How many years do yaks live. Yaks: general characteristics. Yak bull calf
The animal yak belongs to the bovine bulls. Ruminant bulls come from Tibet, where they live in a mountain range. Domesticated animals are used by humans as beasts of burden. Sometimes yaks are bred for meat and milk.
Although yaks come from the Tibetan Plateau, today they can be found in some other areas of our planet. These pack animals tolerate low temperature regimes typical of high mountain regions. This allows them to have thick and very long hair covering the body of animals on the sides and in the underbelly. Such a natural fur coat gives artiodactyls the ability to lie on snow covers without freezing at temperatures of about -35 ° C.
Wild yaks are quite ferocious creatures, and this can be seen from the photo. When meeting with a person, they show aggressiveness and are ready to attack first.
Yaks are wonderful pack animals, popular household helpers among Indian nomadic peoples living in the mountainous northern part of the country. You can meet the yak on farms in China and Iran, Mongolia and Nepal. They have chosen the mountainous Pakistani and Afghan expanses, live among the Tajik and Uzbek peoples. In Russia, the yak can be seen not only in zoo pens. During the Soviet Union, it was brought to the North of the Caucasus and today it prevails in Kabardino-Balkaria, Ossetia, Karachay-Cherkessia. Agriculture of the Tuva Republic has about 10,000 individuals. Single specimens are found in Altai and Buryatia.
External characteristics of yad animals
Yaks are large mammals. The average weight for males is from 0.95 to 1.0 tons, females weigh half as much - the maximum weight is about 0.4-0.5 tons. The height at the withers ranges from about 1.2-1.5 m, some specimens are height grow up to 2 m. Bull yak can reach more than 4 m in length.
General form
The yak has a large and massive physique with the most developed front part of the body and short legs, ending with strong hooves, allowing you to easily move through the mountains and rocky slopes. The description of the yak and the hump towering at the withers makes it similar in structure to the bison. The head is crowned with small horns that curve upwards. Sometimes you can meet polled yaks.
wool cover
The yak living in high mountainous conditions is covered with thick wool, which shelters the animal at an altitude of 1.5 to 4.0 km above sea level from frost and precipitation. To endure special climatic conditions helps a thick skin and the presence of a subcutaneous fat layer. The coat is represented by axial hair of sufficient length and fine down. The color often seen in the photo is black or brown. The suit is often variegated.
The mobility of the lips and the presence of horny lingual papillae enable the yak to feed on mountain vegetation throughout the year.
Living conditions for yaks
At the end of summer - beginning of autumn, wild yaks move closer to the border of the ever-lying snow. They spend the entire winter period in mountain valleys, where there is practically no vegetation. However, different from cow and sheepskins, the narrow bark muzzle with mobile lips makes it possible for animals to get food from under the snow.
Yak animals live in small families - herds of no more than 20 individuals. At the same time, aged males try to stay apart. During the rut, skirmishes can occur between the yad males, as a result of which rivals compete with the help of horns.
Wild yaks can not stand the neighborhood with a person, so their range of existence is slowly narrowing, and the number is steadily declining. For this reason, they are listed in the international Red Book.
Wild yak is a rather aggressive and violent animal. He is always ready to attack his offender. No exception is for him and a person intending to harm an animal.
What kind of animals yaks, people knew even before our era, they managed to domesticate a wild bull and use it for agricultural purposes. The domestic representative is slightly smaller in size compared to its wild ancestor and behaves more calmly and balanced. In an angry state, the animals do not roar, but make sounds similar to grunting, which is why they were called grunting bulls.
Reproduction and breeding of yak
The mating season of the wild yak begins at the beginning of the autumn period. Pregnancy lasts 250 days, during which the bull is not around, but leaves the herd. A born calf does not leave its mother for about a year. The sexual maturity of young animals occurs when they reach the age of seven months.
The domestic bull is often crossbred by farmers with cattle. To do this, they pair with domestic cows, as a result of which hybrids are born, and, judging by the photo, they are larger than purebred yaks in size. Hybrid individuals pass on to the future generation the high productivity rates and strong physique fixed in themselves.
For agriculture, barnyard animals and their use in crossbreeding have many attractive features:
- productivity reaches up to 0.6-0.7 tons of milk per year with a fat content of more than 6% with a lactation duration of 180 days,
- the milk of barnyard animals is high in protein and sugar,
- the meat obtained from the yak is used for the production of sausages and canned food, while the slaughter yield is kept at a level of 45%,
- thick yak skin is used in sewing shoe soles and is used for technical purposes.
Belongs to the family of bovids. He is also called a grunting bull, because if he is dissatisfied with something, he grunts, which is not characteristic of cattle.
Initially, the native land of the yak is Tibet. Of particular value is yak milk, for which this animal is bred. In Russia, the yak is kept in zoos, bred in pastures. Nomads breed yaks in large numbers, especially those that are on the border with northern India, Bhutan, Afghanistan, and Dagestan.
The appearance of the yak
This is a huge animal with a long body. The legs are short and wide in relation to the body, the head is massive, sits rather low. The yak can grow up to 2 meters in length, and the weight, especially in older representatives, can reach 1000 kg. In length, the body reaches 4 meters, one fourth of the entire length can fall on the tail. Females are almost half the size of males, having a length of 2.5 meters and a height of 1.5 meters, they weigh only 360-370 kg.
On the back of the yak is a hump. Both sexes have horns, and both females and males have long, but thin horns, located widely apart from each other. Horns rush forward and bend upwards. They reach 1 meter in length.
The legs of the yak are practically invisible, this is due to the fact that their hair is long, thick, dense, it hangs almost to the ground, covering the legs. The color of the coat is monophonic, most often black, or dark brown, only on the muzzle there may be white or light blotches. His undercoat is so thick and dense that he is not afraid of even the most severe winters. In spring and summer, the yak sheds, the undercoat falls out in large tangles or shreds. On the body, the hair is even, but on the legs it is shaggy and long, which is very reminiscent of a “skirt”.
Yaks are powerful animals.
There are wild and domestic yak. Wild yak is extremely rare, as it cannot be in close proximity to a person. To date, wild yak can be seen only in the highlands of Tibet, at an altitude of 3000-5000 meters, and climbs even higher in summer. Due to the fact that he lives at such heights, his lungs and heart are larger in size than those of yaks that live lower. Fetal hemoglobin, which is present only in the early stages of development, they have throughout life. As a result, it can carry more oxygen. Wild yaks have a thicker layer of fat, a limited number of sweat glands, because of this they cannot tolerate temperatures above 15 degrees.
Wild yaks gather in small herds of 12 individuals, the elderly usually keep aloof. He lives approximately 25-30 years. During the mating season, which begins in September for yaks, they fight fiercely for the female. They aim at the side of the enemy, as this is the most vulnerable spot. The loser can be seriously hurt. After mating, the female carries the cub for 9 months, and after birth, the calf is completely dependent on the mother for another year.
The wild yak has almost no enemies, except that the wolves decide to attack, having previously gathered in a large flock. But even such attacks are rare. And a yak, without hesitation, pounces on a person. They are exceptionally good at recognizing smells, their sense of smell is excellent, but their hearing and eyesight are not too sharp.
The domestic yak is very inferior to its wild companion both in size and color. They are very calm, besides they have a greatly weakened immune system, they are less resistant to severe cold. In nutrition, wild and domestic yaks are unpretentious, they feed on everything that grows on mountain heights.
Yak (lat. Bos grunniens) belongs to the Bovine family (Bovidae). The name of this ruminant mammal is of Tibetan origin, while the Tibetans themselves call males "g-yak", and females - "bri". Naturally, it is possible to convey in Russian transliteration the authentic sound of these words only approximately.
Yaks are wild and domesticated. Domestic yaks differ from their wild counterparts in their much smaller size, more accommodating and phlegmatic character. They were tamed about 3-5 thousand years ago by the inhabitants of the Eastern Pamirs and Western Kunlun (China). If there are a lot of domestic yaks, then wild individuals are under the threat of complete extinction.
Currently, their population is estimated at about 15,000 animals, of which about 8,500 live in Tibet, and 3,700 and 2,500 in the Chinese provinces of Qinghai and Xinjiang.
Despite the harsh punishment that threatens to kill a wild yak, among Chinese poachers there are enough daredevils who are ready to serve several years in prison, but eat fresh artiodactyl meat. Breeding yaks in zoos is associated with great difficulties. These animals feel good at -5°C and very poorly tolerate air temperatures above 13°C.
Domestic yaks are highly valued by the inhabitants of the East for their milk, meat and skins. During the year, females give about 400 liters of milk. Its fat content is 5%, and during lactation it reaches 8.6%. The energy value of 1 kg of milk is 871 kcal, while ordinary cow's milk does not exceed 640 kcal.
When milking, the female's legs are tied to avoid industrial injuries. Only two are milked. One milker pulls the calf away from the udder, while the other tries to quickly get the precious product. The procedure is repeated several times in a row. For one milking, it is possible to get no more than 1 liter of milk, from which whipped cream and yellow butter are obtained.
Egg whites, fat and flour are used to separate butter from milk. The oil obtained in this way is stored in leather bags and can be stored for several years. It is used mainly for adding to tea and during religious ceremonies. In Nepal, soft hard cheeses are made from yak milk, as well as a local variety of yogurt, which resembles more cottage cheese than the drink we are used to.
Yak meat resembles beef, but less fat, rich in iron, zinc and carotene. Fat contains 19 mg of carotene per kilogram, which is almost 3 times more than in beef fat.
The skins of yaks are also of great value for local residents, which are used to make saddles, belts, ropes, soles for shoes and for other household purposes. Fresh skin is first soaked in water or milk, and then walk on it for 3-4 days. Industrial processing is carried out mainly in the Chinese province of Qinghai.
Domestic yaks are used as pack animals, lifting with loads from 60 to 80 kg into the mountains over 5,500 m above sea level, passing 20-30 km per day. About 12 kg of wool is obtained from one individual annually. Yak dung is a valuable fuel in mountainous areas devoid of vegetation.
However, the most important value is his tail.
With its help, local residents are able to very successfully exorcise all evil spirits, including infectious diseases, evil spirits, and excessively curious tourists.
Behavior
Wild yaks form herds of several females with their offspring. Males live alone or sometimes gather in small groups. In the short summer period, artiodactyls rise high into the mountains, where they feed on lichens and mosses. With the onset of winter, they descend into the valleys, where they feed on grass vegetation extracted from under the snow.
Yaks love to drink water, and in the absence of a watering hole, they simply eat snow. Thick shaggy wool saves them from the most severe frosts and piercing winds. They easily tolerate frosts from -30°С to -40°С. A long woolen "skirt" on the belly, like a warm blanket, helps them to lie right on the snow for a long time. Caught by a snowstorm, they become motionless croup to the wind and patiently wait for hours for better weather conditions.
Yaks love to swim, despite the cold, but they can hardly endure the heat, so all summer they are near the eternal snows. Despite their large size, they run fast with their tails held up proudly. Wild yaks are famous for their aggressiveness and ferocity. Meeting with them in the mountains can be a mortal danger for people.
reproduction
The mating season begins in September. At its beginning, males join groups of females. Quite violent clashes occur between males, in which they try to hit the enemy with their horns in the side. Having fulfilled their duty to procreate, the bulls part with the females and return to a solitary lifestyle.
Pregnancy lasts about 9 months. Calves are born in spring, when the pastures are covered with young greenery. A newborn baby almost immediately after birth gets to his feet and sucks mother's milk. For the first six months, he feeds exclusively on them, and then gradually begins to move on to plant foods. Lactation lasts about a year, so the female can bring one cub only once every two years.
In case of danger, calves hide in the center of the herd, and adult animals form a ring, pointing their deadly horns towards the aggressor. The sight and hearing of yaks are weak, so they rely entirely on their unusually highly developed sense of smell. They become sexually mature at the age of 6-8 years.
Description
The body length of adult females reaches 3.3 m, and males 4 m with a height at the withers of 1.6 and 2 m, respectively. Males weigh 800-980 kg, and females 320-365 kg. Thick and shaggy black-brown wool forms a kind of long “skirt” on the belly.
At the withers at the very back of the head there is a small hump, which is why the back is strongly sloping. The tail, about 60 cm long, is covered with long stiff hair and resembles a horse's. The head is small but massive.
Horns from the base grow to the sides, and then curve forward and upward. The neck is short and very powerful. Wide and long hooves are well adapted to moving on viscous, waterlogged soil.
The life expectancy of yaks in the wild is about 25 years.
Yak (Bos grunniens)
Class - mammals
Detachment - artiodactyls
Suborder - ruminants
Family - bovids
Subfamily - bulls
Genus - real bulls
Distinguish wild ( mutus- "mute") and domestic ( grunniens- grunting) yaks.
Appearance
The yak is a large animal with a long body, relatively short legs, wide, rounded hooves, and a heavy, low-set head. The height at the withers is up to 2 m, the weight of old bulls is up to 1000 kg. The body length of an old male is up to 4.25 m, of which 0.75 m falls on the tail. The length of the female is up to 2.8 m, height 1.6 m, weight 325-360 kg.
At the withers, the yak has a small hump, which makes the back seem sloping. The horns of both sexes are long, but not thick, widely spaced, from the base directed to the sides, and then bent forward and upward; their length is up to 95 cm, and the distance between the ends is 90 cm.
The yak is distinguished by long, shaggy hair that hangs down from the body and almost completely covers the legs. The coat is dark brown or greyish black everywhere except on the muzzle, where there are often white markings. From the winter cold, the yak is protected by a thick matted undercoat, which falls out in large shreds in spring and summer. Yak wool is widely used by the Tibetans, and it is not uncommon to see animals woven from their own hair. If on most of the body the hair is thick and even, then on the legs, sides and belly it is long and shaggy, forming a kind of continuous “skirt”, almost reaching the ground. The tail is also covered with long stiff hair and resembles that of a horse.
Distribution area
On the territory of Russia, yaks are found, in addition to zoos, in agriculture. In countries other than Tibet, it is popular with nomads in the adjacent mountainous regions of northern India, China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Nepal and Mongolia. In the Soviet Union, the domestic yak was brought to the North Caucasus, in particular to Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachayevo-Cherkessia, Dagestan, Chechen-Ingushetia and North Ossetia. The acclimatization of the yak in Armenia did not bring results.
Wild yaks cannot stand the places developed by people, and therefore quickly die out - now they live only in the highlands of Tibet at elevations of 4300-4600 m above sea level. m. in winter and up to 6100 m above sea level. m. in summer. It is found on the Tibetan plateau and in adjacent mountainous areas (Karakoram, Ladakh).
Lifestyle
They live in families of several heads or small herds of 10-12 heads, old males singly. However, as N. M. Przhevalsky, who first described the wild yak, testifies, back in the 19th century. herds of yak cows with small calves reached several hundred or even thousands of heads.
Of the sense organs, the yak has the best developed sense of smell. Vision and hearing are much weaker.
The main food in nature: grasses, mosses and lichens
reproduction
The rut of yaks is in September - October. At this time, bulls join groups of cows. Violent fights take place between the bulls, unlike the ritualized fights of most other bovids. Opponents during the fight try to hit each other with a horn in the side. The lethal outcome of these battles is rare, and the case is limited to injuries, sometimes very serious. During the rutting period, the invocative roar of the yak is heard, at other times it is exceptionally silent. Calving in yaks occurs in June, after a nine-month pregnancy. Occurs every 2 years. The calf is not separated from its mother for about a year.
At 6-8 years of age they reach sexual maturity; life expectancy is about 25 years.
The diet of yaks in the mini zoo is mainly nutritious plant foods: fresh grass, twigs, carrots and turnips, boiled potatoes, black bread, bran and oats, they add succulent food in the winter season. Often, the body of yaks lacks minerals, so salt, chalk and bone meal are added to the diet, which must be constantly stored in special feeders in the aviary.
Yak is an animal, with a long large body, small legs and round hooves. His head looks like it's hanging down. The mass of the creature is also capital - up to one and a half tons. The body can reach a length of up to 4.5 meters, of which almost a meter will fall on the tail. Thanks to the hump on the back, we can say that the animal has a sloping back.
The horns of the yak are quite long and not thick. They are directed to the sides from the beginning, and then bent. Their length is different, it can reach 95 cm. If you look at the yak, you can find a resemblance to a bull, thanks to the huge horns. One gets the feeling that nature simply took and combined several animals into one. The result was this unusual creature.
The yak has elongated hair hanging down the bottom of the body and almost covering the lower limbs. Winters are not terrible for him, thanks to the long undercoat, which is an excellent remedy for cold weather.
Interesting! The undercoat of yaks during the molting period falls out not by hairs, but by whole shreds.
The Tibetans have learned to use the wool of the animal, and on yaks you can often see a team, which is made from its own woolen frame. On the legs, abdomen and sides of the yak, the hair is slightly different from the rest.
There it forms a blanket that stretches all the way to the ground. Yak is a pet, and therefore it is operated in many places as a pack. Sometimes it is bred for slaughter.
The nature and lifestyle of the yak
Yaks can be called indigenous mountain dwellers. They are perfectly adapted to live in the mountains, in places where you can often find swamps, lakes and grassy meadows.
Creatures are able to move without problems in the mountains, and their mass does not affect the speed of movement in any way. Animals run no worse than goats (also wild). But they do not overcome the plains so quickly, any, even the slowest one, is able to overtake them.
Wild yaks can be dangerous to humans
Unlike their relatives, who are capable of roaring, lowing, or making other sounds common to the bovid family, yak grunts. For this reason, scientists have named it the corresponding title "grunting bull".
Interesting! If the yak is in an unfavorable mood, he grunts
Wildlings of the species may gather in groups of 5 together for grazing. The young are kept in greater fear of the environment, so they are in large groups.
With age, yaks move to smaller and smaller groups until they are finally left to live alone. So if you have to see a wild yak without his family, then he already has a fairly respectable age.
Tamed yaks are very common in Tibet and the Pamirs. The creatures are slightly smaller than their wildling relatives because they often interbreed with other domestic creatures, such as bulls. The locals are very accustomed to having yaks at home. For them, keeping a yak is as common as having a chicken or a pig.
The milk of the creatures is quite thick, it contains a lot of fat and protein. I often use yaks for riding. The creatures are very strong and hardy, they are able to endure the transition through the mountains with a solid weight on their backs. Not very long ago, when roads through the mountains were not built, yaks were the best mountain transport.
It is safe to say that yak - mountain animal, as he perfectly adapted to life in the mountains. The air at an altitude of 5 km in any case will be very cold, discharged, which the yaks do not seem to care about. If you take a bull or another animal from the family to such a height, it will not be able to last a long time at such a height.
Jacob has long been domesticated
The “fault” is the yak hair, which forms a kind of coverlet that reaches to the very ground. It has a lot of fluff, so that yaks are able to sleep on cold ground or even on snow. Animals independently get their own food under the snow, they spend the night only on the street and never under a roof.
When crossing yaks with other cattle, interesting hybrid creatures are obtained. They are very hardy, they have less hair. Hainyks (so-called yak hybrids) can produce a very large amount of milk or meat products. But the problem is their frequent infertility.
In the photo, a yak-hainiki hybrid
Yak food
Yaks eat in a very interesting way. They are able to get their own food on their own, getting the necessary plants from under the snow. Almost everything that grows in meadows or fields is used as food. The exceptions are, perhaps, bitter varieties of herbs that are not eaten by any other animals, even insects.
Like pets, bull yak prefers to eat cereals. Especially for its food, wheatgrass is well suited, which, like wild grass, a weed, sprouts in any place, even very difficult to grow.
Yaks with great pleasure eat astragalus, fescue, St. John's wort, sometimes, if nothing suitable grows nearby, they may reluctantly eat bastards. Zoologists have counted more than 17 types of grass that yaks eat. They feed on almost all crops that come across their eyes. Maybe that's why yaks have very good health, great strength.
Reproduction and lifespan
Most often, yaks, both wild and tame, breed, prefer in late September - early October. For domestic individuals, everything is quite simple. They are attached to herds of cows so that the males inseminate those.
Buy yaks, animals another type can be found in special reserves, where they are grown specifically for sale. In such places you can find simple bulls, cows, as well as small animals of this type. Their cost is different, but there is hardly an individual cheaper than 50,000 rubles.
Bulls at the onset of the time of insemination behave strangely aggressively. Not that they behave much differently at other times, but at the end of September they just explode. Very serious fights often take place between males, which are completely different from the simple ritual fights of other creatures of their family.
Yaks during battles strive to hit the opponent with their horns in the side in order to injure the opponent. But there are very few deaths among such fights, apparently the creatures have some sense of proportion.
But injuries for them during the breeding season are very common, sometimes these wounds are very serious. It happens so much that males practically do not get up for weeks, making some movements just to eat.
Adult male yaks live alone
When the yaks are rutting, they begin to roar. At other times, they prefer to be silent, not making a sound, only occasionally grunting. Animals calve after 9 months of pregnancy. Baby yak never leaves his mother.
Only after he is a year old does he begin to move further and further away until he begins to live completely independently. Maturity in sexual terms in yaks at 6-8 years. Creatures live no more than 25-30 years.
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