• Dr Deepak Rawal

Ruminant mammals use cranial appendages mostly for defense and sexual attraction.Cranial appendages have different shape and size according to species viz. straight, spiral, curved, bent, flat, flipped, short, wide, long etc. Out of six extant families of ruminants, four families possess these cranial appendages viz. Cervidae, Bovidae, Antilocapridae and Girrafidae. Tragulidae and Moschidae do not possess it. Cranial appendages of Cervidae is called antlers, cranial appendages of Bovidae is called horns, cranial appendages of Girrafidae is called ossicones and cranial appendages of Antilocapridae is called pronghorns. Usually horns of Bovidae is called true horns with a bony core surrounded by keratinous epithelium, which usually occurs in both sexes and are unbranched, tapering and cylindrical. True horns are permanent structures, grow throughout the life and never shed. Antlers of Cervidae are branched and found only in males except Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus). Antlers are covered with vascular skin called velvet which shed after breeding season.

Ruminants, Cranial appendages, Horns, Bovidae, Keratin, Antlers

"A Review on Cranial Appendages of Ruminants", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 5, page no.642-644, May-2019, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1905195.pdf

"A Review on Cranial Appendages of Ruminants", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 5, page no. pp642-644, May-2019, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1905195.pdf