1849. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
15 
Diffcinit Species of t!)e ©*. 
Aurochs, or European Bison. 
Of animals belonging to the genus bos, or ox, seve¬ 
ral distinct species exist; other species have passed 
away and are only known from history or their remains, 
which are found in various parts of the world. 01 the 
latter class may be mentioned the urus, a huge animal 
which once inhabited the wilds of Europe, and was de¬ 
scribed as little less in size than the elephant, with im¬ 
mense horns, and of untamable ferocity. This race 
has been extinct for many centuries. But another spe¬ 
cies which existed contemporaneously with the urus, 
called the bison or bonassus , is believed to be identical 
with the Lithuanian wild ox, auro.chs or zubr , repre¬ 
sented by figure 1. A similar species, or perhaps the 
same, exists in the Caucasian mountains. 
The idea that the ancient urus was the parent of our 
domestic ox, is now rejected by all naturalists; as is, also 
the equally untenable theory that the domestic stock 
is descended from the bison or aurochs. They have 
1.—AUROCHS, OR EUROPEAN BISON. 
wide anatomical differences. The common ox has 13 
pair of ribs, the aurochs 14 pair; the lumbar vertebrae 
of the common ox are 6 in number, those of the aurochs 
are 5; the front of the common ox is flattened, that of 
the aurochs is protuberant, and broader in the propor¬ 
tion of three to one; the occipital space between the 
horns forms an arch, instead of being flat. 
The following description of the aurochs is taken 
from a Treatise on the Ox, by W. C. L. Martin-.— 
41 The European bison, once so widely spread, is now 
confined to the forests of Bialowicza (pronounced Bea- 
lawezha) in Lithuania, where it is protected by strin¬ 
gent laws: whoever kills one, without permission of 
the Russian government, has to pay a fine of 2,000 ru¬ 
bles; or, if unable to meet the penalty, must suffer 
transportation to Siberia. Formerly the penalty was 
death. 
“ This species is wonderfully massive and robust in 
in its proportions; its withers are thick, and elevated, 
and covered, as are the neck, sides of the head, and 
lower jaw, and throat, with long, rough hair, forming 
a sort of mane beneath the throat, like a beard. This 
mane is often a foot in length, and is thickest during 
the winter, especially in old bulls; the hair covering 
the trunk and limbs is soft and woolly; the tail, which 
is short, is furnished with a tuft of stiff hairs at its ex¬ 
tremity; the eyes are small, but their expression is 
extremely wild and savage, and when the animal is 
irritated they glare with fury; the tongue, lips, and 
palate, are blue. An odour, described as between 
musk and violets, is exhaled from the skin, and espe¬ 
cially that portion which covers the convexity of the 
forehead. This odour is much stronger in the male 
than the female, and may be perceived at a considera¬ 
ble distance from the herd. The horns are large, 
round, arid lateral, with the points sweeping upwards 
and forwards; the head is large and heavy, and car¬ 
ried low. The male aurochs is upwards of six feet 
in height at the shoulders, and is a most formidable 
animal; so great is its strength that, according to Dr. 
Weissenborn, trees of five or six inches in diameter are 
levelled by the thrusts of a bull. He fears neither the 
wolf nor the bear, but assails them with horns and 
hoofs; an old bull is a match for four wolves; and 
although a pack of wolves may sometimes hunt down 
a strayed aurochs, the collected herd has nothing to 
fear from any animal.” 
It is said that all attempts to obtain a mixed breed 
between the aurochs and domestic cattle have utterly 
failed. A great antipathy exists between them; the 
aurochs shuns the domestic race, and if contact is una¬ 
voidable, attacks them with fury and gores them to 
death. ——■ 
American Bison, or Buffalo, 
Closely allied to the aurochs or zubr, but evidently 
of a distinct species, is the American bison, bos Arne- 
ricanus, (fig. 2.) This animal formerly existed as 
far to the eastward as New-York and Pennsylvania; 
but at the present time, it is not found east of the Mis¬ 
sissippi river, and its common haunts are to the west¬ 
ward to the base of the rocky mountains. Here they 
are sometimes seen in herds of twenty thousand. The 
race is, however rapidly decreasing in numbers, from 
the indiscriminate slaughter which has for a long time 
been carried on against them by the hunters, who kill 
them in vast numbers chiefly for their hides, which form 
the well-known 11 buffalo robes” of commerce. 
Anatomically considered, the American bison differs 
lRpre from the common ox than does the European au¬ 
rochs. The ribs consist of fourteen pair, and the lum¬ 
bar vertebral are only four in number. Still, there 
have been repeated instances of its breeding with the 
domestic race; but the offspring, so far as we can 
learn, are invariably barren. Owing to the great 
2. —AMERICAN BISON, OR BUFFALO. 
breadth of forehead and the hump on the shoulders, the 
common cow, when impregnated by the bison bull, ex¬ 
periences great difficulty in parturition; but the bison 
cow readily conceives by the common bull, and brings 
forth without difficulty. We are not aware that the 
hybrid stock posseses any superiority over the domestic 
race. - 
The Musk Ox. 
Another species of ox indigenious to North America, 
is the Musk ox, ovibos moschatus. Its habitation is 
from the 61st to the 75th degree of latitude. It inha¬ 
bits wild and bleak situations, feeding in winter chiefly 
on lichens, and in summer on grass. It is not larger 
in size than the smallest of our domestic breeds. Its 
flesh, though eaten by hunters and by the Esquimaux, 
is strongly imbued with musk. It is covered with long 
wooly hair, which reaches from its sides almost to the 
ground. The general color is a dark grizzled 
brown. 
