Assam has recorded the mithun (Bos frontalis) for the first time, generations after the semi-wild gaur-like animal began to be reared by tribals in the state’s hill district of Dima Hasao.

During past livestock censuses, the enumerators recorded the animal in the column of “others” and the government had no idea about its presence.

Mithun is the state animal of Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland and found also in the hills of Mizoram and Manipur. It is primarily reared for its meat. 

A team had spotted the animal during a visit to the three remote villages of Laisong, Langting and Thaijuwari in Dima Hasao on August 21.