The Gaur ox
In India, there are also a wild cow called Gaur ox or Indian Bison. The last name is rather misleading because it do not have relation with the Bison ox. Bison oxen live two places in the world. The American Bison live in North America out on the prairie. The European bison living in the vast forests on the border between Poland and Belarus. The Gaur have no family relation with them but is a relative of the domesticated cows.
In India there are very few Gaur oxen back and they live only in some national parks. Here somebody takes care of them so they are not eradicated completely. However, they have natural enemies like tigers and leopards. These predators preferably take calves and young animals. An adult Gaur, especially a bull is too large for these predators. We have seen examples of a Gaur bull has been killed and eaten by a very large male tiger, but there are also examples of a tiger were fatally wounded by a Gaur bull.
Gaur oxen farts silently just like their domesticated relatives. They need not be tremendously cautious as deer are forced to do. They defend themselves against predators by forming a ring of large animals and very small and vulnerable calves in safety inside the ring.
On the top picture you can see an angry Gaur bull. They are not afraid of humans and when riding in a car can get very close to them.
|