A scur is an incompletely developed
horn
Horn most often refers to:
*Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound
** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments
*Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various a ...
growth. In
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
, scurs are not attached to the skull, whereas horns are attached and have blood vessels and nerves.
Scurs may also occur in
sheep.
Genetic Inheritance
The gene for scurs is inherited separately from the
polled gene in cattle. Not all polled animals lack the scur gene. Since horned is recessive to polled, no horned cattle carry the polled allele, but they may also carry scurs.
In
cattle
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
, genetic expression of the scur gene is different from that of the dominant polled gene, in that the scur gene's expression depends on the sex of the animal. The scur gene is dominant in males and recessive in females.
See also
*
Horn (anatomy)
*
Polled livestock
*
Livestock dehorning
Dehorning is the process of removing the horns of livestock. Cattle, sheep, and goats are sometimes dehorned for economic and safety reasons. Disbudding is a different process with similar results; it cauterizes and thus destroys horn buds be ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
*The Genetics of Polled/Horned/Scurred in Cattl
Animal anatomy