Pecora is an infraorder of even-toed hoofedmammals with ruminant digestion. Most members of Pecora have cranial appendages projecting from their frontal bones; only two extant genera lack them, Hydropotes and Moschus.[2] The name "Pecora" comes from the Latin word pecus, which means "cattle".[3] Although most pecorans have cranial appendages, only some of these are properly called "horns", and many scientists agree that these appendages did not arise from a common ancestor, but instead evolved independently on at least two occasions.[2][3][4][5] Likewise, while Pecora as a group is supported by both molecular and morphological studies, morphological support for interrelationships between pecoran families is disputed.[2]
^Flower, W. On the Arrangement of the Orders and Families of Existing Mammalia. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 178 -186. 1883.
^ abBubenik, A. Epigenetical, Morphological, Physiological, and Behavioral Aspects of Evolution of Horns, Pronghorns, and Antlers. in Horns, Pronghorns, and Antlers. G. Bubenik and A. Bubenik eds. Springer-Verlag. New York. 1990
^Janis, C., K. Scott. The Interrelationships of Higher Ruminant Families with Special Emphasis on the Members of the Cervoidea. American Museum Novitates. 2893: 1-85. 1987. http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/5180