Close-up of the hybrid bison herd: Muscular, a far cry from the "skinny as a skeleton" images circulating online.

On August 16th, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, an official from the Management Board of Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park (Khanh Hoa province) and the project leader for "Conservation and sustainable use of F1 hybrid gaur gene pool between domestic cows and male gaurs, 2021-2025," affirmed that the 11 hybrid gaurs there are developing healthily, with robust physiques, completely different from the "weak, emaciated" images circulating on social media.

A healthy hybrid bull at Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park today.

On August 16th, in an interview with a reporter from SGGP newspaper, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, an official from the Management Board of Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park ( Khanh Hoa province) and the project leader for "Conservation and sustainable use of F1 hybrid gaur gene pool between domestic cows and male gaurs, 2021-2025," affirmed that the herd of 11 hybrid gaurs, currently being cared for and raised in a semi-wild environment, are very healthy and robust.

A healthy hybrid bull at Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park today.

According to Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, after being transferred to the Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park for management, the herd of hybrid wild cattle, consisting of 9 F1 generation hybrids, 1 F2 generation hybrid, and 1 F3 generation hybrid, is cared for with a complete nutritional regime and undergoes regular veterinary check-ups. There is absolutely no truth to the images circulating on social media showing them as "sickly" or "emaciated." The images of the wild cattle herd appearing on social media are old photos from many years ago.

The hybrid bison are being raised in a semi-wild environment.

Currently, to care for the hybrid gaur herd, Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park has hired two people to directly care for them and conduct regular health checks. The monthly cost of caring for the gaur herd is only about 8 million VND, and less than 100 million VND per year.

A hybrid bull in Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park

Representatives from Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park also informed that research on breeding this herd of wild cattle is still underway, but the results have not been as desired. "There have been some cases of hybrid wild cattle mating with domestic cattle, but due to the genetic factor of 'same father, different mothers,' the success rate is very rare," the representative from Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park shared.

Between 2009 and 2015, in the buffer zone of Phuoc Binh National Park (now Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park), local people repeatedly observed a male gaur frequently appearing, joining domestic cattle herds, and mating with female cattle.

Hybrid bison graze in a semi-wild environment.

To date, the local farmers' herds of cows have given birth to more than 20 calves suspected of being crossbred with wild bulls. These calves have a faster growth rate than domestic cows of the same age. In appearance, they lack shoulder humps and dewlaps, have small heads, broad and slightly concave foreheads, V-shaped faces, and sharp, early-developing horns.

At birth, hybrid calves have yellowish-brown or grayish-brown coats, distinctly different from domestic calves. After 3-4 months, the coat gradually turns dark brown, with yellow hair on the top of the head; some individuals have white hair on all four legs, from the elbows down. These physical characteristics and coat color are similar to those of the gaur.

The herd of hybrid bison is currently being cared for by two people.

Previously, the research project "Study on genetic identification and evaluation of the development potential of F1 hybrid cattle between gaur (Bos gaurus) and domestic cattle (Bos taurus)" was implemented to accurately determine the genetic origin, analyze the karyotype of the chromosomes, and monitor the growth and reproductive potential of the F1 hybrid cattle herd.

After the project concludes, the entire herd of hybrid gaur will be handed over to Nui Chua - Phuoc Binh National Park for management, continuing the project "Conservation and sustainable use of F1 hybrid gaur gene pool between domestic cows (Bos taurus) and male gaur (Bos gaurus) in the period 2021-2025" .

The project aims to strictly conserve the rare F1 and F2 generations of hybrid cattle, with the goal of establishing a hybrid cattle conservation area, combining scientific research with educational tours and biodiversity conservation education .

TIEN THANG

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/can-canh-dan-bo-tot-lai-vam-vo-khac-xa-thong-tin-gay-tro-xuong-บน-mang-post808742.html