1. The bonassus is found in Pæonia, in Mount Messapius, which forms
the boundary between Pæonia and Mædia. The Pæonians call it monapus.
It is as large as a bull, and more heavily built; for it is not a long
animal, and its skin, when stretched out, will cover a couch for seven
persons to recline upon. In form it resembles a bull, but it has a mane
as far as the point of the shoulder like the horse, but its hair is
softer than that of the horse, and shorter. The colour of its hair is
red. The hair is deep and thick as far down as the eyes, and in colour
between ash-coloured and red, not like that of roan horses, but darker.
Its hair below is like wool. They are never either very black or very
red.
2. Their voice is like that of the ox. Their horns are crooked and
bent together, of no use for defence, a span long or a little more, so
thick that each of them would hold half a measure or a little more.
The black part of their horn is good and smooth. The fore lock is so
placed between the eyes that the creature can look sideways better than
forwards. Like the ox, it has no upper teeth in front, neither have
any horned animals. Its legs are rough and its hoofs cloven. Its tail
is small in proportion to its size, like that of the ox, and it tears
up the ground and digs with its hoof like the bull. The skin upon its
sides is strong. Its flesh is excellent food, and for this it is hunted.
3. When wounded it retreats, and stays when it can proceed no farther.
It defends itself by kicking and ejecting its dung, which it can do
to the distance of four fathoms from itself. It uses this means of
defence easily and frequently. Its dung is so caustic as to burn the
hair from dogs. The dung is only caustic when the creature is disturbed
and alarmed. It is not so when undisturbed. This is the form and nature
of this creature. At the season of parturition they collect together
in numbers in the mountains, and make a circle of their dung round
the place, as it were a fortification, for this animal ejects a large
quantity of this excrement.