114 CHARACTERS OF VERTEBRATE ANIMALS 



with hoofs, two other toes being commonly represented by small 

 hoofs, though these may be in this case absent altogether. The 

 family not only includes (i) oxen in the widest sense, but also 

 (2) sheep, (3) goats, and (4) antelopes. With but few exceptions, 

 these are found only in the Old World. 



(i) As in the case of so many other domesticated forms, there 

 is considerable doubt as to the ancestry of European oxen {Bos 

 taurus), but there can be little doubt that these are largely 

 descended from the Auroch or Urus {Bos primigenius), which was 

 hunted by prehistoric man and existed as a wild species so late 

 as the twelfth century, though they are now known only as half- 

 wild cattle of comparatively small size, the best known of these 

 being the herd preserved at Chillingham in Northumberland. 

 In this case the muzzles and ears are red (though at an earlier 

 date they were black), while the rest of the body is white. 



A different origin must be sought for the humped cattle of 

 Africa and India, the latter often receiving the name of Zebu 

 {Bos indicus). It has been claimed that these are descended from 

 an African stock, though this is only conjectural, and it may be 

 observed that there are several wild species of Asiatic oxen which 

 exhibit the humped character to a greater or less degree. This 

 is the case, for example, with the Gaur {Bos gaurus) of India and 

 Further India, to which the name "bison" is often misapplied, 

 and the Yak {Bos grunniens) of Thibet, distinguished by its long 

 hair and horse-like tail. 



The group of Bisons, to which in some respects the Yak 

 approximates, are distinguished by several special features, among 

 the most striking of which are the great disproportionate height 

 of the front part of the body and the projection of the back of the 

 head above the origin of the horns. The European Bison {Bos 

 bonassus), once abundant, is now practically restricted to Lithuania 

 and the Caucasus, and appears doomed to extinction, like the 

 American Bison {Bos Americanus) (fig. 78), which existed in 

 countless herds at no very remote period. Under the name of 

 " buffalo " this animal plays a large part in various kinds of 

 literature dealing with North America. 



Buffaloes, using the term in the strict sense, are stoutly-built 

 oxen with broad snout, strong thick horns, and large fringed ears 

 set on rather far down. The hair is comparatively coarse and 

 scanty, and the long tail is tufted. The group is characteristic 



