Until the sixteenth century, 12 species of wild cattle were distributed across Asia, Europe, Africa and North America. Today, there remain only 10 species that are restricted to tiny, fragmented populations in a few countries. Increasing human populations have encroached upon wild cattle habitat and all extant species are threatened by human activities. Hunting and illegal trade are the most common and potentially severe threats. Unfortunately, the ecological characteristics of these species, which typically include a slow growth rate, delayed maturity and low fecundity, are all factors which exacerbate the threats they face by limiting their ability to recover from the more serious dangers posed by human exploitation.

Today, near all species of wild cattle are listed in the IUCN Red Data Book. The ancestor of most of the domestic cows, the Auroch (Bos primigenus) was extinct by 1627. The Kouprey (Bos sauveli) has not been seen in the dry dipterocarp forests of Indochina since the 1980s and is considered extinct. The wild water buffalo (Bubalus arnee) is isolated in fragmented small populations in Asia that persist at non-viable levels. Read more...

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