Indian Aurochs: Sivatherium Sivatherium ('Shiva's Beast) ' Is An Extinct Genus of Giraffid That Ranged Throughout

Indian Aurochs
The aurochs or urus (Bos primigenius), the ancestor of domestic cattle, was a
type of huge wild cattle which inhabited Europe, Asia and North Africa, but is now
extinct; it survived in Europe until 1627.
The aurochs was far larger than most modern domestic cattle with a shoulder
height of 2 meters (6.6 ft) and weighing 1,000 kilograms (2,200 lb). Domestication
occurred in several parts of the world at roughly the same time, about 8,000 years
ago. It was regarded as a challenging quarry animal, contributing to its extinction.
The last recorded live aurochs, a female, died in 1627 in the Jaktorów Forest,
Poland and its skull is now the property of Livrustkammaren in Stockholm.
Aurochs appear in prehistoric cave paintings, Julius Caesar's The Gallic War and
as the national symbol of many European countries, states and cities such as Alba-
Iulia, Kaunas, Romania, Moldavia, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Uri.
In 1920, German biologists the Heck brothers attempted to recreate aurochs. The
resulting cattle are known as Heck cattle or Reconstructed Aurochs, and number in
the thousands in Europe today with varying resemblance to original aurochs but
without such impressive size.
Sivatherium
Sivatherium ('Shiva's beast)' is an extinct genus of giraffid that ranged throughout

Africa to Southern Asia (mostly India). The African species, S. maurusium, was
once placed within the genus "Libytherium." It may have become extinct as
recently as 8,000 years ago, as depictions of it are known from ancient rock
paintings in the Sahara desert.
Straight-tusked Elephant
The Straight-tusked Elephant (Elephas (Palaeoloxodon) antiquus or

Palaeoloxodon antiquus) is an extinct species of elephant closely related to the
living Asian Elephant. It inhabited Europe during the Middle and Late Pleistocene
(781,000–50,000 years before present). Some experts regard the smaller Asian
species E. namadicus, as a variant or subspecies of this one.
Illustration of Palaeoloxodon antiquus.
The creature was 3.90 m (12 ft) tall and had long, slightly upward-curving tusks.
E. antiquus's legs were slightly longer than those of modern elephants. It is
suggested that this elephant had an 80 cm long tongue that could be projected a
short distance from the mouth to grasp leaves and grasses. With this tongue along
with a flexible trunk, straight-tusked elephants could graze or browse on
Pleistocene foliage about 8 meters above ground.
Sumatran Rhinoceros
The Sumatran Rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) is a member of the family

Rhinocerotidae and one of five extant rhinoceroses. It is the only extant species of
the genus Dicerorhinus. It is the smallest rhinoceros, standing about 120–
145 centimetres (3.9–4.8 ft) high at the shoulder, with a body length of
250 centimetres (98 in) and weight of 500–800 kilograms (1100–1760 lb). Like the
African species, it has two horns; the larger is the nasal horn, typically 15–
25 centimetres (6–10 in), while the other horn is typically a stub. A coat of reddish-
brown hair covers most of the Sumatran Rhino's body.
Pink-headed Duck
The Pink-headed Duck (Rhodonessa caryophyllacea) is (or was) a large diving

duck that was once found in parts of the Gangetic plains of India, Bangladesh and
in the riverine swamps of Myanmar but feared extinct since the 1950s. Numerous
searches have failed to provide any proof of continued existence. It has been
suggested that it may exist in the inaccessible swamp regions of northern Myanmar
and some sight reports from that region have led to its status being declared as
"critically endangered" rather than extinct. The genus placement has been disputed
and while some have suggested that it is close to the pochards, particularly Netta
rufina, others have placed it in a separate genus of its own. It is somewhat unique
in the pink colouration of the head combined with a dark body. A prominent wing
patch and the long slender neck are features shared with the common Indian Spot-
billed Duck. The eggs have also been held as particularly peculiar in being nearly
spherical.
Asiatic Cheetah
The Asiatic Cheetah ("cheetah" from Hindi चीता cītā, derived from Sanskrit word
chitraka meaning "speckled") (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus) is now also known as
the Iranian Cheetah, as the world's last few are known to survive mostly in Iran.
Although recently presumed to be extinct in India, it is also known as the Indian
Cheetah. During British colonial times in India it was famous by the name of
Hunting-Leopard, a name derived from the ones that were kept in captivity in
large numbers by the Indian royalty to hunt wild antelopes with.
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or group of taxa. The
moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual
of that species (although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost
before this point). Because a species' potential range may be very large,
determining this moment is difficult, and is usually done retrospectively. This
difficulty leads to phenomena such as Lazarus taxa, where a species presumed
extinct abruptly "re-appears" (typically in the fossil record) after a period of
apparent absence.
Through evolution, new species arise through the process of speciation—where

new varieties of organisms arise and thrive when they are able to find and exploit
an ecological niche—and species become extinct when they are no longer able to
survive in changing conditions or against superior competition. A typical species
becomes extinct within 10 million years of its first appearance, although some
species, called living fossils, survive virtually unchanged for hundreds of millions
of years. Extinction, though, is usually a natural phenomenon; it is estimated that
99.9% of all species that have ever lived are now extinct.
Mass extinctions are relatively rare events; however, isolated extinctions are quite
common. Only recently have extinctions been recorded and scientists have become
alarmed at the high rates of recent extinctions. It is estimated most species that go
extinct have never been documented by scientists. Some scientists estimate that up
to half of presently existing species may become extinct by 2100.
Large-billed Reed-warbler
The Large-billed Reed-warbler (Acrocephalus orinus) is an Old World warbler

in the genus Acrocephalus. The species has been dubbed as "the world's least
known bird". It was known from a single specimen collected in India in 1867 and
rediscovered in the wild in Thailand in 2006. The identity of the bird caught in
Thailand was established by matching DNA sequences extracted from feathers; the
bird was released. After the rediscovery in the wild a second specimen was
discovered amid Acrocephalus dumetorum specimens in the collections of the
Natural History Museum at Tring. A breeding area was found in Afghanistan in
2009.
Jerdon's Courser
The Jerdon's Courser (Rhinoptilus bitorquatus) is a nocturnal bird belonging to

the pratincole and courser family Glareolidae endemic to India. The bird was
discovered by the surgeon-naturalist Thomas C. Jerdon in 1848 but not seen again
until its rediscovery in 1986. This courser is a restricted-range endemic found
locally in India in the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh. It is currently known only
from the Sri Lankamalleshwara Sanctuary, where it inhabits sparse scrub forest
with patches of bare ground.

Indian Aurochs: Sivatherium Sivatherium ('Shiva's Beast) ' Is An Extinct Genus of Giraffid That Ranged Throughout

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Indian Aurochs: Sivatherium Sivatherium ('Shiva's Beast) ' Is An Extinct Genus of Giraffid That Ranged Throughout

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Indian Aurochs

Sivatherium ('Shiva's beast)' is an extinct genus of giraffid that ranged throughout

The Straight-tusked Elephant (Elephas (Palaeoloxodon) antiquus or

The Sumatran Rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) is a member of the family

The Pink-headed Duck (Rhodonessa caryophyllacea) is (or was) a large diving

Through evolution, new species arise through the process of speciation—where

The Large-billed Reed-warbler (Acrocephalus orinus) is an Old World warbler

The Jerdon's Courser (Rhinoptilus bitorquatus) is a nocturnal bird belonging to

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