Horned Animals are Still Being Hunted for Trophies and Chinese Medicine

There are many horned animals with horns of various lengths and combinations. Some of these are quite intricate and amazing to look at.  We all know of the more usual horned animals like the rhinoceros, buffalo and goat but there are some far more unusual examples out there.

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So, did you ever wonder exactly what a horn was?  It is a projection of the skin of the horned animal. The horn itself is made up of two main layers which include an inner core of living, growing bone and a protective covering of keratin.

Horned animals are usually found among goats, cattle and antelope and it is quite usual to have a pair of horns, but there are exceptions and some breeds of sheep, like the Hebridean actually have two pairs of horns in both sexes.

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Horn shapes vary but most are curved or wind round in spirals, with deep ridges in them. These horns start to emerge just after birth and they grow continuously during the life of the animal in most case. Here again there are exception, though.

In some species of antelope and deer the horns loose their outer skin each year and they grow fresh velvet like covering.

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Horns and antlers are used for many different things, including as a weapon for self defence to fight off predators and to do battle with members of their own species. Battles with those of their own species are usually over territorial rights, food, or mating rights. The sight of two huge stags battling away and breaking off each others antlers during rutting season is quite spectacular and even frightening to watch.

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In courtship some of these animals use their horns to display their prowess to a prospective mate. For example wildebeest have been known to tear bark off trees with their horns on an effort to show off to the females around them and hopefully encourage one to mate.

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Other horned animals use their horns as a kind of cooling mechanism. The horns are very rich in blood vessels and can disperse heat quite quickly.

Humans have used horn for thousands of years and the hunting of animals just for their horns is a very controversial subject. Historically horns have been used as trophies, made into musical instruments, hollowed out and used as vessels for liquid, and made into gunpowder holders, or powder horns. Antelope and rhino horn is used in Chinese medicine.

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There is no longer a need to use animal horn for these things because there is a whole range of alternatives, but sadly, the killing of animals just for their horns continues.