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True horns are found mainly among: Ruminant artiodactyls. Antilocapridae ; Bovidae (cattle, goats, antelopes etc.). Giraffidae: Giraffids have a pair of skin covered bony bumps on their heads, called ossicones. Cervidae: Most deer have antlers, which are not true horns due to lacking a bone core and made of keratin.
Horned gophers are the smallest known horned mammals and the only known rodents ever to have had horns. [3] They are also one of only two known horned fossorial mammals, the other being Peltephilus, an extinct genus of armadillo. [3] They were native to what is now the Great Plains of North America, mostly Nebraska. The role of the horns of ...
A rhinoceros (/ r aɪ ˈ n ɒ s ər ə s / ry-NOSS-ə-rəss; from Ancient Greek ῥινόκερως (rhinókerōs) 'nose-horned'; from ῥίς (rhis) 'nose' and κέρας (kéras) 'horn'; [1] pl.: rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae; it can ...
Horns usually have a curved or spiral shape, often with ridges or fluting. In many species, only males have horns. Horns start to grow soon after birth and continue to grow throughout the life of the animal (except in pronghorns, which shed the outer layer annually, but retain the bony core). Partial or deformed horns in livestock are called scurs.
It is the only species in the genus Okapia. Although the okapi has striped markings reminiscent of zebras, it is most closely related to the giraffe. The okapi and the giraffe are the only living members of the family Giraffidae. The okapi stands about 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) tall at the shoulder and has a typical body length around 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in).
Rhinoceros horns, unlike those of other horned mammals, consist only of keratin. These horns rest on the nasal ridge of the animal's skull. Antlers are unique to cervids and found mostly on males: the only cervid females with antlers are caribou and reindeer, whose antlers are normally smaller than males
[38] [39] The unique horn structure is the only unambiguous morphological feature of bovids that distinguishes them from other pecorans. [40] [41] A high correlation exists between horn morphology and fighting behaviour of the individual. For instance, long horns are intended for wrestling and fencing, whereas curved horns are used in ramming. [42]
It is the only surviving member of the family Antilocapridae. [7] During the Pleistocene epoch, about 11 other antilocaprid species existed in North America, many with long or spectacularly-twisted horns. [8] Three other genera (Capromeryx, [9] [10] Stockoceros [11] [12] and Tetrameryx [13]) existed when humans entered North America but are now ...