zebu
Noun
Meaning
A bovine mammal (Ros Indicus) extensively domesticated in India, China, the East Indies, and East Africa. It usually has short horns, large pendulous ears, slender legs, a large dewlap, and a large, prominent hump over the shoulders; but these characters vary in different domestic breeds, which range in size from that of the common ox to that of a large mastiff.
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A Canchim bull The Canchim breed is a breed of beef cattle developed in Central Brazil by crossing European Charolais cattle with Indubrazil cattle already kept in Brazil where Asian Zebu type cattle are best suited to the tropical conditions.
Adaptations include resistance to disease and tolerance of intense heat, sun, and humidity. citation Reproduction Zebu are generally mature enough to begin reproducing around 44 months old.
However, there is archaeological evidence that these cattle were domesticated independently in Africa and that bloodlines of taurine and zebu cattle were introduced only within the last few hundreds years.
Interaction with humans Domesticated animals further Zebu oxen in Mumbai The domestication of bovids has contributed in shifting the dependence of human beings from hunting and gathering to agriculture.
Note that the Maasai cattle are of the Zebu variety.
The alternative crossbreeding programs initiated in 1940 by Dr. Antonio Teixeira Viana had the objective of obtaining first, crossbreeds 5/8 Charolais and 3/8 Zebu and second, 3/8 Charolais x 5/8 Zebu, to evaluate which of the two was the most successful.