This year is the Year of the Ugly Cow, so let's talk about the interesting bovines.
First, let's talk about the white-rumped bison that has disappeared in our country for decades.
Seeing the name "white-rumped bison", some people may wonder, "Isn't it a white-limbed bison?" How did it become white buttocks? ”
White-limbed bison and white-rumped bison are two species.
▲ This is a white-limbed bison.
The lower extremities of the white-limbed bison are white, hence the name, and its scientific name is The Indian Bison (Bos gaurus), commonly known as "white socks". It is distributed in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh in South Asia; the Indochina Peninsula and The Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia; and Yunnan and Southeast Tibet in China. Nearly 85% of the population is in India.
The white-rumped bison is also white at the lower end of its limbs, but it has a large white spot on its buttocks, hence the name, the scientific name of the Javanese bison (Bos javanicus), also known as Banteng.
▲ This is a white-rumped bison.
Both species of bison are of the genus Bos, both of which are closely related, so the appearance is similar, especially the adult male white-rumped bison, which is more similar to the white-limbed bison, but the prominent white spots on its buttocks are enough to distinguish the two. The white spots of the white-rumped bison can also be seen from the side. Regarding the role of this large white spot, some speculate that this is conducive to the cattle gathering in the dark and not easily dispersed, just like the reflective signs posted on the back of some cars.
The white-rumped bison is smaller than the white-limbed bison, with a body length of 180-225 cm, a tail length of 65-70 cm, a shoulder height of 130-165 cm, and a weight of 500-900 kg. The sexual type II of the white-rumped bison is very obvious, that is, the appearance of the male and female is very different. Female white-rumped bison are yellowish brown in color, resembling domestic cattle. Male white-rumped bison are also yellow-brown when they are underage, gradually turning black-brown as adults, and older bulls may turn gray.
The scientific name of the white-rumped bison, the Javanese bison, derives from its type specimen origin, which was described in 1823 by the German naturalist Joseph Wilhelm Eduard d'Alton based on two bison skulls from the Indonesian island of Java. Banteng is derived from the Javanese language.
▲ Balinese cattle ploughing the fields.
Around 3500 BC, the white-rumped bison was domesticated in Southeast Asia, and the domesticated species became known as the Bali cattle. As of 2016, Balinese cattle accounted for 25% of the total number of domestic cattle in Indonesia. In 1849, the British introduced Balinese cattle to northern Australia, most of which were abandoned or released, resulting in the formation of a wild population of Balinese cattle in Australia. As of 2007, there were about 8,000-10,000 wild Balinese cattle in Australia.
According to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, white-rumped bison were assessed as endangered in 2014, with a total wild population of about 8,000, of which about 60% live in dense forests in eastern Cambodia; also in Sabah, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam; in China, Malaysia Sarawak and Laos are not sure if there is a distribution; extinctions in India, Bangladesh and Brunei. The domesticated Balinese cattle are found in Bali and many islands in eastern Indonesia, northern Australia, Malaysia and New Guinea.
There are very few records of the white-rumped bison in China, there are no living images, no complete specimens, and only a few descriptions of it in the literature.
In 1958, published in the "Science Bulletin", "The Bison Found in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan", it was written that the hunters of the Yao and Dai ethnic groups affirmed that there were two kinds of bison: one with a huge body, often living in the deep mountains and dense forests, commonly known as the wild yellow ox, that is, the Indian bison, which is more numerous and more common; a small body, often living in a flat bamboo forest, most likely bibos banteng.
The so-called Bibos banteng here is the white-rumped bison.
The Chinese Beast Field Manual describes the skull of a Javanese bison Bos javanicus in the southern part of Xishuangbanna and Simao, Yunnan, but the skull is often traded as a trophy, and this book ignores these records, and more evidence is needed later.
▲ Wikipedia white-rumped bison distribution map, there is a big question mark in China, indicating uncertainty.
Because it is not certain whether there is still a white-rumped bison in China, it is difficult to assess its protection level, so there is no white-rumped bison in the "List of Wild Animals under National Key Protection" issued in 1989.
In view of this situation, some scholars at the end of the last century suggested that the white-rumped bison be added as a national protected animal.
The article "Recommending Appropriate Adjustments to the Conservation Level of Wild Animals" published in Nature in 1998 argued that the Javanese bison should be added as a national protected animal. Javanese bison are found in Java, Borneo, Sumatra, Indonesia, and to the north to the Malay Peninsula, the Indochina Peninsula and the southern tip of China (recorded only in Mengla County, Yunnan). The exact distribution range and ecological biological characteristics of javanese bison in China are still poorly known, so it is urgent to strengthen protection for future scientific research.
In 2015, "Chinese Mammal Diversity" featured Javanese bison.
The Red List of Vertebrates of China, published in 2016, features Javanese bison with an assessment scale of Critical Danger (CR).
The Red List of Biological Species of Yunnan Province, released in 2017, includes Javanese bison with an assessment scale of Critical Hazard (CR).
The "List of Wild Animals under National Key Protection" released last year also added Javanese bison as a national level, and it seems that many animal protectors and enthusiasts are still paying attention to this endangered species.
▲ In 2013, the wild white-rumped bison photographed by members of BirdNet was mistaken for filming in Yunnan, and later someone confirmed that the shooting location was in Thailand.
There are nature reserves in Yunnan that also claim that there are white-rumped bison in the protected objects, but for decades there have been no accurate sighting reports of white-rumped bison in China. Animals as large as the white-rumped bison could not be hidden, and there had been no eyewitness reports for decades, either because they were gone or in very small numbers that they were not enough to reproduce the population, which was equivalent to nothing. And there is no or very little northern Myanmar adjacent to Yunnan, and there is little hope of spreading from Myanmar.
The possibility that the white-rumped bison still exists in China is slim, but its close relatives, the white-limbed bison, are confirmed and distributed, and in recent years there has been news of the Yunnan white-limbed bison every year.
▲White-limbed bison photographed in Xishuangbanna Mann draft national nature reserve in early 2019.
According to the 2018 paper "Distribution of Indian Bison in China and Its Habitat Suitability Analysis", the Indian bison survey was conducted in the Xishuangbanna, Pu'er and Gaoligong Mountains regions from February to March 2016 and from November to December 2016, and the current population of Indian bison in Yunnan is about 180-210.
The white-limbed bison is in much better condition in our country than the white-rumped bison, and it is hoped that the protection will be strengthened and not let it disappear from our country like the white-rumped bison.