Sri Lanka seeks gaurs from India after bovine goes extinct in island nation

• Sri Lanka is seeking six gaurs, or Indian bison, from India as part its plan to reintroduce the animal into the island nation. The gaur is believed to have gone extinct sometime in the 17th Century in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has asked for six specimens of the gaur and the establishment of a technical working group with Indian counterparts. The gaur is the largest of the world’s species of wild cattle and has been listed as vulnerable on the ‘red list of threatened species’ by IUCN since 1986. Since the animal is listed as vulnerable, the cross-border transfer requires special permission from India’s environment & forest ministry and Sri Lanka’s Department of Wildlife Conservation.