Early in the morning, while guiding the jeep safari, I took the guests to the river bank to a spot called the sunset point. When we reached the place, the river was blanketed by a thick fog. However, a herd of Gaurs managed to capture our attention, with a big bull leading, and four cows.

The bull gaur was right before our jeep, and walked as if safeguarding his partners who were busier feeding on the wet grass. As he passed by, he stopped and realized his ‘harem’ had not joined him.

The Big Bull!

Hence he turned, giving a ‘melodious’ rutting call, waking up the forest that misty morn. Much to our amazement, this call was answered when the cows began moving in his direction.

The winter is the peak season of rut for gaurs.

As the cows got closer to the gaur, he lifted his head, sniffing the air for cues of a cow, ready to mate.

Waiting for its Mate?

Together, the herd walked towards the bushes, giving a finishing touch to our sighting.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 7th, 2012 at 11:43 am and is filed under Mammals. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.