Kouprey

A kouprey (Bos sauveli, from Khmer: គោព្រៃ, Khmer pronunciation: [koː prɨj], "wild ox"; also known as kouproh, "grey ox"), is a wild, forest-dwelling bovine species found mainly in northern Cambodia and believed to exist in southern Laos, western Vietnam, and eastern Thailand. A young male was sent to the Vincennes Zoo in 1937 where it was described by the French zoologist Achille Urbain and was declared the holotype. The kouprey has a tall, narrow body, long legs, a humped back and long horns.

Kouprey form small herds led by a female, and graze on grasses, feeding in the forest during the day and in the open at night. They are affected by degradation of their habitat and are hunted for their meat, horns and skull. There are not thought to be many kouprey in existence, and the last confirmed sighting was in 1988. Since then surveys have been done to try and locate the species, but all have failed. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the species as "critically endangered", but it may already be extinct.