During one of our visits to the Bandipur National Park, we heard Langur alarm calls near a waterhole. The naturalist who was with us instinctively stopped the Jeep in its tracks since Langur alarm calls mostly indicate that there is a predator (Tiger or Leopard) nearby. All of us in the vehicle got very excited and hoped that it would be our lucky day! A few minutes later, a herd of Indian Gaurs came to the waterhole to quench their thirst.
We hoped that once they moved on we would be able to catch a glimpse of the elusive cat. Meanwhile, as we waited, two huge bull Gaurs entered the scene and gave us an interesting display of posturing. It was evident from the posturing that the hierarchy was being established as to which one of them would mate with the female Gaurs in the herd that had just passed by. It was particularly thrilling to notice that the Bulls sized each other up with various postures without any physical contact and after a few minutes a clear winner emerged.
Once before, we witnessed an Indian Gaur herd under attack, possibly by a Tiger since there is no other predator in the Indian wilderness that can take on a Gaur.
