In 1887 there were thought to be over 3,500 breeding pairs of "Michelin men" (females of the species are also called 'men') living wild in the Auvergne region of France. This number had dropped to as near as makes no difference zero by the next year after two brothers, Édouard and André Michelin discovered that pneumatic tyres could be made simply killing them and removing the natural rolls of fat from the unfortunate bipeds. All "Michelin men" are now reared for their tyres in massive indoor battery facilities disguised as rubber factories in Clermont Ferrand.