Anushka, a three-year-old female is the mother, gave birth to a calf for the first time. With the newborn calf, the zoo now houses 11 male gaurs and eight female gaurs, say the zoo authorities.

A special diet is being given to the mother, which included greens, coconut, peanut oil cakes, chickpea, bananas and bottle gourd.

A well-grown adult male gaur can weigh up to 1.5 tonnes and can climb up to 6,000 feet from the mean sea level for grazing. These gaurs live closely with elephants. Gaurs actually feed broken branches and other feed items that are left by elephants.

The gaur mainly feeds on grass that would otherwise damage the trees and plants. This is one of the important prey for tiger. Humans are the main threat for this species, as they poach them for their meat.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature has categorised this species as a 'vulnerable' one.

In India, the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 has categorised the animal under Schedule I. Any one poaching this species, if caught, will be imprisoned for three to seven years with a penalty of Rs 25,000.