The tribe Bovini or wild cattle are medium to massive bovines that are native to Eurasia, North America, and Africa.

These include the enigmatic, antelope-like saola, the African and Asiatic buffaloes, and a clade that consists of bison and the wild cattle of the genus Bos.

[7] Domestic bovines have been selectively bred for beef, dairy products and leather, and serve as working animals.

[9] In 1821 British zoologist John Edward Gray described the family, subfamily and tribe Bovidae, Bovinae, and Bovini respectively.

[13][14][15] At some point after the divergence of the three subtribes around 13.7 million years ago, bovins migrated into Africa from Asia where they have diversified into many species.

[16][17] During the Pliocene epoch some bovines left Africa and entered Europe, where they have evolved into hardy, cold-adapted species.

[18][19] Below is the list of fossil species that have been described so far listed in alphabetical order that currently do not fit in any of the existing subtribes: Pseudorygina (saola) Bubalina (buffalos) Bovina (Bison and Bos) The majority of phylogenetic work based on ribosomal DNA, chromosomal analysis, autosomal introns and mitochondrial DNA has recovered three distinctive subtribes of Bovini: Pseudorygina (represented solely by the saola), Bubalina (represented today by the genera Syncerus and Bubalus), and Bovina (represented today by the genera Bison and Bos).

[20][21] According to the fossil record and the molecular work, Bubalina and Bovina have diverged from one and another from a common ancestor around 13.7 million years ago in the Late Miocene.

[5] There are some breeds of domestic cattle that can be even larger than both wild species, one of them being the Chianina, bulls of which can weigh from 1,200 to 1,500 kilograms and reach a similar height to the gaur.

[26][27][8] Males are significantly larger than the females, which most of their features are exaggerated with massive humps, large necks, and in some species the presence of a dewlap.

[26][27] In addition they are less efficient eaters than smaller herbivores, as they cannot selectively forage on relatively short grass due their stiff, immobile upperlips.

[30] Below is a listing of the diploid number 2n of selected species as follows:[30][31] Bovin hybridization is most common in the subtribe Bovina, the most well known of these is the beefalo (a cross between cattle and American bison).

[32] This has caused problems for wild cattle conservation as hybrids pollute the genetic diversity of genetically-pure animals.