Information about Yaks

Yak
Conservation status
Vulnerable
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Genus: Bos Species: B. grunniens
Binomial name
Bos grunniens Linnaeus, 1766
Subspecies
Bos grunniens grunniens Bos grunniens mutus

The yak (Bos grunniens) is a long-haired bovine found throughout the Himalayan region of south Central Asia. In addition to a large domestic population, there is a small, vulnerable wild yak population. In Tibetan, the word yak refers only to the male of the species; a female is a dri or nak. In most languages which borrowed the word, including English, yak is usually used for both sexes.

Yaks, both domestic and wild, are herd animals. Wild yaks stand about two meters tall at the shoulder and domesticated yaks are about half that height. Both types have long shaggy hair to insulate them from the cold. Wild yaks can be either brown or black. Domesticated ones can also be white. Both males and females have horns.

Wild yaks

Wild yaks (Tibetan: drong) can weigh up to 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). They usually form groups of between 10 and 30 animals. Their habitat is treeless uplands like hills, mountains and plateaux between 3,200 m (10,500 ft) and roughly 5,400 m (18,000 ft). They eat grasses, lichens and other plants. They are insulated by dense, close, matted under-hair as well as their shaggy outer hair. [1] Yaks secrete a special sticky substance in their sweat which helps keep their under-hair matted and acts as extra insulation. This secretion is used in traditional Nepalese medicine. Many wild yaks are killed for food by the Tibetans; they are now a vulnerable species.[2]

Thubten Jigme Norbu, the elder brother of Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, reports on his journey from Kumbum in Amdo to Lhasa in 1950 that:

"Before long I was to see the vast herds of drongs with my own eyes. The sight of those beautiful and powerful beasts who from time immemorial have made their home on Tibet's high and barren plateaux never ceased to fascinate me. Somehow these shy creatures mange to sustain themselves on the stunted grass roots which is all that nature provides in those parts. And what a wonderful sight it is to see a great herd of them plunging head down in a wild gallop across the steppes. The earth shakes under their heels and a vast cloud of dust marks their passage. At nights they will protect themselves from the cold by huddling up together, with the calves in the centre. They will stand like this in a snow-storm, pressed so close together that the condensation from their breath rises into the air like a column of steam. The nomad have occasionally tried to bring up young drongs as domestic animals, but they have never entirely succeeded. Somehow once they live together with human beings they seem to lose their astonishing strength and powers of endurance; and they are no use at all as pack animals, because their backs immediately get sore. Their immemorial relationship with humans has therefore remained that of game and hunter, for their flesh is very tasty."^[1]

Domesticated yaks

Domesticated yaks are kept primarily for their milk, fiber, meat and as beasts of burden. They transport goods across mountain passes for local farmers and traders as well as in support of climbing and trekking expeditions; their dung is even burned as fuel. Yak milk is often processed to a cheese called chhurpi in Tibetan and Nepali languages, and byaslag in Mongolia. Often the pack animals are actually crossbreeds of the yak and Bos taurus (common domestic cattle). These are known in Tibetan as dzo or dzopkyo. Unlike cattle, yaks grunt rather than moo.

Yak fibers are soft and smooth, in several colors, including shades of gray, brown, black and white. The length of yak fiber is about 1.2 inches. It is combed or shed from the yak and then dehaired. The result is a splendid downy fiber that can be spun into yarn for knitting.

More recently, sports involving domesticated yaks, such as yak skiing, [Nat-han ] [ Tede-schi] or yak polo, are being marketed as tourist attractions in Central Asian countries.

In sport

In parts of Tibet, yak racing is considered a high source of entertainment at traditional Tibetan festivals.

Gallery

Yaks in Manali, India saddled for riding	A train of pack yaks at Litang monastery in Sichuan, China	Yaks still provide the best way to plow fields in Tibet.	In Tibet, yaks are decorated and honored by the families they are part of. Buddhism encourages respect for animals.

External links

• http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/2892/summ
• ARKive - images and movies of the wild yak (Bos grunniens)
• Yaks: The Bison of Tibet
• h2g2 Yaks Edited Guide Entry
• International Yak Association (IYAK)
• European Yak Association (EYAK)
• more Information about Yaks / Wildyaks

References