Cow

Description

The cow is a very large ruminant with a short and wide neck from which hangs the dewlap. The long and mobile tail has a tuft of black hair at the tip, which it uses to swat away the flies. It has no teeth on the upper gum, an evolution that, together with a long, flexible and rough tongue, allows it to feed on grass and pasture. There are many different sizes and colours, depending on the type of purpose for which they are bred. 

Behaviour

The cow is a gregarious species that will follow a dominant cow within the herd. They communicate with each other through the release of pheromones: when a female is in heat, other females will try to mount her, which helps farmers identify which of the females are ready to be inseminated. Each animal is also able to emit a distinct mooing sound, which allows them to identify each other individually.

Interesting facts

They were first domesticated 10,000 years ago in the Middle East when nomadic tribes decided to settle and take care of these animals on farms and use them as food. In addition, when a male was castrated, it would develop extraordinary strength; humans took advantage of this to use the animal to pull ploughs and plough the earth. Currently, this species is mainly used for the production of meat and milk.