KUNMING, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) - An Indian bison (Bos gaurus), the world's largest extant wild cattle, died of fatal skull damage after a recent fight for territory in Xishuangbanna, southwest China's Yunnan Province, according to a source of the local forest police.

The animal, which was 2.7 meters long, 0.5 meter wide and 1.9 meters tall, fled to a nearby village after a fatal fight for territory and died, said the source.

The Indian bison roams in primitive forests in in tropical and subtropical regions and is placed under state top protection in China.

A survey by Xishuangbanna state-level nature reserve between 2013 and 2014 showed there had been a decline in the number of Indian bisons in the region since the 1980s. By 2014, there were fewer than 167 Indian bisons in the region, compared to between 605 and 712 in the 1980s.