Order XI Artiodactyla (Artiodactyla). The small deer is the smallest artiodactyl animal in the world The smallest artiodactyl animal

A tiny raccoon - of course, you've heard... But a tiny deer... Perhaps you need to look through zoology or watch “In the Animal World”. Or you can read... here... about little incredibly interesting and amazing little deer. Meet the Javanese kanchil... yes, yes, there are such miniature ungulates.

Small deer do not have branched antlers, but they do have impressive fangs, based on the size of the animal. The growth of the Javan kanchile, the smallest representatives of artiodactyls, found in Southeast Asia, on the islands of Kalimantan, Java and Sumatra, in India and Ceylon from 20 cm (the smallest) - small kanchile to 80 cm (the largest) - African water kanchile . Weight ranges from 1.5 kg to 5-8 kg, respectively. From the mouse, the kanchili got grayish-brown fur with an orange tint, a secretive nocturnal lifestyle and omnivorous behavior. Their small size helps them move well in dense thickets, do not “drown” in the swampy soil of the tropical forest.

Kanchili usually give birth to two young and are very territorial, i.e. are permanent “owners” of about 10 hectares of space. During the day, deer hide and sleep, and hunt at dusk and at night. The promiscuity of kanchilas in food comes down to the fact that they eat not only vegetation - mushrooms, fruits, leaves, but also small animals, from beetles to frogs and fish, which are excellently hunted in small stakes. One of the species, the African water kanchile, can even be called an “amphibious mammal”; it spends almost all its time in the water, here it hunts, escapes from predators and swims beautifully. And also... mouse deer eat... carrion. There are only 5 species of these interesting animals on the planet. And in Malay folklore, the kanchili plays the role of a cunning animal, like the Slavs - the fox.

A tiny raccoon - of course, you've heard... But a tiny deer... Perhaps you need to look through zoology or watch "In the Animal World". Or you can read... here... about little incredibly interesting and amazing little deer. Meet the Javanese kanchil... yes, yes, there are such miniature ungulates.

Small deer do not have branched antlers, but they do have impressive fangs, based on the size of the animal. The growth of the Javan kanchile, the smallest representatives of artiodactyls, found in Southeast Asia, on the islands of Kalimantan, Java and Sumatra, in India and Ceylon from 20 cm (the smallest) - small kanchile to 80 cm (the largest) - African water kanchile . Weight ranges from 1.5 kg to 5-8 kg, respectively. From the mouse, the kanchili got grayish-brown fur with an orange tint, a secretive nocturnal lifestyle and omnivorous behavior. Their small size helps them move well in dense thickets and not “drown” in the swampy soil of the tropical forest.

Kanchili usually give birth to two young and are very territorial, i.e. are permanent “owners” of about 10 hectares of space. During the day, deer hide and sleep, and hunt at dusk and at night. The promiscuity of kanchilas in food comes down to the fact that they eat not only vegetation - mushrooms, fruits, leaves, but also small animals, from beetles to frogs and fish, which are excellently hunted in small stakes. One of the species, the African water kanchile, can even be called an “amphibious mammal”; it spends almost all its time in the water, here it hunts, escapes from predators and swims beautifully. And also... mouse deer eat... carrion. There are only 5 species of these interesting animals on the planet. And in Malay folklore, the kanchili plays the role of a cunning animal, like the Slavs - the fox.

Animal Life Volume I Mammals Bram Alfred Edmund

Order XI Artiodactyla

The species-rich and diverse order of artiodactyls, widespread in all parts of the world, with the exception of Australia and New Zealand, embraces, according to Oken’s proposal, those ungulates in which we notice only 2 developed fingers or these 2 fingers are much more developed than three the rest. There are usually two large groups artiodactyls: multi-hoofed, in which, in addition to the two middle fingers, the second and fifth are developed, and two-hoofed, or ruminants, in which the last fingers have completely disappeared or are poorly developed.

The vast majority of ruminants are peaceful, shy animals that feed exclusively plant foods, sometimes very strong, tall, but not particularly mentally developed. For humans, these are the most useful animals, providing him with meat, milk, as well as material for our shoes and clothing. Therefore, man has long domesticated many of them.

In terms of organization, despite the variety of forms, ruminants are quite similar to each other. Most of them have horns, but there are also hornless ones. They distinguish by their horns bovids And dense-horned ruminants In the former (for example, in cows), the horn consists of a bone case sitting on a bone stump, which is formed on the frontal bone; Consequently, these horns are a modification of the outer skin: they are never renewed, but only become longer and thicker at the base with age. On the contrary, the antlers of dense-horned animals (for example, deer) sit on rather short elevations of the frontal bone, consist of a dense, bone-like substance and are often branched, and the number of branches increases with age. These horns fall off every year and are then replaced with new ones. In most cases, only males have dense horns, while females almost always have hollow ones.

Further, the structure of ruminant teeth is characteristic. On the lower jaw they have 6–8 incisors, most often in the form of a blade with a sharp edge, on the upper jaw - none at all or only 2; there are also often no fangs, and sometimes there are 1 on each side of the jaw; molars number 3–7 at the top and 4–6 at the bottom. Finally, let us also note the amazing structure of the stomach, consisting of 4, rarely 3, separate parts: the rumen, the sleeve, the book and the abomasum. The first of them is connected to the esophagus, and the last to the intestinal canal. The rumen accepts only roughly chewed food from the esophagus and pushes it into the sleeve in small lumps; the walls of the latter are covered with a network of folds, which somewhat grind the food, forming pellets, and the latter again enter the esophagus, then into the mouth (“burp”). In the mouth, the “regurgitated” food is thoroughly chewed by the molars, which usually have a wide chewing surface (the so-called “plant” teeth, in contrast to the sharp-toothed teeth of carnivorous animals), mixed with saliva and again entering the stomach in the form of a liquid pulp, but this time already into its third compartment, the book, from there - into the abomasum, where gastric juice is secreted. Camels and deer (Tragulus) do not have a third stomach.

Ruminants are divided into seven families: giraffes, camels, bovids, pronghorns, deer, musk deer And little deer.

Giraffes.- IN Central Africa, in a vast space from the sultry sands of the Sahara to the possessions of the free Boers, there is one very strange animal, which the Arabs call “ serapha"(sweetheart), and scientists - Camelopardalis (camel-panther). Usually it is known under the name giraffe, which is a spoiled word from the same “seraphe”.

Both names, Arabic and Latin, perfectly characterize the giraffe. Indeed, on the one hand, this is an extremely good-natured, peaceful, meek, timid animal that tries to live in peace not only with its own kind, but also with other animals. On the other hand, in the entire animal kingdom there is not a single representative with a more strange body shape. An unusually long neck, high legs, a round body with a sloping back and a beautiful head adorned with dark intelligent eyes - this is the general appearance of the giraffe, this tallest of all animals: with a length of three arshins, its body reaches three fathoms in height! This appearance fully justifies its name camel-panther. Let's say more: the giraffe, in our opinion, is a mixture of not only a camel and a panther, but also many other animals. In fact, his thick, slender body and elongated head resemble those of a horse, his broad shoulders and long neck seem to have been taken from a camel, his large mobile ears are from a bull, his light legs are from an antelope, and finally, his yellowish skin with brown spots is extremely similar to fur panthers. It is clear that a giraffe therefore cannot be called beautiful at all, especially when you see it in a narrow cage in a zoological garden. But in the vast, beautiful plains of his homeland, he seems both slender and attractive. His movements are especially beautiful when he walks calmly - then you can simply admire the direct descendant of the antediluvian Sivaterium.

Giraffe hunting is no fun. “Your hand does not raise your gun,” writes one hunter, “when you look into these gentle eyes, where you read clearly human feelings. Only once did I start chasing a herd of giraffes. One huge male, running away from a deadly shot, turned his head towards me several times and looked intently at his pursuer. His dark eyes, covered with silky eyelashes, struck me with their almost human look. Plea, reproach and some kind of bewilderment shone in this look, as if a meek animal was asking me why I wanted to kill him. I felt pity and even shame, and from then on I promised myself not to chase a cute animal for pleasure.”

Apart from humans, the giraffe has few dangerous enemies, since its long, tireless legs easily save the animal from any pursuer, and the giraffe’s sensitive hearing does not allow its enemy to attack its prey by surprise.

Giraffes feed on leaves, buds and branches of various mimosas, and their long, flexible tongue and lips remain completely insensitive to the pricks of the sharp thorns of mimosa. In captivity, giraffes behave quietly, but rarely tolerate confinement: apparently, the lack of exercise has a highly harmful effect on them.

Second family camels(Camelidae), is distinguished by calloused soles, the absence of horns, a forked upper lip and the presence of 2 incisors on the upper jaw and 6 on the lower jaw. There is no book in the stomach. Actually camels(Camelus) fall into two types: one - dromedary, or dromedary camel , inhabits mainly Africa, the other - bactrian camel- Asia.

Dromedary (Camelus dromedarius), without a doubt the most useful of all domestic animals in Africa, but at the same time it is the most inhospitable, stupid, stubborn and unpleasant creature that you can imagine. On average, it is 2–2.3 m in height and 3–3.3 m in length from the muzzle to the end of the tail, and Arabian riding camels are slender animals, while pack camels are clumsy, like water-carrying nags. The dromedary's head is rather short, while the muzzle is elongated and swollen; during excitement, a large leathery bubble of a nasty appearance, the so-called “howler”, protrudes from its mouth; then the camel begins to roar, sniffle and grind his teeth. The eyes with a dull expression are large, while the ears are very small. The upper lip hangs over the lower one, and the latter droops; When the animal moves quickly, its lips constantly shake up and down, which gives an extremely unpleasant appearance to the already ugly animal. On the back of the head there are 2 glands that sometimes secrete a liquid with a disgusting odor. On the back lies a fat hump, weighing up to 1 pound in well-fed animals, while in skinny animals it drops to 5–7 pounds. Legs - thin, long, ugly. The coat is soft, somewhat wavy, usually light sand in color, and sometimes gray, brown or black. On the chest and joints of the forelimbs on the knees there are hard calluses that serve as pillows for the animal during its rest. The incisors are quite large, like those of a horse; in addition, there are strong, strong fangs, which in the upper jaw resemble the fangs of predators.

Currently, the dromedary is known only as a domestic animal in all countries of Africa, from the Mediterranean to 12°, also in the southwest. Asia. Then, we find it in Bukhara, Persia, Asia Minor, Syria, and finally in Australia, North. America, Italy and Spain. Its original homeland, apparently, was Arabia.

Its food consists exclusively of plants, and the animal can be content with the worst food and, on occasion, happily eats an old basket or mat of date leaves. The camel willingly devours the thorny branches of mimosa, although their needles can easily pierce the sole of a boot... Of course, it also does not refuse juicy, green food (beans, grains, etc.), and then can go without water for whole weeks. With dry food, he needs water every day, although, in rare cases, these amazing animals can do without it for 7-10 days. Salt should also be given when drinking.

The gait of a camel, a rocking trot, turns into a fast run in riding animals, so that no horse can stand it. There were cases when camels ran up to 170 versts at 12 o'clock; Usually, with short rests, dromedaries can travel up to 450 versts in 3–4 days. Pack camels travel no more than 45 miles a day. A camel cannot swim.

Of the external senses, hearing and touch are the best developed, but vision seems to be weak, and the sense of smell is even less developed. By character, this is an unsympathetic animal, although, of course, good upbringing often changes it. But in general, the spiritual qualities of a camel are such that even the Arabs, generous with eloquent praise, cannot find them for it, although, in the desert, many of them could not exist without it. Meanwhile, the camel benefits humans not only as a runner and a beast of burden, but also with its meat, wool from which fabrics are spun, and even droppings used in the deserts for fuel. Therefore, its price is quite high: a good runner costs 100–150 rubles locally, and a pack runner costs 40–80 rubles. Despite its unpretentiousness, this animal still requires careful care, as it is often subject to severe pulmonary diseases; In addition, one poisonous fly in Sudan does a lot of harm to him.

Almost the same importance as the dromedary for Africa, has the Bactrian camel (C. bactrianus) for the Eastern and Central Asia, specifically steppe areas. It is distinguished by 2 humps, on the neck and in front of the sacrum. Its body is longer than that of a dromedary, its fur is longer, and its color is usually darker, most often dark brown, and reddish in summer. Both species of camel often interbreed to produce offspring, raising doubts as to whether the Bactrian camel truly constitutes a separate species.

In terms of habits and character, the Bactrian camel is similar to its brother, only somewhat more good-natured, just as hardy and unpretentious, but just as stupid, indifferent and cowardly. “It happens,” writes Przhevalsky, “that a hare jumping out from under his feet terrifies him: he rushes to the side like crazy and rushes across the steppe; his comrades, not recognizing what is happening, follow him. A large black stone on the road also scares him. If a wolf attacks him, he does not even think about defending himself. It would be easy for him to knock down such an enemy with one kick, but he just spits on him and yells at the top of his lungs. Even a crow offends this stupid animal, pecking at the wounds rubbed with packs, and he just screams...” For food, he requires mainly salt marsh plants, yantak (“camel grass”), thorns, etc. and does not feel well in good meadows. If treated well, a camel lives up to 25 years, all the time serving faithfully as a beast of burden. The weight of packs should not exceed 15–20 pounds; With this weight, the animal passes 50–70 ver. per day. In winter it endures terrible winter snowstorms, but in summer it often suffers on both hot days and cold nights. In general, caring for a Bactrian camel requires great experience and extraordinary patience, since only under these conditions is a camel a truly useful animal.

Compared to the dromedary and the Bactrian camel, the camels of the New World, the so-called llamas(Auchenia) may be called dwarfs. They belong to mountain animals. Their head is large, with a sharp muzzle, big ears and eyes, a thin neck, high legs with minor calluses and a long, wavy coat. There is no hump. The long, narrow tongue is covered with hard horny warts; there is no book in the stomach; the length of the intestine is 16 times the length of the body.

Lamas are divided into 4 individual species: guanaco, llama itself, paco, or alpaca, and vicuña. But many people consider llamas and alpacas to be only domesticated descendants of guanacos. In the wild, only the latter and vicuña are now found. All llamas live only in the high, cold countries of the Cordillera.

Guanaco, or huanaco (Auchenia huanaco), is the largest and one of the most important mammals in South America. In height it is approximately equal to a red deer, but in appearance it is a strange mixture of a sheep and a camel. The total length of the body, including the 24 cm tail, is 2.25 m, and the height at the shoulders is 1.15 m; females are smaller. The body of the guanaco is rather short and compressed, the head is long, with a blunt muzzle; long, narrow nostrils may close; the ears are equal to half the head and are very mobile; large eyes, with transverse pupils, animated; the legs are tall and slender, and there are no calluses on the joints of the front legs, like those of camels and other llamas. The coat is long, thick, wavy; consists of a short, fine undercoat and coarser long hair awn. Its color is dirty brownish-red, with dark brown spots in places, and whitish underneath. Guanacos are distributed throughout the Cordillera from the wooded islands of Tierra del Fuego to Northern Peru. They live in small herds of 12–30 on mountain pastures; They have a strange habit of releasing their droppings into one common heap, so that the Indians who use it for fuel do not need to bother collecting it.

These wild, shy animals are excellent at climbing mountains and therefore are not easy to catch unless driven into a narrow valley. Hunters usually resort to one strange means, based on the extreme curiosity of these timid animals: they lie down on the ground and begin to dangle their arms and legs, and the guanacos almost always approach to examine this strange, in their opinion, phenomenon. At this time, even gun shots do not frighten them. But more often they try to catch them alive, especially young ones, since in captivity they are very docile and pleasant; the old ones, on the contrary, try in every possible way to free themselves from the power of man and by spitting in the face prove how unpleasant he is to them. When defending themselves from enemies, guanacos defend themselves by biting and kicking, but more often they try to escape.

Lama, or rather, Lyama(Auchenia lama), found primarily in Peru and long domesticated there, is somewhat taller than the guanaco and is distinguished by calloused growths on the chest and on the front of the joint connecting the forearm to the hand. Her head is short and narrow, her lips are hairy, her ears are short; the color of the coat is different - white, black, piebald, etc. Length up to 2.8 m, with a height at the shoulders of 1.2 m. As a pack animal, the llama can easily travel along difficult mountain roads, with a load of up to 8 pounds. on your back, 25–30 versts a day. It should also be noted that only males go under packs, while females are kept for breeding.

“The caravan of these animals,” says Stephenson, “presents a very beautiful sight: the llamas walk in a large order in single file, following their leader - the front llama, who is distinguished from the others by a decorated halter, a bell and a small flag on his head. These caravans pass over the snowy peaks of the Cordillera and along steep mountain paths where horses or mules could pass with great difficulty; Moreover, the llamas are so obedient that their drivers do not use sticks or whips to drive them. From parking lot to parking lot they walk calmly, without stopping.” Tschudi adds to this that lamas constantly look around out of curiosity. According to Meyen, these animals are as important to the Peruvians as reindeer are to the Laplanders. At night the llamas are locked in a fence of stones and released during the day; They then run to the pasture without shepherds and return home in the evening. Guanacos and vicuñas often graze with them.

Llamas reproduce poorly - a female will give birth to only 1 cub per year, and even then, raging epizootics (for example, plague) greatly reduce the number of these precious animals. Llama meat is eaten everywhere willingly, but the wool is used only for coarse materials. These animals feel quite good in menageries, but they are distrustful of strangers. Their food can be ordinary hay.

The third type of group Paco, or alpaca(Auchenia pacos), smaller than a llama and somewhat similar in body structure to our sheep, but its neck is longer and its head more beautiful; its fur is long (up to 10 cm) and surprisingly soft; Indians have long made blankets and cloaks from it. Its color is most often white or black. “Alpacas,” says Tschudi, “are kept in large herds, which graze all year round in the high mountain meadows, and are driven down to the Indian huts only for the time of shearing. There is hardly an animal more stubborn than the alpaca. If one of them is separated from the herd, then she throws herself on the ground, but neither caresses nor blows will make her get up. She will endure the most painful beatings and still will never listen. Individual animals can only be made to walk when they are joined to a herd of llamas or sheep.” They tried to breed alpacas in Europe, but without success.

“More beautiful than a lama,” says the same traveler (Chudi), “ vicuna, or vigogne(Auchenia vicunia); in size it stands between the llama and the paco, but differs from both in having shorter, curly hair of remarkable fineness. On top the animal is painted a special red-yellow color (vigoni color), and on the bottom it is light yellow and partly (the belly) is white. During the rainy season, vicuñas live on the ridges of the Cordillera, where vegetation is very sparse. They always remain in grassy meadows, since their hooves are soft and sensitive, and never run when pursued over rocky bare peaks; Most of all, they avoid glaciers and snow fields. In the hot season, they descend into the valleys, where at this time there is only water and grass. The herd consists of 6-15 females and 1 male, who carefully warns them with a loud whistle about the slightest danger. All the animals then curiously turn their heads in the direction of the danger, then rush into a hasty flight. Sometimes there are herds of 20–30, consisting exclusively of males. Vicuñas are caught for their delicious meat and valuable wool using pens. To do this, they fence off a large circle with a rope, hang it with colorful rags and drive the vicunas there; timid animals never dare to pass under a rope, and it is not difficult for the hunter to kill them. As pets, vicuñas are docile and trusting; but this is only for the time being, over the years, and they, like all their relatives, become evil and constantly spit.

The third family of ruminants is formed by bovids(Bovidae), animals widely distributed throughout the earth, with the exception of South America and Australia. Between them, the person chose the most necessary domestic animals (sheep, cows, etc.). Their distinctive features are: non-falling, hollow horns and a dental system: 6 incisors and 2 tongues on the lower jaw, the absence of front teeth on the upper and 12 molars on both. The structure of the body and way of life are so diverse that it is impossible to say anything general in this regard. Bovids are divided into goats, rams, bulls, American mountain goats and antelopes.

The stocky, strong body of the goats (Capra) rests on strong legs; the neck is short; the head is also relatively short, but wide in the frontal part, the eyes are large and lively; ears are erect and mobile. Quadrangular, rounded at the edges and compressed at the sides, the horns have clear rings corresponding to annual increments and are swollen on the outside; Both sexes have them, only females have fewer. The fur consists of a fine undercoat and coarser outer coats. Its color is more or less dark, matching the color of the rocks. As a distinguishing feature, one must also point out the unpleasant, “goat” smell emitted by these animals.

Wild goats are found in Central and South Asia, Europe and North Africa, while domesticated animals of this species are distributed throughout the world. All wild goats in general are inhabitants of the mountains, and many of them rise beyond the border of eternal snow. They live in herds, led by brave males. Staying among the rocks and cliffs developed in them remarkable courage, agility in jumping and climbing, endurance and strength, as well as acute senses: goats see, hear and smell very well. Mentally, they are distinguished by courage, sometimes combined with malice and cunning. In wild species, no more than 2 cubs will be born, while in domestic ones - no more than 4. The kids are born very developed, with open eyes, and a few minutes after birth they are already running after their mother. Three kinds of goats - Capricorn and, actually goats And half-goats.

The typical and strongest representative of the entire group of goats, the ibex (Ibex), lives at such a height in the mountains where other large mammals could not exist. Only in the most severe cold does it descend into lower hollows; in general, it grazes on inaccessible peaks all year round. There are several types of ibex, namely, alpine ibex(Capra ibex), living in the Alps; Pyrenean k. (Capra pyrenaica) in the Spanish Mountains, tour(Capra caucasica), found in the Caucasus, poor(S. beden) - in Arabia, get out(S. walie) - in Abyssinia and skyne(S. skyn), - in the Himalayas. But since they are all similar to each other, differing only in the beard and horns, many consider them to be one species.

Alpine ibex, once widespread in Europe, and now extremely rare, a proud, slender and prominent animal, with a body of 1.6 m in length, up to 85 cm in height and up to 6 pounds. weight. Its strong strong horns reach a length of 11/2 arches, with 30–35 pounds. weight; the female has much less. The fur, rather coarse and thick, is reddish-gray in summer, and yellowish-gray or roan in winter. No other ruminant seems to be able to live on such steep and high mountains. “What bold and fast jumps ibex make from one cliff to another,” says Gesner, “it’s hard to even believe. Where there is even the slightest point of support for his split and sharp hooves, there he sees no obstacles to reaching any cliff in a few leaps, no matter how high it is and no matter how far from another rock.” Indeed, the Capricorn runs quickly and tirelessly, climbs mountains with amazing agility and climbs the steepest cliffs with incredible speed.

Animals kept in captivity arouse no less interest than those living in freedom. One day in Bern, a young ibex jumped up on the head of an adult man without a run and held it firmly with all four hooves. Another was seen standing with all his feet on the top of a pillar; It also happened to see how capricorns climbed a steep wall, having no other points of support other than the ledges formed by the collapsed plaster.

Capricorns, caught young, soon become tame, but as they grow older, they lose this quality, turning into angry, stubborn animals. The offspring from a wild ibex and a domestic goat are of the same nature. Therefore, experiments in breeding them always ended in failure: it was necessary to slaughter all such offspring, otherwise there would be no luck with these animals.

Iberian ibex- the size of an Alpine, but has more twisted horns. The predominant color is light brown, mixed with black hair in some parts of the body and white (bottom, back). Like its alpine brother, this animal is now rapidly disappearing due to increased persecution by hunters.

Goats(Hircus), in the strict sense of the word, is in general a little smaller than Capricorns; their horns are flattened, in males they are sharper and equipped with transverse tubercles, in females they are ringed or wrinkled. In all other respects, goats are similar to capricorns.

The origin of the domestic goat, like other domestic animals, has not yet been clarified.

Many consider him a descendant bezoar, or wild goat(C. aegagrus), common in Asia Minor, Persia and Afghanistan, on the island of Crete, etc. This goat is 1.5 m long, with a height at the neck of 95 cm; large, strong horns reach 40–80 cm in length. The general color is light reddish-gray or rusty-brownish-yellow. In terms of lifestyle, disposition and character, it vividly resembles a Capricorn. Its meat is tender, soft, its fur is used for prayer rugs (among Muslims), and its horns are used for saber hilts, powder flasks, etc.

Then, we must also mention goat(C. falconheri), the size of an Alpine ibex. It is distinguished by heavy, spirally twisted horns and elongated hair at the front, taking the form of a mane; in older males, the hair often hangs down to the feet. The general color is light roan in summer, while the beard is dark brown; in winter the fur is lighter. This species is found in the Western Himalayas and Afghanistan.

As for, finally, the breeds of domestic goats, there are so many of them that it is impossible to describe them. One of the most noble - angora goat(C. hircus angorensis) with long horns and luxurious, long thin, soft, shiny, silky, curly fur, for which it is bred in Anatolia (Asia Minor). This breed got its name from the small Anatolian town of Angora, which was known to the ancients. The Angora goat needs clean, dry air. During the summer in Anatolia, the fleece is washed and carded several times a month to maintain its beauty and promote better growth. Apparently this valuable breed can be perfectly bred in Spain, Algeria, as well as in the Cape Colony. Experiments have already been carried out and given brilliant results, so in the Cape Colony this matter is being taken on a grand scale.

Almost as precious Kashmir goat(C. h. laniger), a rather small but very slender animal, up to 1.5 m in length, with a shoulder height of 60 cm, with hanging ears, slightly longer than half the head, and helical horns. Found from Tibet to the Kyrgyz steppes, delivering soft, delicate fluff. This species has now been bred in France and Russia, in the Orenburg steppes: in last place They prepare very light and thin “Orenburg” scarves.

Similar to Kashmiri in its long-haired fur Mambrian goat(C. h. mambrica), from Syria, but is distinguished by its ears 11/2 times longer than the head. Finally, let us also mention Nile goat(C. h. aegyptica), with smooth, even, bright red-brown fur, bred in the lower Nile Valley, and dwarf goat(C. h. reversa), no more than 70 cm in length at 50 cm in height and about 11/2 pounds in weight. Short, thick fur is dark in color, dominated by mixed black and reddish roan colors with white spots. Found between the White Nile and Niger.

All goats are created for the mountains, and the steeper, more secluded and inaccessible the mountain, the better they feel there. By nature, a goat is a playful, cheerful, curious, perky creature that can bring a lot of pleasure to the observer. “Already a two-week-old goat,” says Lenz, “shows a great desire for amazing jumps and dares to take on all sorts of dangerous climbs. Instinct attracts her to high objects - and her greatest pleasure is to climb a pile of firewood, climb walls, stairs, etc. The goat, on the contrary, shows importance and dignity, which does not prevent him, however, from missing a single opportunity fight. These animals easily become attached to a person and, when treated kindly, willingly learn various tricks from him. In the mountains of Spain, goats are kept, thanks to their intelligence, as guides for sheep flocks, and the shepherds completely rely on these leaders. Almost everywhere goats are left to their own free will and only in some places are they driven home in the evenings for protection from predatory animals. Often in Africa, such goats climb trees and calmly pluck tender shoots. The dwarf goat shows particular dexterity in this regard, for which an obliquely inclined trunk is enough to climb along it to the very top.

In addition to the Old World, domestic goats are now common in the New World, even in Australia; To explain such widespread prevalence, it should be noted that keeping goats is generally extremely cheap, yet the benefits are great: in addition to wool, a good goat can produce up to 1200 bottles. milk per year.

Group representative half-goats(Hemitragus) believe container(C. jemlaica), a beautiful, tall, beardless animal, found along the peaks of the Himalayan mountains, up to 1.8 m in length with 87 cm in height at the neck. Its neck, front thighs and hind sides are covered with a long (up to 30 cm) mane; the general color is whitish-roan-brown, with dark spots. By character and habits, this is a real goat. When caught young, tahrs soon turn into real pets.

Second group rams(Ovis), in body structure they are similar to goats, but in character only wild species bear some resemblance to goats. In general, rams differ from goats in the presence of lacrimal pits, a flat forehead, angular, almost triangular, spirally twisted horns with transverse folds and the absence of a beard. Wild sheep live on the mountains of the northern hemisphere (from Asia to southern Europe and Africa and in North America). Their food consists of fresh grass in summer and moss, lichens and dry grass in winter. Like a goat, a wild ram is also agile, playful, dexterous, brave, intelligent and perky; on the contrary, the domestic one represents a stupid creature, cowardly running away from the last mongrel. A whole herd, frightened by some harmless animal, blindly rushes after its leader, not paying attention to whether it falls into a bottomless abyss or a noisy stream. In general, domestic sheep are meek, peace-loving and indifferent even to their own children, while wild ones desperately protect their young from any enemy. Females give birth to 1–4 young, which soon after birth are able to follow their parents. In contrast to wild goats, wild sheep are easily tamed and, breeding in captivity, soon turn into real domestic animals.

From wild sheep maned ram(Ovistragelaphus) most closely resembles goats in appearance, as well as in the absence of lacrimal fossae. The long mane, as well as large, expressive eyes, thanks to their bronze-colored iris, from which the standing pupil prominently protrudes across, give this animal a remarkable appearance. Its general color is roan-red-brown. Length up to 1.9 m, including a 25 cm tail, height up to 1 m, horns up to 70 cm long, for a sheep - 40. Found in the Atlas Mountains, Upper Nile and Abyssinia, preferring the highest cornices of the mountains, which can only be penetrated through a whole labyrinth of rock fragments and piled boulders. As a result, hunting him is extremely difficult and dangerous. Found mostly singly.

Two degrees north of the maned ram, precisely on the mountains of Sardinia and Corsica, lives mouflon(Ovis musimon), the only wild sheep found in Europe. Its length reaches 1.25 m, including a 10 cm tail, with a height of 70 cm and a weight of 21/2-3 pounds. Antlers are up to 65 cm long and weigh 10–12 lbs. Quite short and thick fur, with the exception of the chest, where a kind of mane is formed, has a red-red color, which turns into ash-gray on the head, and white on the stomach. In winter, the fur takes on a chestnut-brown color. In contrast to the maned ram, the mouflon lives in herds, led by strong males; This animal is very timid and at the same time agile and dexterous; like goats, it climbs the most inaccessible rocks, so hunting for it is not easy. In captivity, mouflons caught young soon become tame and readily interbreed with domestic sheep. Even old sheep easily endure the loss of freedom, but remain wild and timid.

In Central Asia and North. America is home to the most large breeds wild sheep, distinguished by strong horns and high legs. That's how argali Mongols, or arcar Kirghiz (Ovis argali), reaching a length of 1.93 m, with a height of 1.12 m, with powerful triangular wide horns of 1.22 m. The predominant coat color is matte pale gray, darkening on the face and belly. Its distribution area extends from the mountains of the Akmola district to the southeastern slope of the Mongolian plateau and from Altai to Alatau. These rams roam singly or in small parties of 3–5 heads. Early in the morning they leave their inaccessible rocks, where they spend the night, and go down to the foot of the mountains, to pasture, then at noon they climb the steep slopes and indulge in peace, and before evening they go down again to a watering hole. In winter they are content with moss, lichen and dry grass. In terms of the acuity of feelings, liveliness of character, agility, timidity and caution, the argali resembles wild goats, but its character is more peaceful; he gets along easily in captivity and, without a doubt, can become quite a domestic animal.

Further to the south, in the Tien Shan region, in Tibet, in the Pamirs, etc., argali is replaced by another species, kachkar(Ovis polii), reaching a length of almost 1 fathom, with a height of 11/2 arches. and weighs about 14 pounds. Triangular, deeply curled down horns - up to 2 arsh. along the bend. The Mongols claim that they grow so large that they protrude in front of the animal’s mouth, preventing it from taking food, and such a ram is doomed to starvation. Gray or light brown fur forms a kind of mane around the neck, up to 13 cm in length; the muzzle and lower body are white. In terms of lifestyle, the kachkar is similar to the argali.

The wild sheep living in Kamchatka is often considered similar to the American bighorn ram(Ovis montana), meanwhile, it differs from the latter in its horns, although similar, but noticeably less developed. The bighorn sheep lives from 68° N latitude. up to 40° in the rocky mountains and further in the west, in the wildest and most inaccessible mountains. For him, the narrowest rock ledges turn out to be safe roads; caves and grottoes provide him with shelter, grass provides him with suitable food, and places with salt serve to satisfy the needs inherent in all animals in general. The length of the ram is almost 1 fathom, counting 12 cm on the tail, with a height of 11/2 arsh. and weighing 8 pounds; females are smaller. Thick, powerful horns are up to 70 cm in length, with a girth of 35; in cross-section they present sharp ribs, whereas argali has a flatter appearance. The thick, although soft to the touch, wool is not at all like sheep's fleece, slightly wavy; hair no more than 5 cm in length. The predominant color is dirty gray-brown; the back is white. In their way of life, bighorn rams do not differ in any significant way from their relatives and even ibex: they run just as well on rocks, are just as careful, timid and, like others wild sheep, easily interbreed with domestic sheep, producing fertile offspring.

Regarding the breeds of domestic sheep, we have to say the same as about domestic goats: their forefather is also unknown, and there are also many breeds. The most important and most profitable breed is considered merino(O. aries hispanica), which, as is known, acquired their features and served to refine almost all European breeds. They are of medium size, densely built and are distinguished by a large, flat-fronted and hook-nosed head, with a blunt muzzle, small eyes and large lacrimal fossae; ears - medium size, pointed; strong horns (only on rams) are curved with a double screw; the neck is short, thick, with deep folds and a dewlap; legs - relatively low, but strong and strong, with blunt hooves; An extremely thick fleece, consisting of a short, soft and thin spine, curls very regularly.

Then, we must also mention fat tail; or fat-tailed, sheep(O. aries steatopyga), which is bred in countless numbers in Inner Asia and Northeast Africa. It is a fairly large animal, with small horns, uncurled, coarse fleece that cannot be woven, and plump ears. Lambs are covered with delicate, soft fur. In Africa this name is found mainly. black-headed sheep with small horns; in Turkmenistan and the Kyrgyz steppes there are other, hornless breeds. The tail tail of Turkmen breeds is not particularly developed; their favorite pasture is salt marshes, and yet these sheep produce excellent meat, and young lambs produce beautiful, expensive fur (“merlushka”). Mainly white and black sheep are bred. The Kyrgyz sheep is tall, densely built, with rather high legs, a convex nose and drooping ears; its weight is up to 5 pounds. Its coarse wool is used for felt felt, which is widely used in the life of the Kyrgyz.

A domestic sheep is generally a calm, patient, meek, will-less, cowardly animal that would completely disappear if people did not come to its aid. Every unknown sound scares the whole herd; lightning, thunder, storm and thunderstorm completely deprive them of their presence of mind. Because of this, in the steppes of Russia and Asia, shepherds have to endure a lot with such animals. Here is the story of one shepherd who conveyed to Kolya the disasters he experienced with his flock of sheep during a snowstorm.

“We grazed our own herd of 2,000 sheep and 150 goats in the steppes near Ochakov. The first time we turned the herd out was in March; when the young grass appeared, the weather was good; but in the evening it began to rain and a cold wind rose, and a few hours later, after sunset, a real blizzard, so we stopped seeing and hearing. The sheepfolds and dwellings were not far from us, we began to drive the herd there, but the wind drove the maddened animals into reverse side. Then it occurred to us to turn around the goats, which the herd was accustomed to follow, but even they did not obey us; and the sheep crowded together, crushed each other and moved further and further away from the dwelling. When morning came, we could no longer see anything around us except snow and a dark, stormy desert. The mad storm continued, and we had to surrender to the mercy of fate: we ourselves walked at the head, behind us was a bleating and screaming heap of sheep, then trotting bulls with a cart loaded with supplies, followed by a pack of our howling dogs. That day our goats disappeared, and the path was littered with dead animals. Another painful night has arrived. We knew that the storm was driving us right onto a steep cliff of the seashore, and we fearfully expected that we were about to fall off it along with the stupid herd. Finally, as daylight approached, we noticed several houses off to the side through the snowy fog. They were only about 30 steps away from us, but the maddened sheep did not pay attention to this and continued to move in the direction of the wind, covering the path with their corpses. Fortunately, the barking of our dogs attracted the attention of the inhabitants of the houses - they were colonists. They rushed towards our sheep, dragged the leading ones and little by little directed the herd to their homes. But then another misfortune appeared: as soon as the animals noticed the protection that the courtyards and heaps of straw provided them, they began to crowd madly, crushing each other and crowding together, as if the evil spirit of the storm was still chasing them. We lost up to 500 sheep then..."

Sheep in the village behave in exactly the same way during severe thunderstorms, during floods or fires. During a thunderstorm, they crowd together and cannot be moved. “If lightning strikes a herd,” writes Lenz, “then many die immediately; if a sheepfold catches fire, the sheep do not run out of it or even rush directly into the fire.”

These facts characterize the sheep in many ways. Of course, she is not devoid of some mental abilities: she knows her master, follows his call, apparently loves the shepherds playing horns, but still she is far from a smart, lively goat.

In Europe (in the north and south) sheep are pursued by wolves, in Asia, Africa and America - by wild cats and wild dogs, in Australia - by large marsupial predators. Eagles and lambs are dangerous to lambs. But sheep, which are least protected from enemies, are little susceptible to disease, which balances out the losses among them. Sheep live up to 14 years, but at the age of 8–9 they lose all their teeth and must be slaughtered.

In the far north, in those bleak countries where the ground thaws a little on the surface only in summer, where moss and lichen tundras stretch widely, another ruminant wanders next to the reindeer - muskox, or musk ox (Ovibos moschatus), once common in Northern Europe and Asia, and now found only in Northern. America and nearby polar islands, starting from 60° N. latitude. and further north. This strange animal, up to 2.44 m long, including a 7 cm tail, with a height of 1.1 m, combines the characteristics of sheep and bulls. A short tail, the absence of a dewlap and bare spots on the face and multiple hooves make it look like a sheep, while its size, strength and courage are like those of bulls. The strong body, resting on short, strong legs, is covered with unusually thick fur, as are the upper parts of the muzzle and legs. Quite thick awn hair forms a mane on the chest, almost reaching the ground, and on the sides, especially in the back, it goes down to the hooves in the form of a long fringe. The mane is smooth, the rest of the fur is wavy. In addition to the muzzle and legs, abundant undercoat is noticeable between the awns. The general color of the fur is dark brown, in places it is light gray. Sheep are found in herds of several dozen heads and, despite their clumsy figure, they move with the agility of antelopes. Like goats, they climb rocks, climb steep walls without any effort, and look down from a height without dizziness. “In 3–4 minutes,” says Copeland, “the musk oxen we were pursuing climbed up a steep basalt rock to a height of 150 m, and it took us at least half an hour...”

As for the mental abilities and sharpness of external senses of this animal, one can hardly doubt their poor development: small eyes with a dull expression do not indicate special development of vision, ears almost hidden in the fur also show little evidence of the subtlety of hearing. On the contrary, the sense of smell, taste and touch are hardly less developed than in bulls. Mental capacity also not particularly developed, although not at all as weak as they said before. The fact is that while the musk ox still knows little about the deadly power of human weapons, it reveals, like many other wild animals, curiosity and partly embarrassment. There were cases when an entire herd of musk oxen allowed themselves to be shot to the last. But, having recognized a dangerous enemy in a person, the musk ox became extremely timid, and the wounded musk ox becomes completely furious; then the person is in serious danger from his terrible horns, especially since a bullet to the forehead does not hit him, but only flattens into a cake.

They hunt musk oxen for their meat and wool. The latter is so thin that excellent fabrics could be made from it; Eskimos use the tails to make fly fans, and the leather makes good shoes.

group bulls(Bovinae), now widespread thanks to man in all parts globe, are large, strong, clumsy ruminants, having more or less round and smooth horns, a wide muzzle with nostrils far apart from one another, a long tail reaching the heel joint, with a brush at the end, and often a drooping dewlap. There are no lacrimal fossae; udder in females with 4 nipples, bones are rough and thick. All bulls seem clumsy, but in reality they are very agile and dexterous; Everyone swims well, those who live on the mountains climb well. By nature, they are mostly meek and trusting, but when they become irritated, they do not know mercy. Females are especially protective of their young. All species can be tamed and willingly submit to humans, who are served with meat, milk, even wool and dung.

One of the wildest and strongest bulls - yak(Bos grunniens), or long-haired, otherwise Mongolian, bull, inhabiting the highlands of Mongolia, Tibet and Turkestan. It is one of the strangest animals not only in Asia, but, perhaps, in the entire Old World. To begin with, it is found only at desperate heights, where it is difficult for a llama, and not just an ordinary animal, to climb. Below 8,000 feet above sea level he already feels unwell; his usual favorite range of distribution lies between this height and 20,000 feet!! What can he find there except eternal snow, ice and - occasionally - lichens and mosses?! We must also remember that at these altitudes the air pressure is half that at sea level. Even a bird can hardly live under such conditions, and yet the yak, such a large mammal - its length reaches a fathom - not only does not suffer here, but, on the contrary, suffers when it is forced by force to descend from these heights.

This strange property of the yak is fully consistent with the unusual appearance of the animal: it is some kind of unimaginable mixture of bison, bull, horse, goat and ram. The beautiful, round shape and bushy tail strongly resemble a horse; by its long hair, which sometimes drags along the ground, it looks like a goat and a ram; the head, decorated with two strong, sickle-shaped horns, is that of a bull, and the strong, muscular body seems to have been taken from a buffalo or bison. Thick fur covers his head, shoulders, scruff, sides, hips and top part legs in the form of long, hard, shaggy hair, usually black. On the tail, the hair is especially lengthened (up to 2–3 feet) and forms a soft fan.

To complement the characteristics of this animal, it remains to mention the voice, which also just matches the strange appearance of the yak: it is not the bleating of a sheep, not the mooing of a bull, not the neighing of a horse, but something like the grunting of a pig, but muffled and more monotonous.