1 00:00:01,880 --> 00:00:08,479 Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeartRadio. Hey Brainstuff Lauren Vogelbaum. 2 00:00:08,560 --> 00:00:12,879 Speaker 1: Here For those who make the track up the peaks 3 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:16,680 Speaker 1: of the Himalayan Mountains in Central Asia, it's not uncommon 4 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:19,560 Speaker 1: to spot a yak, a herd animal that looks a 5 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:23,480 Speaker 1: bit like a large hunched cow with handlebar shaped horns 6 00:00:23,640 --> 00:00:29,200 Speaker 1: wearing a shaggy shawl. These hardy, agile creatures can withstand 7 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:32,199 Speaker 1: temperatures as low as negative forty degrees, which is the 8 00:00:32,240 --> 00:00:35,960 Speaker 1: same in celsius and fahrenheit, which is fun, and their 9 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:39,680 Speaker 1: impressive lung capacity allows them to breed easier than any 10 00:00:39,760 --> 00:00:42,479 Speaker 1: hiker they'll encounter, even when on the job as a 11 00:00:42,479 --> 00:00:46,800 Speaker 1: pack animal. Even those of us who live elsewhere and 12 00:00:46,840 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 1: forego the climb still have plenty of yack siding possibilities. 13 00:00:51,720 --> 00:00:54,800 Speaker 1: In the United States, for example, small farms in Colorado 14 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:58,040 Speaker 1: and some of the northern coastal states are raising yaks 15 00:00:58,120 --> 00:01:03,560 Speaker 1: in growing numbers, increasingly popular for their easy maintenance, valuable fiber, 16 00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:08,759 Speaker 1: and tasty meat and milk. Yaks are in the same 17 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:11,920 Speaker 1: genus as cattle, but they are different species, and DNA 18 00:01:11,959 --> 00:01:14,920 Speaker 1: and archaeological records show that they were first domesticated from 19 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:17,840 Speaker 1: wild yaks more than two five hundred years ago in 20 00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:21,600 Speaker 1: the Tibetan Plateau. Yaks are known to be friendly and 21 00:01:21,760 --> 00:01:25,759 Speaker 1: even playful creatures. They aren't typically aggressive toward humans, but 22 00:01:25,959 --> 00:01:28,479 Speaker 1: like most mamas, they can get pretty protective of their young. 23 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:32,480 Speaker 1: They're also easy to train, and they are good at surviving 24 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 1: harsh elements. The herd will cuddle up together during a snowstorm, 25 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:38,600 Speaker 1: always making sure to keep the calves safe in the 26 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:44,000 Speaker 1: middle of the pack. But despite their many cowl like features, 27 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 1: there's no mooing here. Sometimes known as the grunting ox, 28 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:51,800 Speaker 1: yaks make a low grunting noise sort of like a pig, 29 00:01:51,920 --> 00:01:54,280 Speaker 1: to communicate with each other or when they get excited 30 00:01:54,320 --> 00:02:00,960 Speaker 1: and want to play. Otherwise, they're relatively silent creatures. Yaks 31 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:04,000 Speaker 1: are genetically adapted to survive in altitudes up to twenty 32 00:02:04,040 --> 00:02:07,160 Speaker 1: thousand feet or six thousand meters, atopping the list of 33 00:02:07,240 --> 00:02:11,560 Speaker 1: high altitude mammals. Their lungs are so unusually lard that 34 00:02:11,560 --> 00:02:14,440 Speaker 1: they require an extra pair of ribs. A yak has 35 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:17,120 Speaker 1: fourteen pairs of ribs instead of thirteen like a cow, 36 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:22,280 Speaker 1: just to support those lungs. That greater lung capacity, along 37 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:24,919 Speaker 1: with a greater number of red blood cells than other bovines, 38 00:02:25,200 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 1: allows them to get enough oxygen out of the thin 39 00:02:27,840 --> 00:02:34,280 Speaker 1: mountain air. Also, their poop doesn't stink. It's not that 40 00:02:34,280 --> 00:02:36,880 Speaker 1: they think they're better than everyone else, but when yaks 41 00:02:36,919 --> 00:02:39,960 Speaker 1: are given sufficient access to water and forage to eat, 42 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:43,639 Speaker 1: they're dung has little to no odor. That's a big 43 00:02:43,720 --> 00:02:47,120 Speaker 1: perk for those collecting the dried excrement for fuel. The 44 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,760 Speaker 1: Tipetan plateaus don't have trees, making yak dung the only 45 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:56,400 Speaker 1: easily obtainable fuel in some areas. In fact, when it 46 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:59,960 Speaker 1: comes to providing useful food and goods, these shaggy bow 47 00:03:00,120 --> 00:03:02,560 Speaker 1: vines are a bit of a yak of all trades. 48 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:06,680 Speaker 1: Their milk is used to make several types of cheese, 49 00:03:06,840 --> 00:03:09,520 Speaker 1: including a dried in smoked variety that can be stored 50 00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:13,320 Speaker 1: for years. But the thick, fatty butter made from yac 51 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:16,520 Speaker 1: milk is the real star. A mixed with black tea 52 00:03:16,600 --> 00:03:20,560 Speaker 1: and salt, it creates pocha, sometimes known as Tibetan butter tea. 53 00:03:21,639 --> 00:03:24,760 Speaker 1: This tea provides loads of vital calories in areas with 54 00:03:24,880 --> 00:03:27,400 Speaker 1: sparse resources, and it's such a big part of the 55 00:03:27,400 --> 00:03:32,400 Speaker 1: culture that the Dali lama drinks it daily. The locals 56 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:34,359 Speaker 1: make sure that none of the butter goes to waste, 57 00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:37,520 Speaker 1: though it's also used to fuel lamps, bring shine to 58 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:41,320 Speaker 1: fur coats, and create a base for traditional butter sculptures. 59 00:03:42,840 --> 00:03:46,240 Speaker 1: Yak meat has long been another important source of nutrients, 60 00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:50,040 Speaker 1: and it's slowly growing in popularity around the globe. It's 61 00:03:50,120 --> 00:03:53,440 Speaker 1: leaner than beef, with a similar but perhaps more mild flavor, 62 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: and it's perhaps more efficient to rear yaks for meat 63 00:03:56,920 --> 00:04:01,600 Speaker 1: than it is cattle. Since yaks are very efficient absorbing nutrients, 64 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:04,440 Speaker 1: they only consume a third of the food that cows do. 65 00:04:06,840 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 1: Their wool can also be used for everything from sturdy 66 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 1: rugs to the softest sweaters. Their coarse outer fur can 67 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:17,960 Speaker 1: be woven to make things like tents, ropes, and saddle bags. 68 00:04:18,600 --> 00:04:22,440 Speaker 1: Their mid coat might go to make outerwear, but the 69 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 1: most valuable yak fiber is their super soft undercoat. As 70 00:04:27,480 --> 00:04:31,039 Speaker 1: yaks shed this ultrafine layer in the spring, it's combed 71 00:04:31,040 --> 00:04:34,640 Speaker 1: out and spun to make warm, ohso soft clothing that 72 00:04:34,839 --> 00:04:40,880 Speaker 1: rivals the luxury of cashmere. A vital part of Himalayan 73 00:04:40,920 --> 00:04:44,640 Speaker 1: culture and economy, Yaks have earned their reputation as highly 74 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:50,000 Speaker 1: adaptable and uniquely beautiful bovines. Mongolia celebrates their beloved yaks 75 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:54,400 Speaker 1: during multiple annual yak festivals. In addition to tasting lots 76 00:04:54,400 --> 00:04:57,360 Speaker 1: of yak cheeses and other local dishes, you can watch 77 00:04:57,480 --> 00:05:01,960 Speaker 1: yak rodeo events, demonstrations of yak fi, yberworking, competitions for 78 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:06,599 Speaker 1: the best dressed yak, and yak racing, which apparently is 79 00:05:06,640 --> 00:05:09,960 Speaker 1: the slowest event of the day, with most yaks crossing 80 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:13,400 Speaker 1: the finish line at a casual amble if they haven't 81 00:05:13,400 --> 00:05:21,599 Speaker 1: gotten distracted and wandered off halfway. Today's episode is based 82 00:05:21,600 --> 00:05:24,839 Speaker 1: on the article Yakta Yak seven fun Facts about Yaks 83 00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:27,920 Speaker 1: on how Stuffworks dot Com, written by Katiecarmen. The brain 84 00:05:27,960 --> 00:05:30,840 Speaker 1: Stuff is production of iHeartRadio in partnership with how Stuffworks 85 00:05:30,839 --> 00:05:33,680 Speaker 1: dot Com and is produced by Tyler Klang. Four more 86 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:37,640 Speaker 1: podcasts from iHeartRadio. Visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or 87 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:39,479 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.