Takin - description, habitat, lifestyle

Takin is the most little-known large-hoofed animal. It was studied for the first time only in 1985, when it appeared in the classification of zoologists and was more or less thoroughly studied by the famous scientist George Schaller.

Description and features of takin

Its distinctive feature is golden wool, which has incredible beauty and distinguishes from all other artiodactyls. Outwardly, takin most of all resembles a moose, which has a thick coat; it belongs to the bovine family. Zoologists attribute these animals to the so-called transitional forms, which are a cross between the two species, in particular, takins are a cross between a sheep and a bull.

The takin habitat occupies the territory of north-eastern part of India, some regions of Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, the Chinese province of Sichuan, which is located in the south-eastern part of central China. Depending on the region, appearance and some features may vary. For example, the golden takin, which has a full light color, has the most beautiful coat, and the Sichuan takin is famous for its half color with golden and dark color.

Takins are mammals. By socio-sexual structure, they are polygamous, that is, they change partners and do not constitute stable marriages.

All these animals are quite large and reach a mass of 350 kilograms, the horns are most similar to buffalo, they are used to fight off predators and pose a significant danger.

Takins live in groups that consist of individuals from 30 to 130. These groups have a distribution of labor, for example, in the herd there may be a female who looks after all the calves, and the rest of the adults in this period are looking for food.

The dimensions of this beast are quite impressive and are up to a meter high at the withers. Body length varies between one and a half and two meters; females tend to be slightly smaller.

They rarely appear in front of people and prefer to go far into the mountains for many kilometers. For the most part, these animals eat green twigs and leaves, which are stripped from the bushes, and quite skillfully. For example, an adult takin (which weighs about 300 kilograms) can climb a steep slope 2-3 times higher than its height in order to get a little green.

In addition, they are quite supportive of eating grass and moss. Periodically eat bark from trees and bamboo shoots that are pulled out from under the snow. Takins need salt and other minerals, and for this they travel close to rivers full of salt water.

Population decline

In captivity, takins are quite difficult to maintain, they get used to the limited space of zoos and are quite aggressive towards people. Therefore, studying takins in captivity is also quite difficult and not particularly productive. Nevertheless, these animals must be carefully guarded and protected, since the number of such animals is extremely small.

For quite some time, takins have experienced significant pressure from people.Firstly, the natural habitat decreased due to the destruction of the territory and human settlement. Secondly, poachers quite actively hunted takines in order to get valuable wool or bring a rare individual to private zoos.

Then the Chinese acted quite reasonably and made these animals something like a national symbol and prohibited all hunting. In addition, it was in China that the largest reserves for breeding takins were opened.

Lifestyle & Habitat

Initially, these animals are inhabitants of the Asian continent and the Himalayan mountains. There they move through the snow-capped mountains, roam the forests full of bamboo and rhododendron. When the cold comes, the animals descend lower to the foot of the mountains, plains, which are located nearby, where they are looking for food.

As a rule, large herds are divided into more compact groups of about 20 individuals. Such groups are females, young males and calves.

Separately, there are older and older males that do not unite with a common herd until the mating season. When spring comes again, takins gather in a large family and go high up into the mountains.

Initially, takins are more likely to live in cold conditions, for this their body has the corresponding "options":

1. The nose perfectly warms the cold air before it reaches the lungs.
2. The undercoat is highly dense and perfectly warm.
3. All the hair of an individual is saturated with fat, and therefore does not freeze and does not get wet.
4. The skin releases a huge amount of fat, which allows you to survive any snowstorm.

Thanks to this, they can be tied to one habitat, which they follow. In fact, takins populate new lands without pleasure. They prefer to remain in the territory they have explored.

The nature of takin and reproduction

Although takins are herbivores, they can be very cruel in battles with enemies and scatter other animals for many meters to the sides with their horns, causing severe injuries. For the most part, they show courage and courage, but they can also hide. To do this, takins remain in the thickets and lie down there, disguising themselves almost to complete invisibility.

As a rule, in herds there is a fairly clear gradation between the sexes, that is, females and males are located in separate groups, but when the mating season occurs, which falls in the middle of summer, they begin to mix. Males in groups look after groups of females who, after fertilization, bear babies for seven months.

A five-kilogram baby appears in a single copy and on the third day can walk normally. This is of significant importance, since predators attack mainly takin cubs, because adults are quite dangerous. In the second week of its existence, small takins begin to eat greens, and after eight weeks they significantly increase their own diet, practically switching to an adult menu, but at the same time, without giving up breast milk.

Life expectancy averages 15 years. However, it is not always possible to reach the takins of this age, since poachers actively continue to operate in the forests in order to obtain valuable meat and wool. Also, poachers continue to supply takins to private individuals who can afford to purchase and maintain these rare animals in their own home collection.

Video: takin (Budorcas taxicolor)