THE GAUR. 99 



with the full-grown Gaur, though he may occasionally 

 succeed in carrying off an unprotected calf. The wild 

 Buffalo abounds in the plains below the mountains; but 

 he so much dreads the Gaur, according to the natives, 

 that he rarely attempts to invade his haunts. The forests 

 which shield the Gaur abound, however, in Hog- deer, 

 Saumurs, and Porcupines. 



The size of the Gaur is its most striking peculiarity. 

 The following measurement of one not fully grown will 

 show the enormous bulk of the animal : 



Ft. In. 



Height from the hoof to the withers . . 5 llf 

 Length from nose to end of tail . . . 11 llf 



The form of the Gaur is not so lengthened as that of 

 the Arna. Its back is strongly arched, so as to form a 

 pretty uniform curve from the nose to the origin of the 

 tail, when the animal stands still. This appearance is 

 partly owing to the curved form of the nose and forehead, 

 and still more to a remarkable ridge, of no great thick- 

 ness, which rises six or seven inches above the general 

 line of the back, from the last of the cervical to beyond 

 the middle of the dorsal vertebrae, from which it gradually 

 is lost in the outline of the back. This peculiarity pro- 

 ceeds from an unusual elongation of the spinous processes 

 of the dorsal column. It is very conspicuous in the 

 Gaurs of all ages, although loaded with fat ; and has no 

 resemblance to the hunch which is found on some of the 

 domestic cattle of India. It bears some resemblance, 

 certainly, to the ridge described as existing in the Gayal ; 

 but the Gaur is said to be distinguished from that animal 

 by the remarkable peculiarity of a total want of a dewlap. 

 Neither the male nor female Gaur, at any age, has the 



