So there is a 4th specie of Takin. The four are B. taxicolor taxicolor, the Mishmi Takin; B. taxicolor bedfordi, the Shensi or Golden Takin; B. taxicolor tibetana, the Tibetan or Sichuan Takin; and B. taxicolor whitei, the Bhutan Takin. The last one I had never heard of before.
So there is a 4th specie of Takin. The four are B. taxicolor taxicolor, the Mishmi Takin; B. taxicolor bedfordi, the Shensi or Golden Takin; B. taxicolor tibetana, the Tibetan or Sichuan Takin; and B. taxicolor whitei, the Bhutan Takin. The last one I had never heard of before.
According to the Groves and Grubb Handbook to Mammals of the World, the Mishmi takin, Sichuan takin, Golden takin, and Bhutan takin may actually be separate species.
With the Bhutan takins, I think they were the first takin species to leave Asia, the London Zoo had their Bhutan takins from 1909 to 1918.
According to the Groves and Grubb Handbook to Mammals of the World, the Mishmi takin, Sichuan takin, Golden takin, and Bhutan takin may actually be separate species.
With the Bhutan takins, I think they were the first takin species to leave Asia, the London Zoo had their Bhutan takins from 1909 to 1918.
The molecular taxonomists always want to split a species into several ones, just based on the DNA and neglect the facts that the different subspecies lead a similar life style, similar behavior pattern and can communicate with each other without any problems
Sorry to bump this but I think it is better than making a separate thread. My friend is in Bhutan now and sent me some pictures of Bhutan takin. Does anyone know what is the difference between mishmi takin and Bhutan takin?
According to Groves & Grubb (2011) the pelage of adult Bhutan (White’s) takin is similar to that of juvenile Mishmi takin; Bhutan takin have small horns too.
Yes, it is generally considered that London Zoo’s Bhutan takin, a male, was the first living takin to leave Asia; it was presented to the zoo by J. C. White (after whom the species is named). It lived at London Zoo from 22nd June 1909 until 7th May 1918. (Although you refer to takins, there was only one at London Zoo during this period.)
Thanks a lot for posting these interesting pictures. I’ve seen three of the four takin taxa but have never seen White’s takin so I was very pleased to see these photos.
