A scur is an incompletely developed horn growth. In cattle, scurs are not attached to the skull, whereas horns are attached and have blood vessels and nerves.Dove W. (1935) The physiology of horn growth: a study of the morphogenesis, the interaction of tissues, and the evolutionary processes of a Mendelian recessive character by means of transplantation of tissues. Journal of Experimental Zoology 69, 347– 405. Scurs may also occur in sheepJohnston SE, Beraldi D, McRae AF, Pemberton JM, Slate J. 2009. Horn type and horn length genes map to the same chromosomal region in Soay sheep. Heredity (Edinb). 104(2):196-205. doi: 10.1038/hdy.2009.109 and Goat.
In cattle, 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.
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