Types of wild bulls
Domestic cows are familiar to everyone, they are affectionate, obedient, give milk, etc. But a wild bull or cow is a more exotic phenomenon, and yet they are relatives of the domesticated cattle. It is about such wild species that will be discussed below.
Wild bulls and cows
Progenitor Tour
Let's start with the strongest bovine species, which, unfortunately, is no longer on our planet. This tour is the ancestor of all modern cattle. In terms of endurance and productivity, no one can match the tour so far.
He was called the "wild forest bull." The tour lived in Europe, in the North of Africa, in the Caucasus, in Asia Minor. The last individuals died out in 1627 due to illness.
They lived in forest-steppes and forests, gathered in small herds or existed alone. Their food was grass, shoots, etc.
Description
It was a huge animal, up to 180 cm tall and 800 kg in weight. The body of males of the tur was covered with black hair, and on the back there was a small stripe of white. Females, like young animals, walked brown.
Cause of disappearance
The reason why tours no longer inhabit the earth and we see them only in pictures is a person. Wild animals were hunted constantly. In addition, their home, forest thickets, were actively cut down as civilization developed.
Scientists are not abandoning their attempts to revive the lost appearance of the majestic bulls, which, even in the absence of comfortable living conditions and food, could become a legend.
Bison and bison
Buffalo
Bison is another wild bull, the strength and size of which are surprising even in the photo. Its history goes back to the Stone Age. Outwardly, it is very similar to a bison, they are easy to confuse.
The main characteristics of the bison's appearance are called a hump, formed by a high and steep withers, and a low set head with a very wide frontal region. The ends of its short horns are bent inward. Its massiveness is given by dense vegetation on the front of the body (on the chin, neck, shoulders), knocked to shreds. The tail is short, decorated with a tassel.
With a mass of up to 1.2 tons (for females - 700 kg), a body length of 2.5-3 m and a height of 1.9 m, the bison is one of the largest of all ungulates on the planet.
Its color is black, gray or brown, with a lighter coat on the shoulders, and the calves are usually very light, yellow in color, although occasionally you can find light adults.
Bison lifestyle
Bison are characterized by measured behavior, non-aggressive outside the danger zone. If you need to save your life, they run at a speed of 50 km / h. Representatives of these wild animals swim, have excellent hearing and scent, but their eyesight is very poor.
Bison feed mainly at night. They eat grass.
Their habitat is North America (Canada, central states).
The following subspecies are distinguished:
- forest (live to the north, in the forest);
- plain or steppe (live in the southern prairies).
Preservation
Today, they are trying to keep North American bison in protected areas, in zoos, since their number has sharply decreased since the 19th century.Millions of livestock of their mighty ancestors became vulnerable to European colonialists. They were killed just for fun or to deprive the local Indians of food. In 1889, only 835 copies remained.
They are listed in the Red Book, but through the efforts of the authorities of Canada and the United States, today our planet has up to 30 thousand individuals of this species (not counting the tamed half-breeds).
Bison
Bison brothers, bison, live in Russia, the Caucasus, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Lithuania. In Europe, they are the largest mammals and also the last of all wild bulls inhabiting Europe.
The bison's head is more pronounced than that of a bison and somewhat smaller in size. The shape of the body is close to a square, the body is massive, the tail is short. The color is brown, the coat becomes longer from the back of the head and on the spine.
These animals swim well, jump high, live up to 40 years.
Distinguish between Caucasian and Belovezhskaya bison. The first became extinct at the beginning of the twentieth century, and the second are under the patronage of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
Due to the outstanding genetic qualities of bison and bison, they are trying to domesticate and use it in breeding new breeds.
Buffalo
Other worthy representatives of wild bulls and cows are buffaloes, relatives of bison, yaks, etc.
There are two kinds of buffaloes:
- Asian (tamarau, mountain anoa, anoa, asiatic buffalo);
- African.
Asiatic genus
A specimen of the Asian genus is a wild bull with huge horns under 2 m in length. His horns look back and resemble a crescent. Buffalo height is about 2 m, body length - 3 m, weight - up to 900 kg.
There are also small specimens among them. This is tamarau. Their height is 106 cm, their mass is no more than 300 kg, the body is 220 cm long.There are also anoas 80 cm high and 300 kg in weight, they have no wool, are brown or black, nibble grass at night, hide from the scorching sun during the day. plunged into the mud.
By the will of man, the species is on the verge of extinction, although it is placed in protected areas. For example, tamarau do not give birth in captivity. Most Asian buffaloes are domesticated. They give milk. They live in Southern Europe, Africa, South Asia.
African genus
The African buffalo is divided into subspecies: Cape, Sudanese, dwarf (red), mountain, Nile. As the name implies, he lives in Africa (mountains, savannahs, forest). Likes to live near large sources of water and in fields with dense vegetation, but is able to feed on dried up shrubs.
The weight of Africans sometimes reaches 1200 kg, and their height is 1.6 m. The build is stocky, the legs are short. The head is decorated with powerful horns bent upward. The length between the two ends of the horns is about 1 m. On the forehead of males, they grow together, turning into a bulletproof helmet.
The color is black or dark brown, the hair is coarse, sparse.
Poor vision is compensated by excellent hearing and smell. These are collective animals, ready to come to the rescue of their brother and snatch him from the clutches of a predatory beast.
Zebu, yak and gaur
Zebu
Zebu is a resident of hot regions (Africa, South America, Asia), but India is considered his homeland. The muscle-fat hump is his calling card.
Another feature is that this wild bull is not afraid of bloodsuckers, because grease with a specific aroma is released from the skin, and they are also not afraid of high temperatures.
In India, this representative was tamed and used in agriculture for transportation, etc.
Yaks
It is not easy to study a yak, he shuns people, although some of the animals are domesticated, brings milk, meat, wool. In the wild, he is comfortable. Strong and ferocious, he withstands the harshest conditions. Currently lives in Tibet.
Its height is about 2 m, body length is 4 m (females are smaller: under 1.6 m in height). Huge horns, 95 cm, adorn his head, diverge to the sides, then bend over. A hump flaunts on the back. The coat is shaggy and very long, covering the limbs completely. The coloring is gray-black, brown, white spots on the muzzle.
Gaur
The Indian gaur is an example of a peace-loving giant.With such an impressive size (height 2.2 m and above, weight 1000-1500 kg), he is not at all fierce. Although the wild gaur cows are much smaller in size, they are completely fearless. Giaurs have strong long limbs and large horns that grow perpendicular to the ground.
These animals are also called Indian bison, and tamed individuals are called gayals. Their coloring is dark brown, but the legs are light.
The largest number of bulls survived in the dense thickets of the jungles of Indonesia and India.