Modern cattle, Bos primigenius taurus and indicus, evolved from a massive wild ancestor that roamed much of Asia, North Africa, and Europe. It, along with goats and chickens (from junglefowl) was one of the earliest domesticated animals. Below is a brief history of modern cattle, which result from humans' selectively breeding their ancestors.
Aurochs, the Ancestor of the Modern Cow
Aurochs (Bos primigenious) were naturally found in the wilds of Central Asia, North Africa, and Europe. They were massive cattle, that averaged about 6 feet at the shoulder, weighed over one ton, and had horns that were nearly seven inches in diameter at their bases. Two subspecies roamed the wild, one of which, found in Africa, Europe, and West Asia (the European aurochs) was without a hump, and the other, from Central Asia, the zebu, had a large hump on its back.
The European aurochs was domesticated in the fertile Middle East around 8000 BCE, and the zebu was probably domesticated in Central Asia around the same time. North Africa domesticated the European version some time later.
Cattle History: the Aurochs Becomes the Modern Cow
Throughout its locations of domestication, selective breeding of the aurochs for dairy purposes began millennia ago. At first it was used primarily as a beast of burden, but around 3000 BCE, Mesopotamia had developed the European dairy cow, an aurochs that had been bred into the ultimate supplier of milk over the years. Because of its lifestyle after domestication, this branch of aurochs was not able to graze as much as its wild relatives, and its body size decreased significantly and rapidly. The European dairy cow has branched out to become all western, modern dairy cows, such as the Jersey, the Brown Swiss, the Holstein, the Milking Shorthorn, the Guernsey, and the Airshire, and in addition to these, the European aurochs is the ancestor of all other modern cattle, excluding zebu cattle, the former of which are known as taurine cattle. These humpless bovines are loosely called Bos primigenious taurus.
The original zebu, the Asian aurochs, was domesticated around the same time as the European aurochs, but its utility since domestication has been more universal: zebu have been used for thousands of years in Central India for their strength, which has often been their prime utility. Although some types have been used for dairy production, zebu have been oxen, ploughing and acting as pack animals for much longer, resulting also in the smaller size of modern zebu (common types of which include brahman cattle), due to their inability to be full time grazers since domestication. Modern humped zebu, now used for dairy purposes, meat, skins, and for other reasons, in addition to the hard labor that they can perform, have been brought to tropical regions across the globe. They are scientifically classified as Bos primigenious indicus.
Cattle History: Aurochs Dies as Modern Cow Thrives
Wild aurochs had been on the decline for well over one thousand years before they went completely extinct nearly 400 years ago. Habitat loss, diseases passed to them by modern cattle from which they were not immune, and hunting, which was eventually outlawed but too late, led to the downfall of the massive beast throughout its range. Now, all that is left is the essence of the aurochs, present in the smaller modern cattle which are found domesticated virtually worldwide.
Although the aurochs is lost, the modern cow is the direct result of the impacts of selective breeding and domestication on a wild animal. It may take many generations, but scientists are considering an attempt to bring back, or recreate the aurochs from modern cattle, using back-breeding, a process in which races of cows most similar to the ancient bovine are bred together, and selectively bred for size to create replicas of their tremendous ancestors.
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References:
McGee, H. On Food and Cooking. Scribner, New York, 2004
Faris, Stephan. Breeding Ancient Cattle Back from Extinction. TIME, 12 Feb. 2010
Thomas Wyatt - Tom Wyatt grew up in Virginia. He has been interested in the outdoors (fishing, birding, camping, and other such activities) since he was ...
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