Yak

A large bovid of  the yak has a woolly coat that protects it from low temperatures in winter; it is native to the mountainous regions of Central Asia. It lives in the high plateaus and mountains of Tibet, at altitudes between 2,000 and 6,000 meters.

Wild Yaks are larger than their domestic relatives (they can weigh over 1,000 kilograms and stand up to 2 meters in height).

Currently, there are few specimens in the wild; most of them are part of the domestic livestock of the Tibetans, to whom they provide meat, milk, wool and even protection.

They are animals whose characteristics make them very useful for the people of those areas, since they serve as mount and pack animals; their dung is also used as fertilizer and fuel.

They are usually grouped in herds when in the wild, and most of them are females (there are normally no more than two males in each "group").

The mating period is during September and October. During the mating season, they growl and fight with each other, sometimes even seriously injuring each other. Females, which can only breed once every two years, give birth to a calf after a gestation period of 270 days. The sexual maturity of the Yak takes place at between six and eight years old.

These mammals feed on all types of vegetation, which they find along the way depending on the time of year.