THE NYL GHAU, OR BLUE OX. (Antilope picta.)
THE NYL GHAU, OR BLUE OX. (Antilope picta.)
This is a large kind of antelope, found in India. In the wild state these animals are very ferocious, but they may be domesticated, and in that condition give frequent tokens of familiarity, and even of gratitude, to those under whose care they are placed. The female, or doe, is much smaller than the male, and of a yellowish colour, by which she is easily distinguished from the buck, who is of a grey tint.
Its manner of fighting is very peculiar, and is thus described:—Two of the males, at Lord Clive’s, being put into an enclosure, were observed, while they were at some distance from each other, to prepare for the attack, by falling down upon their knees; they then shuffled towards each other, still keeping upon their knees; and, at the distance of a few yards, they made a spring, and darted against each other with great force.
The following anecdote will serve to show that these animals are sometimes fierce and vicious, and not to be depended upon:—A labouring man, without knowing that the animal was near him, went up to the outside of the enclosure; the Nyl Ghau, with the quickness of lightning, darted against the woodwork with such violence that he dashed it to pieces, and broke one of his horns close to the root. The death of the animal soon after was supposed to be owing to the injury he sustained by the blow.
The Nyl Ghau usually keeps closely concealed in the jungle, but in the night or early morning it sometimes passes into the open ground, to feed in the corn-fields belonging to the neighbouring villages. This is the moment chosen by the natives to attack it. A platform is erected near the spot the Nyl Ghau is known to frequent, from which the hunters can take aim with precision and safety.
