The Gaur is the largest bovine in the world. With a pair of menacing horns, a muscular shoulder ridge, and a massive head, this animal truly is an impressive sight to behold. Adult males are glossy black, while the young and females are coffee-brown. A newborn calf changes colour from golden yellow to fawn, light brown, red- brown and then coffee- brown.

A gaur is a rather quiet creature and rarely attacks unless tormented. However, this creature must be approached with caution, because when provoked, a gaur can be quite unforgiving. If a herd of gaur is taken by surprise, it might start a stampede with calves getting run over in the process.

Gaur have to compete with domestic cattle for grazing space. In addition to that, much of their natural habitat has already been lost. Today there are 20,000 gaur left in the wild, but that number is rapidly decreasing.

Mudumalai and Bandipur National Parks are the best places to spot a gaur.