. It lives in swampy ground and spends much time wallowing. It is much used as a domestic beast of burden and is very docile. However, if they scent a tiger Indian buffaloes will attack in a body and trample it into the ground.

The yak thrives on the bleak plateaux of central Asia. It can survive on the barest and coarsest vegetation. The yak is noted for its long black hair hanging almost to the ground. The domesticated yak provides meat and milk as well as being used as a beast of burden. Its only enemy is the wolf. When wolves are about the parent yak form a circle with the calves inside to protect it.

A zebu or Brahma bull has large ears and folds of loose skin around the throat. These help it to lose body heat and so keep cool in the hot season in India where it lives.

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The aurochs, the ancestor of modern domestic cattle, who are now extinct. At Munich zoo, scientists have bred animals that are like the original aurochs.

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The North American buffalo has a massive head and forequarters covered with shaggy hair. A well-grown buffalo may be 3,5m long, its tail 60cm long and its weight well over 1 tonne.

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Probably the most dreaded animal in Africa is the Cape buffalo. It fears nothing. By day it likes to lie up in swampy reed beds or in lakes. It takes a drink in the evening and then feeds during the night in herds that may number a thousand. The Cape buffalo is just over 2m long, stands 1,5m at the shoulder and weighs a tonne or more.

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Although the musk-ox looks like a species of cattle, it is one of the goat-antelopes. It lives in herds in the arctic regions of Canada and Greenland. When attacked the herd stands shoulder to shoulder to face the enemy. This is successful against wolves but useless against men with rifles.