Gaur (Bos Gaurus)

Gaur (Bos Gaurus) is on top of my favorite animals. The largest Bovine in the world, males can weigh in excess of 1.5 tons. Standing at 6 feet in height with huge horns, they pose a pretty impressive picture.

Wrongly referred as the bison, the gaur is a pretty common sight in the jungles of India. Males and females can be found as solitary animals also. More commonly sighted during the early morning hours and late evenings, the gaur is normally a docile animal, though when enraged or disturbed can be very dangerous.

Saw this fellow at Bandipur when tracking a tiger. This fellow had one horn, the other broken presumably in a fight with another male. We were on a slight incline when I took this photograph. As our jeep neared him, its rattling noise spoofed him. In a jiffy he was sprinting. These heavy animals can run very fast when required. His ripping muscles shining was something I wanted to get and had to shoot without any adjustments on the camera settings. No regrets.