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THE GENUS BOS. BY GEORGE VASEY.
THE GENUS BOS. BY GEORGE VASEY.
LONDON: PUBLISHED BY G. BIGGS, 421, STRAND. 1851. TO WILLIAM YARRELL, Esq., F.L.S., F.Z.S., WHOSE SCIENTIFIC WORKS ON ZOOLOGY PLACE HIM IN THE FIRST RANK OF NATURALISTS; AND, MOREOVER, WHOSE UNOSTENTATIOUS KINDNESS IN CONSULTING THE FEELINGS AND ADVANCING THE INTERESTS OF OTHERS IS RARELY EQUALLED, This Volume is inscribed, BY HIS SINCERE FRIEND AND ADMIRER, THE AUTHOR....
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PREFACE.
PREFACE.
The primary object of the present work, is to give as correct and comprehensive a view of the animals composing the Ox Tribe, as the present state of our knowledge will admit, accompanied by authentic figures of all the known species and the more remarkable varieties. Although this genus (comprising all those Ruminants called Buffaloes, Bisons, and Oxen generally,) is as distinct and well characterised as any other genus in the animal kingdom, yet the facts which are at present known respecting
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ADDENDUM.
ADDENDUM.
In addition to the critical remarks on the writings of others, on this subject, which the reader will find in the following pages, I have further to observe that, although Pennant and Buffon have held a very high character, for many years, as scientific naturalists, the portion of their works which treats of the Genus Bos , appears to have been the result of the most careless and superficial observation. With the exception of the facts and observations furnished by such men as Daubenton and Pall
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LIST OF ENGRAVINGS.
LIST OF ENGRAVINGS.
Page 1. Frontispiece.—The Sangu, or Abyssinian Ox i 2. Stomach of Manilla Buffalo 4 3. Gastro-duct (Œsophagean Canal), after Flourens 6 4. Stomach of a young Calf 12 5. Stomach of a full-grown Cow 13 6. Skull of Domestic Ox 17 7. Skeleton of Domestic Ox 20 8. American Bison 21 9. Young Female Bison 23 10. Wounded Bison 24 11. Indian shooting a Bison 29 12. Bison surrounded by Wolves 32 13. Bison Calf, after Cuvier 33 14. Skin Canoes of the Mandan Indians 36 15. Head of young Male Bison 39 16. Au
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INTRODUCTION.
INTRODUCTION.
Ruminantia is the term used by naturalists to designate those mammiferous quadrupeds which chew the cud; or, in other words, which swallow their food, in the first instance, with a very slight mastication, and afterwards regurgitate it, in order that it may undergo a second and more complete mastication: this second operation is called ruminating, or chewing the cud. The order of animals which possess this peculiarity, is divided into nine groups or genera, namely:— The last named forms the subj
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THE OX TRIBE
THE OX TRIBE
Is distinguished from other Genera of Ruminantia by possessing hollow persistent horns, growing on a bony core; the tail long, terminated by a tuft of hair; and four inguinal mammæ....
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THE AMERICAN BISON.
THE AMERICAN BISON.
The head of this animal is enormously large; larger, in fact, in proportion to the size of its body, than that of any other species of the Ox Tribe. This huge head is supported by very powerful muscles, attached to the projecting spinous processes of the dorsal vertebræ; and these muscles, together with a quantity of fat, constitute the hump on the shoulders. The horns are short, tapering, round, and very distant from each other, as are also the eyes, which are small and dark. The head, neck, sh
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THE AUROCHS, OR EUROPEAN BISON.
THE AUROCHS, OR EUROPEAN BISON.
In this, as in the American species, the head is very broad, and the forehead arched; but the horns are longer, more curved, and end in a finer point than those of the American Bison. The eyes are large and dark; the hair on the forehead is long and wavy; under the chin and on the breast it forms a sort of beard. In winter, the whole of the neck, hump, and shoulders are covered with a long woolly hair of a dusky brown colour, intermingled with a short soft fur of a fawn colour. The long hair is
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THE YAK, OR SOORA-GOY.
THE YAK, OR SOORA-GOY.
The following interesting and circumstantial account of this curious species of Ox, is from the pen of Lieut. Samuel Turner. ( Asiatic Researches , vol. iv.) "The Yak of Tartary, called Soora-Goy in Hindostan, and which I term the Bushy-tailed Bull of Tibet, is about the height of an English Bull, which he resembles in the figure of the body, head, and legs. I could distinguish between them no essential difference, except only that the Yak is covered all over with a thick coat of long hair. The
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THE GYALL, (Bos Frontalis of Lambert;)
THE GYALL, (Bos Frontalis of Lambert;)
Of the animals named in the foregoing list, we have had several very interesting accounts; but none of these have been sufficiently precise to enable us to determine the specific character of the animals described. Are they, as some affirm, merely different names for the same animal; or do they designate animals which are really and truly distinct? Nothing short of an appeal to structure can satisfactorily settle this or any other disputed point of a similar nature; but, unfortunately for zoolog
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THE GYALL.
THE GYALL.
The earliest descriptive notice we have of the Gyall was that given in a paper read before the Linnean Society, in 1802, by Mr. Lambert, on the occasion of a bull of this species arriving in London from India. "General colour a blueish-black; the frontal fascia gray; the horns short, thick, and distant at their bases, the tail nearly naked, slender, and with a tuft at the end. The Gyall has no mane; its coat is soft; the edge of the under lip is white, and is fringed with bristling hair. The hor
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THE GAYAL.
THE GAYAL.
About four years after the publication of Mr. Macrae's account of the Gyall (namely in 1808,) there appeared, in the Eighth volume of 'Asiatic Researches,' a description of a species of Ox, named Gayal, communicated by H. T. Colebrooke. He commences by observing, that "the Gayal was mentioned in an early volume of the 'Researches of the Asiatic Society,' (vol. ii, p. 188, 1790,) by its Indian name, which was explained by the phrase "Cattle of the mountains." It had been obscurely noticed (if ind
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THE TAME OR DOMESTIC GAYAL.
THE TAME OR DOMESTIC GAYAL.
The representation of the Gayal here given was taken from a living specimen in the Zoological Gardens, 1846. The scanty information I was able to glean concerning it, consists in its having been procured at Chitagong, and shipped, as a commercial speculation, from Calcutta for London, in January 1844, when about two years and a half old. It remained in the Zoological Gardens till the summer of 1846, when it died from inflammation of the bowels, brought on chiefly by eating too much green food. I
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THE JUNGLY GAU.
THE JUNGLY GAU.
Further information is requisite to decide the specific character of this animal. According to the opinion of Col. Smith, (see 'Synopsis of the Species of Mammalia' in Griffith's Translation of Cuvier's Animal Kingdom,) it is a mere variety of the Gayal ( Bos Gavæus ); and Mr. J. E. Gray, in his 'List of the Specimens of Mammalia in the Collection of the British Museum,' classes it as a domestic variety of the same animal, but Mr. Fred. Cuvier regards it as an entirely new species. The following
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THE BUFFALO.
THE BUFFALO.
The animal generally known under the name of the Common Buffalo is evidently a different species from the Cape Buffalo. Much confusion, however, prevails in the accounts, both of travellers and naturalists, on the subject of these two animals. Descriptions of the one are mingled with descriptions of the other, and anecdotes are related of the one which, there is good reason for believing, ought to be referred to the other. It is highly probable that future and more accurate observations will sho
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THE ITALIAN BUFFALO.
THE ITALIAN BUFFALO.
This animal is more bulky than the domestic Ox, and its limbs are stouter. The head is larger, in proportion to the size of the body, than that of the domestic Ox, and is generally carried with the muzzle projecting; the forehead is rather convex, and higher than broad; the horns are large, slightly compressed, and recline towards the neck, with the points turned up; dewlap of a moderate size. Throughout the whole range of the Italian peninsula Buffaloes are used as beasts of burden, and their i
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The Manilla Buffalo.
The Manilla Buffalo.
The animal which is represented in the above engraving, was living in the Zoological Gardens, Regent's Park, in 1846, at which time the sketch was taken. In size the Manilla Buffalo is about equal to the Kyloe Ox. The horns are of a similar shape, and take nearly the same direction, as those of the Italian Buffalo. They differ, however, from the horns of the Italian Buffalo in three particulars: first, in not being above half so thick or bulky; second, in having a much larger curve; and third, i
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PULO CONDORE BUFFALO.
PULO CONDORE BUFFALO.
Not much is known of the Buffalo which is found in the island of Pulo Condore. It is related by those navigators who completed the voyage to the Pacific Ocean, begun by Captain Cook, that when at Pulo Condore, they procured eight Buffaloes, which were to be conducted to the ships by means of ropes put through their nostrils and round their horns; but when they were brought within sight of the sailors, they became so furious that some of them tore out the cartilage of their nostrils, and set them
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THE CAPE BUFFALO.
THE CAPE BUFFALO.
This species of ox is only to be found in Africa, and is chiefly confined to the wooded districts lying north of the Cape of Good Hope. What Lavater endeavours to prove of the human being, namely, that the face is the index of the mind or disposition, may be applied, with at least equal truth, to the Cape Buffalo. His broad, projecting muzzle, lowering eyebrows, shaggy pendulous ears, surmounted by a pair of huge horns, give a look of bold determination to this animal, which forms a tolerably co
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THE PEGASSE.
THE PEGASSE.
The above figure is copied from an engraving in the fourth volume of Griffiths' 'Cuvier,' of which the following account is given: "In the collection of drawings, formerly the property of Prince John Maurice of Nassau, now in the Berlin library, there is the figure of a ruminant with the name Pacasse written under it. Judging from the general appearance of the painting, it represents a young animal, although the horns are already about as long as the head. They are of a darkish colour, with some
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THE GAUR, OR GOUR.
THE GAUR, OR GOUR.
The above representation of this animal was sketched from a stuffed specimen in the British Museum, the dimensions of which are given on p. 102. The following interesting particulars are taken from Mr. T. S. Traill's paper on the Gour, in the 'Edinburgh Philosophical Journal,' October, 1824. "The Gaur is considered by the Indians as of a species totally distinct from either the Arna or the common Buffalo. The only animal with which it appears to have affinity is the Gayal, or Bos Gavæus, describ
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THE ARNEE, OR ARNA.
THE ARNEE, OR ARNA.
It does not appear, that the Arnee had been noticed by Europeans until the year 1792, when the following detailed account appeared in a weekly Miscellany, called ' The Bee ,' conducted by Dr. J. Anderson. This animal is hitherto unknown among the naturalists of Europe. It is a native of the higher parts of Hindostan, being scarcely ever found lower down than the Plains of Plassy, above which they are found in considerable numbers, and are well known by the natives. The figure, which is given at
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THE ZAMOUSE, OR BUSH COW.
THE ZAMOUSE, OR BUSH COW.
[The following extract, from the 'Annals of Nat. Hist.,' vol. ii, p. 284, is from the pen of Mr. J. E. Gray.] "Captain Clapperton and Colonel Denham, when they returned from their expedition in Northern and Central Africa, brought with them two heads of a species of Ox, covered with their skins. These heads are the specimens which are mentioned in Messrs. Children and Vigors' accounts of the animals collected in the expedition, as belonging to the Buffalo, Bos Bubalus , and they are stated to be
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THE MUSK OX.
THE MUSK OX.
The Musk-ox, in its external appearance, more nearly resembles the Yak of Thibet than any other member of the Bos genus; and they both inhabit mountainous districts near regions of perpetual snow. The horns of the Musk Bull are remarkably broad at their bases, which are closely united; they bend down on each side of the head, with an outward curve turning upwards towards their ends, which taper to a sharp point. They are two feet long measured along the curvature, and two feet in girth at the ba
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THE SANGA, OR GALLA OX.
THE SANGA, OR GALLA OX.
This singular animal is only found in Abyssinia, and is famous on account of its horns, which are of an almost incredible size. Bruce the traveller, in speaking of these horns, says, "The animal furnishing these monstrous horns is a cow or bull which would be considered of a middling size in England. This extraordinary size of its horns proceeds from a disease that the cattle have in these countries, of which they die, and is probably derived from their pasture and climate. When the animal shows
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THE ZEBU, OR BRAHMIN OX.—(Var. α.)
THE ZEBU, OR BRAHMIN OX.—(Var. α.)
The opinions expressed in the following extract from Mr. Bennett's description of the Indian Ox (Gardens and Menag. of the Zool. Soc.), may be taken as a correct exposition of the views of naturalists generally on the subject:— "There can be little doubt that the Zebu, or Indian Ox, is merely a variety of the Common Ox, although it is difficult to ascertain the causes by which the distinctive characters of the two races have been in the process of time gradually produced. But whatever the causes
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THE DOMESTIC OXEN OF THE HOTTENTOTS, CALLED BACKELEYS, BACKELEYERS, OR BAKELY-OSSE.
THE DOMESTIC OXEN OF THE HOTTENTOTS, CALLED BACKELEYS, BACKELEYERS, OR BAKELY-OSSE.
The following particulars relating to these Oxen are taken from the highly interesting work ' The Present State of the Cape of Good Hope ,' by Peter Kolben, who visited that colony in 1705, and remained there during a period of eight years. "The Hottentots have a sort of oxen they call Backeleyers, or fighting oxen; they use them in their wars, as some nations do elephants; of the taming and farming of which last creatures upon the like discipline the Hottentots as yet know nothing. They are of
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AFRICAN BULL.
AFRICAN BULL.
The following notice, which will explain itself, appeared in Loudon's 'Magazine of Natural History,' for July, 1828. "Some Account of a particular Variety of Bull ( Bos Taurus ), now exhibiting in London. By Mrs. Harvey. "Sir,—Agreeably to your request, Mr. Harvey has taken a portrait of this animal; and as he has made the drawing on the wood himself, the engraving will be a very perfect resemblance. [C] I have, on my part, drawn up the following particulars, from what my husband told me, and I
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CHILLINGHAM WHITE CATTLE.
CHILLINGHAM WHITE CATTLE.
Considerable interest has always been connected with the history of those herds of white cattle which have been kept secluded, apparently from time immemorial, in the parks of some of our aristocracy. [D] It has been, and still is, a matter of lordly pride to their noble owners, that these cattle are held to be of a distinct and untameable race. Feeling a full share of the interest attached to them, and anxious to gain the most accurate and circumstantial information, I was induced to pay a visi
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THE KYLOE, OR HIGHLAND OX.
THE KYLOE, OR HIGHLAND OX.
The Chillingham Cattle are white , and the Highland Cattle or Kyloes are generally black ; but with this exception the same description might almost serve for both breeds. In their natural and unimproved state, the Highland cattle are frequently well formed; their fine eyes, acute face, and lively countenances, give them an air of fierceness, which is heightened by their white, tapering, black-tipped, and sharp horns. The Kyloe Oxen are very small (another respect in which they resemble the Chil
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TABLE OF THE NUMBER OF VERTEBRÆ IN THE VARIOUS SPECIES OF THE GENUS BOS.
TABLE OF THE NUMBER OF VERTEBRÆ IN THE VARIOUS SPECIES OF THE GENUS BOS.
The osteological details in the above Table (except those of the Yak, which are given on the authority of Pallas) are from the Author's own observations....
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TABLE OF THE PERIODS OF GESTATION OF THE VARIOUS SPECIES OF THE GENUS BOS.
TABLE OF THE PERIODS OF GESTATION OF THE VARIOUS SPECIES OF THE GENUS BOS.
To supply the deficiencies in the foregoing Tables, the results of original observations are respectfully solicited. Address the Author or Publisher....
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NOTE ON THE AMERICAN BISON.
NOTE ON THE AMERICAN BISON.
It was Cuvier, I believe, who first made the statement, that the American Bison is furnished with fifteen pairs of ribs. In this particular he has been implicitly followed by every subsequent writer on the subject. Not being able to refer to a skeleton, and, moreover, never suspecting any inaccuracy in the statement, I followed the received account. But since this work has gone to press, I have had the opportunity of examining two skeletons, by which I find that— The American Bison has only four
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APPENDIX
APPENDIX
Cows usually bring forth but one calf at a birth; occasionally, however, they produce twins. John Hunter, in his 'Observations on the Animal Economy,' says: "It is a fact known, and I believe almost universally understood, that when a cow brings forth two calves, one of them a bull-calf, and the other to appearance a cow, that the cow-calf is unfit for propagation; but the bull-calf grows up into a very proper bull. Such a cow-calf is called, in this country, a Free Martin , and is commonly as w
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