772 THE UNGULATES, OR HOOFED MAMMALS 



young calves, like those of the gayal, have the whole length of the outer surface of 

 the limbs chestnut; and they are also distinguished by a dark streak down the 

 back. A full-grown bull banteng from Java measured five feet nine and one- 

 half inches at the withers; but Mr. Blanford states that the largest example re- 

 corded from Burma was only five feet four inches in height. 



The banteng is exclusively confined to the regions lying to the east- 

 ward of the Bay of Bengal, occurring throughout Burma, and prob- 

 ably extending as far north as the hills to the eastward of Chittagong, while it also 

 inhabits the Malay Peninsula, and the islands of Java, Bali, Borneo, and probably 

 Sumatra. That it also occurs in Siam is almost certain, but its exact range in the 

 Indo-Chinese countries has still to be determined. Large herds of domesticated 

 banteng are kept by the Malays in Java, and also in the small island of Bali, lying 

 to the southeast. The herds in Bali are replenished by importation from Java. 

 The Malays speak of a wild ox under the name of the sapio, which may prove to be 

 a variety of the banteng with ferruginous red instead of white on the legs. 



It has already been noticed that the original color of the wild ox or aurochs 

 of Europe was probably white mixed with reddish brown; and the fact that the 

 calves of all the three species of the present group are reddish brown points to 

 the conclusion that this was the ancestral coloration. Now the fact that the 

 female banteng permanently retains this ancestral coloration which is tran- 

 sient in the gaur and gayal, indicates that the present species is a less specialized 

 form than either of the other two; the dark color being acquired only in the male sex. 

 This is confirmed by the structure of the banteng, which departs less widely from 

 that of the typical oxen than is the case with the other two species of this group. 



Although the accounts of the habits of the banteng are not very full, 

 yet it appears that in these respects this animal is very similar to the 

 gaur. Mr. Blanford suggests, however, that from its relatively-longer legs the 

 banteng is less addicted to climbing among rocky hills than are either of the other 

 members of the group, and that it is accordingly more restricted to the plains of 

 tall grass. The domesticated race breeds freely with the Indian humped cattle. 



It is stated by Blyth that in old bulls the skin between the bases of the horns 

 becomes enormously thickened, and assumes a horny and rugged condition. This 

 development beginning to take place before the coat has commenced to change from 

 the light to the dark color. 



The extinct Etruscan ox (B. etruscus) from the Pliocene of the European con- 

 tinent, appears to have been allied to the banteng, but with the horns placed low 

 down on the skull near the eyes. 



THE YAK (Bos grunniens) 



The yak is one of the numerous Mammals peculiar to the elevated plateau of 

 Tibet, and differs markedly from all the other members of the ox tribe, although to 

 a certain extent it forms a connecting link between the preceding group and the bi- 

 sons. The most distinctive peculiarity of the yak, so far as external features are 

 concerned, is the mass of long hair with which the flanks, limbs, and tail are 



