Knowra Bovidae Bovidae Bovidae is a family of even-toed, ruminant mammals whose members generally have hollow, unbranched horns and include cattle, sheep, goats, and antelopes.
Ruminant : A mammal that ferments plant food in a specialized stomach and regurgitates cud for further chewing. Bovids belong to this digestive guild, whose fermentation supports diets rich in tough plants.
Bovinae : A bovid subfamily containing cattle, bison, buffalo, and several close relatives. This subfamily includes many of the largest and most familiar bovids.
Domestic cattle : Domesticated bovines raised worldwide for meat, milk, hides, and labor. Cattle are among the most economically consequential members of the family.
Bovini : A tribe of bovids that includes cattle, bison, and buffalo. This tribe groups the familiar bovine lineages within the wider family.
Neolithic Revolution : The transition in parts of the world from foraging to farming and settled communities. The domestication of cattle, sheep, and goats helped make this transition possible.
Ruminant digestive system : A multichambered digestive system in which microbes ferment plant matter before it is digested further. Its rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum power the characteristic feeding strategy of bovids.
Caprinae : A bovid subfamily that includes sheep, goats, and muskoxen. Its members show the family’s range from domestic goats to Arctic muskoxen.
Domestic sheep : Domesticated ruminants raised chiefly for wool, meat, and milk. Sheep show how selective breeding reshaped a bovid for fiber and food.
Cervidae : The deer family, whose members typically grow branched antlers that are shed and regrown. Deer antlers differ fundamentally from the permanent, usually unbranched horns of bovids.
Pastoralism : A livelihood based on raising and moving domesticated livestock. Bovid herds underpin many pastoral economies and patterns of land use.
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