Bos grunniens

The domestic yak (Bos grunniens), also known as the Tartary ox, grunting ox, or hairy cattle, is a species of long-haired domesticated cattle found throughout the Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent, the Tibetan Plateau, Gilgit-Baltistan (Kashmir), Tajikistan and as far north as Mongolia and Siberia. It is descended from the wild yak (Bos mutus). Etymology The English word yak originates from the . In Tibetan and Balti it refers only to the male of the species, the female being called , or in Tibetan and in Balti. In English, as in most other languages that have borrowed the word, yak is usually used for both sexes, with bull or cow referring to each sex separately. Taxonomy Belonging to the genus Bos, Yaks are related to cattle (Bos primigenius). Mitochondrial DNA analyses to determine the evolutionary history of yaks have been inconclusive.