THE GAUR 765 



In concluding our notice of the typical oxen it anay be mentioned 



that several species occur fossil in India. Among these is the magnif- 

 Species 



icent Narbada ox (B. namadicus) , of the gravels of the valley of the 



Narbada, which was fully equal in size to the aurochs, and in the typical form had 

 horns with a cylindrical section. It is, however, noteworthy that in one race of this 

 species the horns were somewhat flattened, and thus approximate to those of the liv- 

 ing wild cattle of India. In the somewhat older deposits of the Siwalik hills there 

 occurs the gigantic sharp-fronted ox (B. acutifrons), distinguished by the sharp 

 ridge running down the middle of the forehead, and the enormous length of the 

 horns, which swept upward and outward in a bold curve, and were probably but lit- 

 tle short of ten feet in span. 



THE GAUR (Bos gaurus) 



With the magnificent animal known as the gaur, but generally misnamed by 

 Indian sportsmen the bison, we come to the first of three species from Southeastern 

 Asia, nearly allied to one another, and broadly distinguished from those already 

 noticed. These animals, which include the handsomest existing representatives of 

 the genus, are collectively characterized by the following features. The horns are 

 flattened to a greater or less degree from front to back, more especially at their 

 bases, where they present an eliptical cross-section; this characteristic being more 

 strongly marked in the bulls than in the cows. The tail is shorter than in the 

 typical oxen, and reaches but little if at all below the hocks. A third feature is 

 presented by the distinct ridge running from the shoulders to the middle of the 

 back, where it ends in an abrupt drop, which may be as much as five inches in 

 lieight. This ridge is caused by the great height of the spines of the vertebrae of 

 the fore part of the trunk as compared with those of the loins; but it is a character- 

 istic much less developed in the banteng than in either of the other two species. 

 The three species have also a characteristic coloration, the adult males being dark 

 brown or nearly black, the females and young males being either paler or reddish 

 brown, while in both sexes the legs from above the knees and hocks to the hoofs 

 are white or whitish. The hair is short, fine, and glossy, and the hoofs are nar- 

 row and pointed. 



The gaur is a strong and massively-built species, easily recognized by the high 

 convex ridge on the forehead between the horns, which bends forward, and thus 

 causes a deep hollow in the profile of the upper part of the head. The ridge on the 

 back is very strongly marked, and there is no distinct dewlap on the throat and 

 chest. The flattening of the horns at the base is very decided, and the horns are 

 regularly curved throughout their length, and are bent inward and slightly back- 

 ward at their tips. The ears are very large, the tail only just reaches the hocks, 

 and in old bulls the hair becomes very thin on the back. 



In color the adult male gaur is dark brown, approaching black in very old in- 

 dividuals; the upper part of the head, from above the eyes to the nape of the neck, 

 is, however, ashy gray, or occasionally dirty white; the muzzle is pale colored, and 

 the lower part of the legs pure white. The cows and young bulls are paler, and in 



