| Little Known Asian Animals With a Promising Economic Future |
|Part I : Domesticated Bovine Species| It seems probable that
two of our widely used livestock species were domesticated in
the Asian tropics: the zebu or humped cattle in India and the
water buffalo in the humid marshlands of northeastern India or
Southeast Asia. (Both the chicken and some races of pig may also
have a tropical Asian origin, but the exact sites of their
earliest domestication is unclear.) There are, however, other,
much more localized, domesticated bovines in Asia. These are not
well studied and deserve greatly increased recognition. This
section highlights: · Domesticated banteng · Banteng-cattle
hybrids It is time for the world's scientific community to study
the genetics, evolution, and biochemical parameters of the
unique animal resources, that are found in Southeast Asia. ALLEN
D. TILLMAN Animal Consultant Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA Though
well adapted for survival in their own harsh tropical
environments, many domestic lives