The Bison and Ox Family. 319 



tieated state, but the Gayal, a much smaller animal 

 differing from it in tlie formation of its skull and horns, 

 is believed by some to be a modified variety of the Gaur. 



THE YAK. 



The Yak (Bos-grunniens), is found only on the ele- 

 vated plateau of Tibet. The color, with the exception of 

 a little white around the muzzle, is a blackish brown. 

 The hair on the head and the upper part of the body is 

 short and nearly smooth. On the flanks, breast and 

 the under part of the limbs, the thick hair, which protects 

 it from the cold and snow, grows to a great length, giv- 

 ing the animal an ungainly appearance ; on the thick, 

 bushy tail the hair is often twenty-five inches long. The 

 head of the Yak is long and narrow and the ears and 

 muzzle small. The shoulders are high, but the back is 

 otherMdse straight without any falling away at the hips. 

 It has short stout legs and large rounded hoofs. The horns 

 are nearly cylindrical and curved upwards and out. The 

 Yak is nearly as large an animal as the Gaur. 



The Wild Yak is impatient of heat and delights in 

 the cold; it is only found near the limits of perpetual 

 snow, often seeking an elevation of from fifteen to twenty 

 thousand feet in summer. 



The Yak is an unsociable animal, but breeds in con- 

 finement and can be crossed with other cattle. The 

 grunt of this animal is so much like that of the pig that 

 the Germans call it the Grunzochs. 



The domesticated Yak is much smaller than the wild 

 variety, and shows considerable variation in color, some- 

 times being entirely white. It is about the size of an ox, 

 and can stand a much higher temperature than the wild 

 Yak. It is covered all over with long silky hair, hanging 

 down like the fleece on a sheep. The head is rather short ; 

 the eyes large and beautiful ; the horns, which are not very 

 large spread and taper from the base, and are turned 

 back a little at the tips; the space between them on the 

 forehead being covered by a mass of curly hair; the neck 

 is short and over the shoulders there is a bunch of long 

 hair. 



