===[TASK]=== Auroch

[Micket]

Modified Oryx model, and voila, an Auroch. I think. Fewer references than usual (as could be expected as they died out a few hundred years ago).

This is the Auroch cow:

[Lion.Kanzen]

Check the ox for the Mauryans. Is nice work congrats.

[sanderd17]

Great animals you make. You're getting yourself a fine animal database

@Lion, the ox cart needs animation (and texturing). I believe Micket doesn't do those.

[Lion.Kanzen]

A question they can animated only the ox ? Or is needed animating all unit? I request in my fan page in Facebook, for new artist.

[Micket]

Auroch bull and cow done.

auroch.zip

[Unarmed]

Auroch bull and cow done.

I don't think you need it (looks Auroch to me), but here are a lot of pictures:

http://carnivoraforum.com/topic/9481868/1/

Great work once again!

[Mythos_Ruler]

Aurochs are very cool. Such strong shoulders. Very powerful indeed.

[Lion.Kanzen]

Romans describe them in Europe , even Nazis try to revive them to bring back this specimen to life...

The aurochs (/ˈɔːrɒks/ or /ˈaʊrɒks/; pl. aurochs, or rarely aurochsen, aurochses), also urus, ure (Bos primigenius), is an extinct type of large wild cattle that inhabited Europe, Asia and North Africa. It is the ancestor of domestic cattle. The species survived in Europe until the last recorded aurochs died in the Jaktorów Forest, Poland in 1627.

During the Neolithic Revolution, which occurred during the early Holocene, there were at least two aurochs domestication events: one related to the Indian subspecies, leading to zebu cattle; the other one related to the Eurasian subspecies, leading to taurine cattle. Other species of wild bovines were also domesticated, namely the wild water buffalo, gaur, and banteng. In modern cattle, numerous breeds share characteristics of the aurochs, such as a dark colour in the bulls with a light eel stripe along the back (the cows being lighter), or a typical aurochs-like horn shape.

Aurochs (Bos primigenius)

Linnaeus gave the European domesticated cattle breeds its scientific name Bos taurus Linnaeus, 1758. He knew that the wild ancestor of domesticated cattle breeds had lived in Europe and maybe still lived at the time. We know this because he had classified 'urus' (= aurochs) under the same species name. Linnaeus saw the aurochs and the European domesticated cattle as one and the same species. In the time of Linnaeus the memory of the aurochs was almost completely disappeared. There was some confusion and discussion on the number of wild cattle species that existed in Europe. Like Bojanus, some said that only one species existed, namely the European bison or wisent (Bison bonasus). Others said that there were two species, namely the European bison and the aurochs. In the beginning of the 19th century many bones of aurochs were excavated and one complete skeleton existed. Bojanus named a new species from this skeleton: Bos primigenius Bojanus, 1827. (Van Vuure, 2003)

Nowadays we know that Bos primigenius and Bos taurus belong to the same species, so conform to the Code of the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature was the scientific name of the aurochs Bos primigenius changed into the name given by Linnaeus Bos taurus by Wilson and Reeder in 1993. Some scientists had criticism on this change of the scientific name of the aurochs. They wanted that there would be made an exception for domesticated animals.

In 2003, the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature "conserved the usage of 17 specific names based on wild species, which are pre-dated by or contemporary with those based on domestic forms", confirming Bos primigenius for the Aurochs. Taxonomists who consider domesticated cattle a subspecies of the wild Aurochs should use Bos primigenius taurus; the name Bos taurus remains available for domestic cattle where it is considered to be a separate species. (International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, 2003)

There has been considerable discussion regarding the actual taxonomic status of the different aurochs subspecies. Based on detailed craniometric analysis, Grisson (1980) has proposed that Bos primigenius namadicus and Bos primigenius primigenius should be classified as separate species. Epstein & Mason (1984) disputed this proposal, claiming that the distinction between races is not particularly clear-cut, being based on body size and horn shape (both of which can be affected by environmental influences). This view is also shared by Zeuner (1963a) and Payne (1991) who argue that geographical range is the basis of the classification and not biological taxonomic status. (Bunzel-Drüke, 2001)

The aurochs was much larger than the domesticated cows of now. Previously people thought that the shoulder height of an aurochs bull was approximately 200 cm and that of a cow 180 cm (Herre, 1953). Now scientists have calculated on the basis of the length of the humerus (upper leg bone) that the shoulder height of an aurochs bull probably varied between 160 and 180 cm, and that of an aurochs cow around 150 cm. The aurochs bulls coat colour was black-brown with a small light eel stripe. The colour of the cow was just as the calves colour reddish brown. The bull as well as the cow probably had a light zone around the snout. The aurochs horns were pointed forward and were curved inwards. Although the shape of the horn was very characteristic for the aurochs, there was some variation in the length, thickness, curving, and position with regard to its forehead. The udder of the aurochs cow was small and hardly visible. (Van Vuure, 2003)

------

The process of decline and disappearance of the aurochs in Europe started in south and western Europe to the northeast and ended finally in Poland. In the southern parts of Europe, like Spain, south and mid-Italy, and the southern Balkans, it is not known from bone finds, names of cities, rivers, etc.), or descriptions until what time the aurochs survived there in the wild. In the United Kingdom no remains can be found that date after 1300 BC (early bronze age). Around 30 BC Vergillius mentioned that in the north of Italy still 'wild aurochs' lived that were captured to be tamed.

The ancient Romans made big efforts to catch and transport wild animals (including the aurochs) to Rome and other cities to be used in arena fights. This does suspect that the aurochs the aurochs became extinct in Italy around the start of our era. In Denmark the aurochs disappeared first on the islands, namely around 5500 BC. In Jutland, the continental part of Denmark, the aurochs became extinct around the birth of Christ. In the Netherlands no remains of the aurochs are known that date after the period of the ancient Romans (after 400 BC). In Belgium aurochs have occurred, but a national systematic overview of aurochs finds is still absent. In France Charlemagne hunted for example in 802 AD at a aurochs 'with gigantic horns'. Possibly aurochs came still to France for a long time from Germany and Switzerland, where the aurochs still was reported in 1000 AD. According to an account of Adam van Bremen could the aurochs still be found in Sweden in the 11th century, but it is not certain if this is the truth or from folktales. Aaris-Sørensen (1999) posits the extinction of the aurochs in Sweden around 4500 BC, much earlier! We know for sure through an account of Olaus Magnus that the aurochs was extinct in Sweden in the year 1555. In Russia the aurochs became probably extinct in the 12th or 13th century. In Hungary the oldest bones date from the 12th century, and probably the aurochs became probably extinct before 1250 there. In Germany reliable accounts of aurochs between 1406 and 1408 are preserved. (Van Vuure, 2003)

Aurochs MonumentThe very last aurochs survived only in Poland. In 1476 the two last aurochs populations came in the possession of the Royal Family, after they were in possession of the Duke of Mazovia. In the second halve of the 16th century the aurochs only survived in the forests of Wiskitki and Jaktorów. The first inspection report that names aurochs dates from 1564. At that time only 38 aurochs remained, namely 22 cows, 3 young animals, 5 calves, and 8 bulls. In the year 1566 only 24 aurochs survived. Documents from 1602, 1620, and 1630 report only aurochs from the forest of Jaktorów. The inspection report from

Edited November 10, 2014 by Lion.Kanzen

[Lion.Kanzen]

Friday Fiction Facts: Wildlife in Roman Times

Welcome to Friday Fiction Facts: sciency things that fiction writers need to know.

Your novel is set in Europe in Roman times, say 2000 years ago. You’ve got your villagers, soldiers, royalty, hero, sidekick, love interest, and your quest. You know what everyone is wearing, how they cook their food, what weapons they use, and what their homes, castles, and surroundings look like. Everything is good to go. Let the writing begin!

But wait. These folks are living in and traveling through forests, across the steppes, and over the mountains. They are hunting game, fishing in lakes, and witnessing the return of migratory birds in the spring. True, many of the animals they encounter will be the same as we have today. But here is a question: What animals might they encounter that are unfamiliar to us?

To answer that, here are 5 Extinct animals from Roman times —

BARBARY LION (Panthera leo leo)

A Barbary lion from Algeria. Photographed by Sir Alfred Edward Pease around 1893.

The decline of Barbary Lions in reality began with the ascendancy of the Roman Empire. The Romans captured thousands of these majestic creatures from the wild and moved them into private menageries and gladiatorial arenas across their dominions. – From Ofcats.com

These are the majestic lions of Roman arenas and gladiators. Also prized by collectors, several Barbary Lions were kept in a menagerie in the Tower of London during the Middle Ages.

Shorter than their modern savanna cousins by almost a foot, Barbary Lions were still the largest sub-species of lion. They were long and stocky, with males weighing up to 500 lbs. The males sported a distinctive dark mane which extended along their backs, down their shoulders and underneath the belly. These huge carnivores hunted Barbary sheep, boar, Cuvier’s gazelles and Barbary stags. They also took their share of domestic sheep, cattle, and horses.

Barbary Lions were native to Northern Africa’s Atlas Mountains, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria. A hunter killed the last Barbary Lion in the wild in Morocco in 1920.

On an interesting note, through DNA analysis, some captive lions have been found to carry Barbary Lion genetics. These animals are currently being bred in the hopes of recreating the species.

Pyrenean Ibex from 'Wild oxen, sheep & goats of all lands, living and extinct' (1898) by Richard Lydecker.

PYRENEAN IBEX (Capra pyrenaica pyrenaica)

The Pyrenean ibex was a subspecies of the Spanish ibex, itself a close relative of the well-known ibex of the Alps. These beautiful goats, with their long sweeping horns, ranged across the Pyrenees Mountains in France and Spain and surrounding areas. The very last one – a female named Celia–was killed, possibly by a tree, in 2000.

The Pyrenean Ibex has the distinction of being the first animal to become “un-extinct” – at least for a few minutes. In 2009, using the cryopreserved DNA taken from the last Ibex just after her death, scientists successfully created a clone. The embryo was implanted into a domestic goat, but sadly the infant died just minutes after her birth. However, the experiment does show the promise of reviving lost species from preserved DNA.

THE GREAT AUK (Pinguinus impennis),

Great Auk specimen in Glasgow (and replica egg)

Excavations of a Roman settlement near Velsen, Holland, revealed a skeleton of the Great Auk. There have also been found some bones in Rotterdam, Holland. – Peter Maas

The Great Auk was the last flightless seabird of the Northern Hemisphere. They were large birds, standing a meter tall and weighing about 11 pounds. Though typically pictured in black and white plumage, the bird had summer and winter color phases and distinct markings for each of those seasons.

They were strong swimmers and divers and, with the exception of breeding season, spent their whole lives at sea. In May, huge noisy colonies would gather on islands off the coast of Scotland, Iceland, and possibly Greenland and Norway (as well as North America) to breed, lay their eggs, and raise young.

Their ultimate extinction was caused by the collection of specimens for museums and private collectors; on Eldey Island, Iceland, in 1844, the last 2 confirmed adults were beaten to death for European collectors.

TARPAN (Equus ferus ferus)

The only photo of a live Tarpan (1844)

Herds of tarpans (or European wild horses) once roamed throughout the open forests of Southern France and Spain and across the steppes of Eastern Europe and central Russia. They were domesticated in Russia about 5,000 years ago and are considered to be the ancestors of domestic horses. The Lascaux cave drawings and other European cave paintings of horses were probably tarpans.

This primitive horse slowly became absorbed into the domestic horse population throughout the 1700’s and 1800’s. The remaining wild stock was hunted to extinction for food. It is thought that the last wild tarpan was accidentally killed during a capture attempt between 1875 and 1890. The last captive one died in a Russian zoo in 1909.

AUROCH (Bos primigenius)

Size comparison of an auroch vs domestic cow (wikipedia)

Aurochs were huge wild cattle that lived in forests and swamps across most of Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, southern Russia and eastern Asia. The bulls may have been as large as 5’ 10” (180 cm) high at the shoulder and both sexes sported forward-curving horns.

The animals lived in herds made up of females, calves, and sub-adult males. Bulls joined the herd only for breeding, which took place in late summer; calves were born in May or June.

Between 1300 BC and 1420 AD the population of aurochs declined, mostly due to hunting and competition with domestic cattle. Charlemagne and other great leaders and rich folk hunted aurochs for sport. Also, because they were so large and imposing, many aurochs were captured by ancient Romans and transported to Italy to be used in arena fights. This implies that aurochs were extinct in Italy by this time. In the Netherlands there are no aurochs remains dated after about 400 BC. There is evidence that aurochs were present in France, Germany and Switzerland up to 1000 AD. The last aurochs died in Poland in 1627.

RESOURCES

Peter Maas: The 6th Extinction

The Committee on Recently Extinct Organisms

[thamlett]

Hmm, sounds interesting. Perhaps for a mod or a "nice to have" ticket?

[Lion.Kanzen]

Hmm, sounds interesting. Perhaps for a mod or a "nice to have" ticket?

can be nice in maps like Northen lights, north European or winter maps where have some lack of food.

Obviusly a 3D artist is needed may be Miket , he is very skilled with animals.

[Micket]

I'm so fast I finished it over a year ago!

http://www.wildfiregames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17409&hl=auroch

I didn't make it as extreme beast as some of these images in this thread suggests though. Critique is of course welcome, and I can tweak it.

Regarding the comment;

"Size comparison of an auroch vs domestic cow (wikipedia)"

^ I'm pretty sure that picture is showing a male and female auroch. I used this as the reference at least;

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Aurochsfeatures.jpg

Edited November 11, 2014 by Micket

[Lion.Kanzen]

I dint remember haha but is in game or animated? Can be nice Add it

Edited November 12, 2014 by Lion.Kanzen

[Micket]

Neither animated or textured as far as I remember. But perhaps i should beef it up a bit more? Many references indicate that they are quite hefty, while my model is quite slender by comparison (longer, thinner legs and so on). I used that one drawing from wikipedia that shows the profile for the bull and cow as a reference, but in http://carnivoraforum.com/topic/9481868/1/ it seems a lot thicker.

[thamlett]

Make a couple of variants: skinny aurochs and well fed ones..... although I suppose the different genders (being very specific here, we don't have male/female models for animals IIRC) would have different sizes

[Stan`]

Lion/Lioness also deers have specific sex

[Lion.Kanzen]

Here is a ticket from those http://trac.wildfiregames.com/ticket/1970

I never seen before but can be helpful to know what say game desing

[Leyto]

I take the texturing task, with the following reference for the colors (male and female)

[Micket]

That painting is what i used as the reference for the model, but it might look a but to "cartoony" for the texture (seeing how realistic most other (at least the newer) animal textures are).

Combining textures from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Aurochs_reconstruction.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurochs#mediaviewer/File:TudancaBull.JPG

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Auroch.jpg

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HanAurochs.JPG

will probably look nicer.

Having looked at this a but closer now, I think I should make the model a bit wider. I'm looking at the skeleton

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurochs#mediaviewer/File:Aurochse.jpg

and I think I\ve made the legs and head to thin.

I attach the new version

Having looked at animals similar to the auroch, I'm far from happy how this turned out. Especially around the hip area. The shape of the head is also quite tricky.

But I just can't spend any more time on this.

To be clear; If someone ever wishes to tweak any of my models, I certainly don't mind!

autoch.zip

[Leyto]

Thanks for the references Micket

Here is a WIP for the auroch bull!

Of course at this time there are still seams, I'll clean it after.

And I think about adding opacity at the end of the tail, but maybe it won't be noticeable on a 128² texture...

And also some highlights to show its musculature.

Edited December 16, 2014 by Leyto

[Stan`]

Good Job =)

[Micket]

About the tail alpha, just do whatever you want with it.

Of course, at the typical game zoom level, you can probably barely even tell that there is a tail.

When I make these models, I'm thinking about the reuseability in other games as well (as well as a bit of future-proofing), so I go for a level of detail that is probably unnecessary for normal gameplay.

The models are also used in promotional material.

So, you don't actually need to paint it at final texture resolution. Textures are so easy to resize afterwards (of course, don't spend a huge amount of time redoing anything now, just for the future I think these are good ideas). Computers are only getting faster, so, it won't take long until that texture size is beefed up a bit. Probably!

[Leyto]

Thanks for the precious advice Micket! I won't have to retake all of, just remove the alpha on this part, it's effectively not noticeable at all with the classic top view.
Don't worry for the map resolution, I've checked the wiki before starting , and that's why this preview is made with 512px² diffuse; I'll resize it to 128x128 in game.

[Lion.Kanzen]

Thanks for the precious advice Micket! I won't have to retake all of, just remove the alpha on this part, it's effectively not noticeable at all with the classic top view.

Don't worry for the map resolution, I've checked the wiki before starting , and that's why this preview is made with 512px² diffuse; I'll resize it to 128x128 in game.

would be nice if you texturizing all Micket's models.

[Micket]

There are

Gorilla

http://www.wildfiregames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17408&hl=

White rhino

http://www.wildfiregames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17411&hl=

Cobra

http://www.wildfiregames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=17415&hl=

I'm not sure about the state for the rest of them, but I don't recall seeing any texture for these three. Have fun