762 THE UNGULATES, OR HOOFED MAMMALS 



writer has often wandered among such herds, without any harm, except some alarm 

 on the part of one of his companions. In Columbia wild cattle are found not only 

 on the plains, but likewise high up in the Cordilleras, and herds of considerable size 

 have been met with in the Highlands of Central Asia. Here may be mentioned the 

 curious monstrous cattle found in Argentina and known as niatas or natas. This 

 breed, which has existed for more than a century, bears the same relation to other 

 races as is presented by pug-dogs to ordinary dogs. According to Mr. Darwin, "the 

 forehead is very short and broad, with the nasal end of the skull, together with the 

 whole plane of the upper molar teeth, curved upward. The lower jaw projects be- 

 yond the upper, and has a corresponding upward curvature. The upper lip is much 

 drawn back, the nostrils are seated high and are widely open, the eyes project out- 

 ward, and the horns are large. The neck is short, and in walking the head is carried 

 low. The hind-legs appear to be longer, compared with the front-legs, than is 



HIND VIEW OF SKULL OF GAU,A OX, WITH THE HORN SHEATHS REMOVED. 



(One-sixth natural size.) 



(After Rtitimeyer.) 



usual. The exposed incisor teeth, the short head and upturned nostrils, give these 

 cattle the most ludicrous, self-confident air of defiance." Niatas appear to be very 

 rare; but the writer had the good fortune to see a pair of them kept in the grounds 

 of the museum at La Plata in 1893. These were black and white in color; and the 

 characteristic features of the breed were much more strongly displayed in the bull 

 than in the cow. 



HUMPED CATTLE (Bos indicus} 



The common domesticated cattle of India are distinguished from those of Eu- 

 rope, not only by the presence of the hump on the withers, but likewise by other 

 structural features, as well as by their general coloration, their voice, and their hab- 

 its. Hence, although they are only known in the domestic state, there can be no 



