BuffaloInteresting facts and information

• A dangerous animal - The African buffalo is one of the most dangerous animals in Africa to people and is sometimes called "the black death"; it is one of the famous "Big Five".
• Strong senses - Buffalo have good hearing and a good sense of smell, while their eyesight is less sharp.
• Water buffalo milk is used to make dairy products, including buffalo mozzarella.
• Water lovers - Water buffalo spend many hours wallowing in water and mud, which keeps them cool and protects them from insects.
• A shield on the head - In adult male African buffalo, the bases of the horns join to form a thick, hard shield called a "boss".

• Wild water buffalo (Bubalus arnee) are large bovids; body size varies with sex and age.
• African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) can move quickly when threatened.
• Domestic water buffalo are important livestock in parts of Asia, including India.
• Fighting back - African buffalo herds have been seen chasing and even killing lions that attacked their calves.
• Huge horns - Wild water buffalo have some of the longest horns of any living bovid, spanning up to about 2 metres.

Buffalo are large, powerful mammals adapted to habitats from tropical swamps to dry savannas.

Distinguishing physical appearance

• A heavy, muscular body - Buffalo are strongly built, with a deep chest and powerful shoulders.
• Thick skin - Their thick skin and sparse hair help protect them from insects and wounds.
• Big horns - African buffalo have curved horns that meet on the forehead in males; water buffalo have long, backward-sweeping, crescent-shaped horns.

Adaptations for survival

• Strong legs and wide hooves - Water buffalo have broad hooves that help them walk in mud and swamps.
• Wallowing - Water buffalo have few sweat glands and cool themselves by lying in water and mud.
• Digesting tough plants - Buffalo are ruminants, with a four-chambered stomach that digests grass and other tough plants.
• Group defence - When threatened, African buffalo stand together and may charge predators.

Buffalo are social animals that live in herds; their behaviour depends on the species and habitat.

Social structure

• Large herds - African buffalo can live in herds of hundreds, sometimes more than a thousand animals, made up mainly of females and their young.
• Bachelor groups - Many adult and old males live in small all-male groups, often called "dagga boys" in southern Africa.
• Domestic buffalo - Domestic water buffalo live in small groups managed by people for work, milk and meat.

Defensive behaviour and relationship with predators

• Fierce defenders - African buffalo often turn to face predators and may attack them together.
• Killing predators - There are many records of buffalo killing lions, and water buffalo can kill tigers.
• Helping each other - Herd members respond to the distress calls of calves and other buffalo.

Environmental interaction

• Wallowing - Water buffalo spend a lot of time in water and mud to cool down and protect their skin from insects.
• Grazing - By grazing tall grasses, buffalo help create shorter grass that other animals prefer.
• Bird partners - Oxpeckers and cattle egrets often accompany buffalo, eating ticks or insects disturbed by them.

Wild buffalo live in Africa and southern Asia, and domestic water buffalo are kept in many parts of the world.

Geographical distribution

Habitats

• Savannas and forests - African buffalo live in grassland, woodland and forests, usually close to water.
• Swamps and floodplains - Wild water buffalo prefer wet grasslands, marshes and river floodplains.
• Farmland - Domestic buffalo are used for ploughing, transport and milk.

Habitat threats

• Habitat loss - Farming and building reduce the natural habitats of wild buffalo.
• Hunting and poaching - African buffalo are hunted for meat and trophies, and wild water buffalo have been hunted almost to extinction.
• Interbreeding - Wild water buffalo breed with domestic and feral buffalo, which threatens their genetic identity.
• Diseases - Diseases spread from livestock, such as bovine tuberculosis and rinderpest in the past, have killed many wild buffalo.

Buffalo are herbivores that eat mainly grasses, as well as aquatic plants, leaves and shoots, depending on their habitat.

What do buffalo eat?

Method of feeding

• Grazing - Buffalo spend many hours a day feeding to support their large bodies.
• Chewing the cud - Like other ruminants, they bring food back up and chew it again.
• Drinking - Buffalo need to drink every day and rarely move far from water.

Food behaviour

• Bulk feeders - African buffalo can eat tall, coarse grasses that many other grazers avoid.
• Seasonal movements - In the dry season, herds move to places with water and green grass.
• Feeding at night - Many buffalo feed at night and rest in the heat of the day.

Buffalo usually give birth to a single calf after a pregnancy of about a year, and calves are protected by the whole herd.

Breeding and birth of calves

Reproductive behaviour

• Competition between males - Male buffalo compete for females with displays and head-on clashes.
• Dominant males - The strongest males mate with most females.
• Calves - Calves can stand soon after birth and stay close to their mothers in the herd.

Longevity and Development

• Wild buffalo live about 15-25 years; domestic buffalo can live longer.
• Calves are vulnerable to lions, tigers, hyenas and crocodiles, so the herd protects them.
• Young males - As they grow up, young males often leave the breeding herd and join bachelor groups.

Origin of the name "buffalo"

• The word "buffalo" comes through Portuguese and Latin (bubalus) from the Greek boubalos, a name first used for an African antelope.
• In North America, "buffalo" is also used for the American bison, although bison belong to a different genus.

Taxonomic Classification

History and domestication

• Domestication - Water buffalo were domesticated about 5,000 years ago in South Asia and China.
• Never tamed - The African buffalo has never been domesticated.
• Europe - Water buffalo reached Europe more than a thousand years ago and are still kept in Italy, the Balkans and Romania.
• Mozzarella - In southern Italy, water buffalo milk is used to make mozzarella di bufala Campana.
• Feral buffalo - Water buffalo released in northern Australia have become feral and damage wetlands.

Buffalo are important in the cultures of Asia and Africa, linked with strength, farming, wealth and death.

The buffalo in cultural symbolism

The status of buffalo depends on the species: domestic buffalo are very numerous, while several wild species are endangered.

Main threats to buffalo

• Habitat loss - Farming and deforestation reduce the habitats of wild buffalo.
• Poaching - African buffalo are hunted illegally for meat, and wild Asian buffalo have been hunted heavily.
• Interbreeding - Wild water buffalo breed with domestic buffalo, which threatens their genetic purity.
• Diseases - Livestock can pass diseases such as bovine tuberculosis to wild buffalo.
• Conflicts with farmers - Wild buffalo sometimes damage crops, which leads to conflicts with people.

Conservation status (IUCN)

Conservation efforts

• Protected areas - Parks in India, Nepal and Thailand protect the last wild water buffalo, for example Kaziranga in India.
• Anti-poaching laws - African buffalo are protected in many national parks, and hunting is regulated.
• Breeding and monitoring - The tamaraw of Mindoro Island is counted every year and protected in national parks.

Buffalo often appear in films, books and online videos as powerful and sometimes dangerous animals.

Buffalo in films and television

• "Battle at Kruger" (2007) - A famous amateur video in which a herd of African buffalo rescues a calf from lions and a crocodile became a viral internet hit.
• Nature documentaries often show battles between buffalo and lions in the African savanna.

Buffalo in literature

• "The Jungle Book" (Rudyard Kipling) - In the story "Tiger! Tiger!", Mowgli uses a herd of buffalo to defeat the tiger Shere Khan.
• Hunting stories - The African buffalo is a famous and feared animal in classic African adventure books.