White bull with huge horns. The bull with the largest horns in the world
Evolution is a mechanism that nature came up with. Thousands of different animal species appeared, with hundreds of differences, but similar to each other. The family of wild true bulls and wild cows also contains many subspecies of wild bulls.
Bull families live in all corners globe: both in the snowy expanses of Tibet and in the desert of Africa. Why is the fate of these animals considered tragic? What are the features?
Wild bulls: what descendants of these ancient animals exist in nature?
The sad fate of the horned giant
In the vastness of Europe there was a wild bull - aurochs. This beast was beautiful and weighed almost a ton. Wild bull with huge horns made everyone tremble with fear, except the man. Thanks to the latter, this type not preserved.
Tur was an excellent source of meat and skins, which is why it was hunted. The beast is slow, and every hunter could kill it. The memory of this species has been preserved, because it is the ancestor of all modern bulls.
Gallery: wild bulls (25 photos)
Bison - a relative of the aurochs, Belovezhskaya bull, bison of North America
The bison is the closest relative of the aurochs. A huge animal, about two meters at the withers. Its weight is just over a ton, which is why it is one of the largest representatives of their own species. The bison has a dark brown coat, which keeps him warm in any cold, even severe frosts.
Previously, this animal lived almost throughout Europe, Russia and the Caucasus. But the animal, like the aurochs, was attacked by people. Now these creatures live in reserves, under supervision and protection.
The bison is also a relative of the tur, but already overseas. This wild forest bull lives in North America and is similar in appearance to a bison. Only the fur is longer, reaching half a meter in length. Front massive body part, and the back one is much weaker. The chest, part of the back and head are often covered with felted hair.
Bison are horned, but the horns are often differently defined. In animals short tail with a brush. There are forest and steppe bison. The steppe one is smaller than the forest one, has much more hair, and the horns are hidden under the bangs.
North American loves semi-desert plains, spacious pastures, forest glades, well illuminated by the sun. The male weighs more than a ton, females are slightly smaller.
This species was also hunted. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the population numbered about 60 million individuals, and a century later, the number dropped to around one thousand. Why did it happen? The reason is the migrants.
The colonialists began to kill bulls in order to feed the workers who build railway. Further buffalo hunting turned into fun, not food production.
The bison were taken under protection and are provided with conditions for population growth.
In the mountains of Tibet
The snowy mountains of Tibet have become the home of an amazing animal - the yak.
- This is a bull with huge horns, about 80 cm in length.
- Brown thick fur protects it from severe frost and snowfall.
- By using muscular legs he moves from one to the second cliff without any problems.
Yak can be found in other regions Central Asia, for example, in Altai or Kyrgyzstan. But only in Tibet do animals feel at home, because contact with a person kept to a minimum.
Heat lovers: buffalo and gaur bull
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The smallest one. The huge animals described above have relatives among dwarfs. These are anoa. The height of this creature does not exceed one meter, and its weight is within two hundred kilograms. Horns are the smallest part of their body. They reach no more than forty centimeters in length.
Anoas live in Indonesia, on the island of Sulawesi and are protected by animal rights organizations.
Indian bull
Zebu lives in India. This is an independent subspecies, not associated with the tour. This bull from India is used on the farm - it functions as transport and as an assistant to the landowner. In Madagascar, the zebu is also held in high esteem. There this Indian bull is considered sacred.
In some places, the wild bull of India is crossed with a domestic cow, resulting in hybrids that produce milk and great strength. Average weight animal about 800 kg, the body is smooth, there is a “hump” and a pectoral fold. Zebu is readily kept in nature reserves and zoos.
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Ankole-Watusi bulls with long horns round shapes look very impressive. The breed of these bulls is very ancient, more than 6 thousand years old.
Among the representatives of the cow class, these bulls have a special title, they are called “king bulls.” Local residents often call them simply “ankole”, but in Russian the second part of the name “watussi” is more used.
The ancestors of the Watussi are aurochs - wild bulls that came to Africa from the Nile River about 4 thousand years ago. To this day, images of aurochs can be seen on the walls of the pyramids. Around this time, humpbacked zebu bulls moved to the territory of today's Somalia and Ethiopia from Pakistan and India. These bulls eventually crossed with cows from Egypt, resulting in the new kind, which became the ancestor of most African horned animals.
In East Africa, namely in Burundi and Rwanda, hybrids of Indian and Egyptian bulls were called "Watusi". And the neighboring Ugandan Nkole tribes called the new breed in their own way - “Ankole”.
Since ancient times, the Ankole-Watusi breed has been revered as sacred. Cows and bulls of this breed were almost never used as meat, since the welfare of the owners was determined by the number of live heads. These animals were mainly used to produce milk, and local residents We have our own technology to increase milk yield.
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The cow grazed all day, and in the evening she was driven to the calf, which was allowed to take only a few sips mother's milk to stimulate the process of its production. Then the cow was milked, but the calf remained practically hungry. The same procedure was repeated in the morning. As a result of such actions, the young animals died before they reached mature age.
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Adult males weigh between 600-730 kilograms, and females - 400-550 kilograms. Calves do not gain more than 15-23 kilograms in the first months of life.
The main decoration of these animals are their horns. long length. The Tutsi tribe calls Ankole-Watusi in its own way - “inyambo”, which means “cow with extremely long horns”. The length of the horn can reach 1.5-3.7 meters. Among the Watusi, individuals with cylindrical or lyre-shaped horns are valued.
The wider the horns at the base and longer, the more valuable the cow is considered. The owner of the most beautiful horns is called the king of the herd and given sacred status. But privileged individuals at the highest level of the hierarchy also have to pay for their high position, since it is very difficult to wear horns on their heads, each of which weighs up to 45 kilograms.
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Horns for an animal are not just decoration; they perform a thermoregulatory function. They act like radiators; blood circulates in them, which cools air currents, and then spreads throughout the remaining vessels, due to which it decreases general temperature animal body. This function is vital for bull habitats where air temperatures rise to 50 degrees.
Since ancient times, Ankole-Watusi bulls and cows have been considered sacred. They were almost never used as a source of meat, since the wealth of their owners was determined by the number of live animals. All the owners' attention was focused on getting maximum quantity milk, and even a special technology was developed.
The cow grazed all day, and in the evening she was driven to the calf, which was allowed to take only a couple of sips to stimulate milk production. After which the cow was milked, leaving the calf practically on a starvation diet. The same thing was repeated in the morning, and as a result, the young animals died before reaching adulthood.
The historical homeland of Watussi is Africa (Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Burundi), but, thanks to their unpretentiousness in food, after the 1960s they quickly became widespread in other countries (in America, Ukraine and Crimea).
The weight of adult Watussi can reach from 400 to 750 kilograms. Newborn calves are fluff compared to their parents. They weigh only 14-23 kilograms and remain that way throughout the first months.
A distinctive feature of this breed of bulls is their extra-long and powerful horns. Their total length can reach from 1.5 to 2.4 meters. Copies with the most big horns are included in the household of the king of the tribe and become sacred.
These horns are amazing not only for their length, but also for their ability to thermoregulate. They are permeated with many blood vessels, in which there is blood in hot weather cooled by air currents. After which she again ends up in the main circulatory system, lowering the animal's body temperature.
Watussi are very unpretentious eaters. Thanks to special structure digestive system, they are able to eat even very coarse and meager food nutrients food. Their stomach is designed in such a way that it absorbs useful material from everything that its owner eats.
The Ankole Watusi have highly developed instincts to protect the young. When settling down for the night, the adults lie down in a circle, and all the calves are herded to the center, for greater safety.
The ancestors of the Watussi, primitive wild bulls (turs), came to Africa from the banks of the Nile about four thousand years ago, where their images have been preserved to this day on the walls of the pyramids. Around the same time, humpbacked zebu bulls moved from India and Pakistan to what is now Ethiopia and Somalia and gradually crossed with Egyptian cows, resulting in a species that became the basis for many breeds of African cattle.
In countries East Africa– In Rwanda and Burundi, the offspring of Egyptian and Indian bulls were called “Watusi”, and their neighbors, the Ugandan Nkole tribes, gave new breed name "ankole".
home distinctive feature Ankole-Watusi - their long horns. The Tutsi tribe, with which these animals are primarily associated, call them “inyambo” - a cow with very long horns. The length of Ankole horns varies from 1.5 to 3.7 meters. The most preferable is the lyre-shaped or cylindrical shape.
The longer the horns, the wider they are at the base, and the more honors their owner receives, and the highest level of the hierarchy is inclusion in the herd of the king of the tribe and the assignment of sacred status. However, the privileged position also comes at a price, holding horns weighing about 45 kilograms each on the head.
The main value of horns for an animal is their thermoregulatory properties. The horns of the Ankole-Watusi act as radiators in which the circulating blood is cooled by air currents and in this state disperses throughout the body, lowering its temperature. This quality is indispensable in Ankole habitats, where temperatures can reach 50 degrees Celsius.
Watussi, or Ankole-watusi (Bos taurus taurus), is a wild bull native to Africa. They are distinguished from other artiodactyls by their very long horns, reaching 1.8 meters.
Like many other breeds of cows, the Watussi comes from a breed that became extinct in the 17th century. primitive tours. Wild bulls(turs), about four thousand years ago they came to Africa from the banks of the Nile, where their images have been preserved to this day on the walls of the pyramids
Around the same time, humpbacked zebu bulls moved from India and Pakistan to what is now Ethiopia and Somalia and gradually crossed with Egyptian cows, resulting in a species that became the basis for many breeds of African cattle.
In the countries of East Africa - Rwanda and Burundi, the offspring of Egyptian and Indian bulls were called "Watusi", and their neighbors, the Ugandan Nkole tribes, gave the new breed the name "Ankole".
In Rwanda, where long time Ruled by the Tutsi tribe, the Watussi were known as “insanga” - “once found” or “inyambo” - “cows with very long horns”. Animals with the most large horns fell into the herd of the king of the tribe and were considered sacred.
The lyre-shaped or cylindrical shape of the horns was considered the most preferable. The longer the horns, the wider they are at the base, and the weight of each horn is about 45 kilograms.
There are also record holders who are included in the Guinness Book of Records. The bull is named Lurch; its horns reach a girth of 92.25 cm and weigh 50 kilograms each.
Watussi played important role in the life of many tribes of Africa - Tutsi, Ankole, Bahima, Bashi, Kigezi, Kivu. The Maasai tribe not only breeds Watussi, but also eats their blood diluted with milk.
In tribes where bulls and cows of the Ankole-Watusi breed were considered sacred, they were almost never used as a source of meat, since the wealth of their owners was determined by the number of live cattle. All the attention of the owners was focused on obtaining the maximum amount of milk, and even a special technology was developed.
The cow grazed all day, and in the evening she was driven to the calf, which was allowed to take only a couple of sips to stimulate milk production. After which the cow was milked, leaving the calf practically on a starvation diet. The same thing was repeated in the morning, as a result, the young animals died before reaching adulthood.
Watussi bulls are common not only in Africa, but also live in America, where in the 1960s. Walter Schultz brought two bulls and one female, after which the Watussi quickly spread across the American continent. Thanks to their vitality, Watussi bulls “conquered” and New World. They are also found in Ukraine and Crimea.
The weight of adult bulls reaches 600-730 kilograms, cows - 400-550, and the weight of a calf during the first months of life does not exceed 15-23 kilograms.
Their digestive system able to digest very rough food and withstand limited amounts of food and water. Their tenacity allowed them not only to survive in Africa for centuries, but also
spread to other continents.
Watussi horns are penetrated by a system of blood vessels and are used for thermoregulation in the heat. The blood circulating through the horns is cooled by air currents, and then returns to the body and lowers its temperature. This quality is indispensable in Ankole habitats, where temperatures can reach 50 degrees Celsius.
The Ankole Watusi have highly developed instincts to protect the young. When settling down for the night, the adults lie down in a circle, and all the calves are herded to the center, for greater safety.
The horns on a bull's head look very intimidating, and for good reason, because with their help these animals fight and show their strength. Today we will talk about the structure and purpose of bull horns, as well as the method of processing them in order to make a vessel.
What horns does a bull have: anatomical structure
The horns of bulls cover the horny processes of the frontal bone like a cover. These solid formations consist of a root, a body and an apex. The location of the root is at the transition to the skin of the forehead. The apex is the sharp free end, and the body is the area from the root to the apex.
The walls of the horns contain two layers: the base of the skin and the epidermis. The productive layer of the epidermis produces the tubular stratum corneum. The length of the horns can reach a length of 70 cm with a circumference at the base of 30 cm. Their shape is close to conical, they usually bend in a spiral or arc.
Did you know? Calves of both sexes are born without horns; they appear in older babies at the age of two months.
The surface of the horns of these animals is smooth, there are weakly expressed tree rings. The color of these hard formations on the heads of bulls varies: from white to black. There are representatives with mottled color of the horny processes, on which a beautiful blurry pattern can be observed. A - epidermis of the scalp; B - its dermis; IN - frontal bones skulls; G - bony outgrowths of the frontal bones (horn shaft); D - connecting part of the soft layer between the horny sheath and its core The horns of adult bulls and oxen with large weight and size are of particular value.
What are the horns of a bull used for?
An animal's horns have several functions:
- communication (establishing hierarchical relationships);
- protection.
Bulls actively use these hard formations in battles with each other. With their help, they defend territory, food or herd.
Do horns grow back?
It is not uncommon for bulls to fight with each other, resulting in damage to their horns. This can also happen due to the animal’s carelessness. If the problem of damage is only in the horny sheath, then everything grows back easily.
However, if the damage is more complex and occurs at the base, then this is very dangerous. The blood enters the frontal sinus of the animal and flows out through the nose. In this case, the veterinarian may recommend amputation of the horn to preserve the health of the animal.
Which bulls have the biggest horns
Owners of the most big horns- Watussi bulls. They have these hard formations on their heads that reach a length of 1.5 to 2.4 m, and each weighs about 45 kg. The span of the horns from one tip to the other can be 2.4 m.
The horns of these animals act as radiators: the blood that circulates in them is cooled by air currents and spreads throughout the body, thereby cooling it. This is a very valuable quality, because in Africa, where Watussi was bred, the air temperature can reach +50 °C.
Did you know?According to the tradition of the mountaineers, when a local youth reaches the age of 16, wine is poured into the horn of an animal. By performing this ritual, he becomes an adult man in the eyes of others.
How to process a bull horn for a vessel at home
In the Caucasus, bull horn is used as a drinking container. Looking at the beauty of this product, many people thought about how to make such a vessel at home. Below we will talk about all the subtleties that accompany this process.
Choosing a suitable horn for a future product
To make a vessel, taking any of the horns will not be enough; for this it needs to belong to a bovid animal. Of course, you can take it from an antelope or impala, but not every person has access to such exotica. In our area, it is ideal to use animals such as yak, bison, buffalo or ordinary bull for this purpose.
At the beginning of the cup making process, a thorough inspection of the horn should be carried out: you need to find a specimen with a minimum number of cracks. It is better to use a solid formation on the head of a recently killed bull as a material. This is due to the fact that during long-term storage the material can be negatively affected by the environment.
When temperature changes, the horns may experience delamination, and if it is unevenly moistened and dried, they will simply warp. In these cases, the use of such material is not recommended.
Removing the bone rod
The next important stage that requires careful processing is the removal of the bone core. If it is not visually visible, you will need to make a cut using a band saw. After this, the rod can be seen, but getting it out of the horny sheath is not so easy. To do this, the horn needs to be soaked, but this process is quite lengthy and can take 2-3 weeks. You can do it easier and do the digestion. This will be accompanied unpleasant smell, so you need to turn on the hood and open all the windows.
Important!To boil the horn, use a container that you won’t mind throwing away later. After this process, it will no longer be suitable for cooking.
You will need to boil it for 2-3 hours, after which remove the hot horn from the container and knock on a wooden surface until the rod falls out. You can also use a long screwdriver to remove the rod and clean it out. inner part horny sheath.
Sanding inside and outside
Before you start polishing, you need to let the horn cool down so as not to damage the material for the future vessel.
Internal and external grinding is carried out using the following tools:
- sandpaper;
- paste GOI;
- pumice paste;
- felt;
- grinding machine.
The goal standing on at this stage, - polishing the surface to a shine. External part will not cause much difficulty. When using a sander you need to be extremely careful not to overdo it. In the absence of a machine, the process will be longer; in this case, you need to use sandpaper of different grain sizes, from coarse to fine. First, you need to go through the inside of the horn with a scraper, and then make your own grinding tool.
Important!Poor processing of the inside of the horn can lead to an unpleasant aftertaste when pouring the drink into the vessel.
To do this, take a piece of rigid wire and attach sandpaper to it. After this, a piece of wire is fixed into a drill and, thus, the inside of the horny sheath is processed. For the final shine, felt and GOI paste are used.