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| SCIENTIFIC
CLASSIFICATION |
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| COMMON
NAME: |
African
cape buffalo, savannah buffalo |
| KINGDOM: |
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| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Mammalia |
| ORDER: |
Artiodactyla |
| FAMILY: |
Bovidae |
| GENUS
SPECIES: |
Syncerus
(together horns) caffer |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
Large,
dark brown to black hoofed mammal, with drooping
fringed ears and large curved horns |
| MALE |
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| FEMALE |
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| SIZE: |
1.0
to 1.7 m (3.3 - 5.6 ft.) tall at shoulder; 2.1 to
3.4 m long (7 - 11 ft.) |
| MALE |
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| FEMALE |
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| WEIGHT: |
425
to 900 kg (935 - 2000 lb.), females are smaller
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| MALE |
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| FEMALE |
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| DIET: |
Herbivore
that eats tall, coarse grasses |
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| GESTATION: |
11.5
months |
| ESTRAL
PERIOD |
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| NURSING
DURATION |
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| SEXUAL
MATURITY: |
Between
3.5 and 5 years |
| MALE |
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| FEMALE |
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| LIFE
SPAN: |
15
to 25 years |
| MALE |
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| FEMALE |
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| RANGE: |
Eastern
and southern Africa; central Africa (smaller subspecies
- forest buffalo) |
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| HABITAT: |
Open
savannahs and grasslands near a permanent source
of water; forests (smaller subspecies - forest buffalo) |
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| 1. |
The
horns of the cape buffalo are an excellent indication
of age and gender. The females and young males do
not have the hard shielding that protects the base
of the skull in large adult males. |
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| 2. |
Cape
buffalo are extremely social and live in large,
mixed herds of up to 2000 members! Both sexes have
a separate hierarchy, with males dominant over females.
Members of the same subgroup will stay in direct
contact with each other and will often sleep with
their heads resting on one another. |
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| 3. |
The
African buffalo, which is often confused with the
Asian water buffalo, shares many of the same characteristics
but is considered a separate species. |
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| 4. |
Cape
buffalo are always within a day's walk of a water
source. This is especially true in the dry season
when they are eating dried grasses. |
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| 5. |
Cape
buffalo have the reputation of being dangerous when
they are cornered or injured. There are many tales
told by big game hunters earlier this century of
injuried buffalo turning back and goring or killing
the shooter. |
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Cape
buffalo, by living in large herds and eating tall
coarse grasses, play a vital role in the ecology
of the grasslands. Many of the smaller grazers
are unable to digest the tall grasses, and the
tall grasses may prevent them from getting to
the shorter, more palatable grasses in the absence
of buffalo.
Competition
for food sources by non-native species such as
goats and cattle have challenged the native African
grazers. However, the introduction of foreign
diseases from non-native species remains the biggest
threat. Currently the national parks of Africa
are taking great steps to protect their native
wildlife against Bovine Tuberculosis. While this
does not have a serious effect on domestic cattle
it can decimate the herds of cape buffalo and
their prey species such as lion and hyena.
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| Estes,
Richard D. The Safari Companion.
Post Mills, Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing Co.,
1993. |
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| MacDonald,
David. The Encyclopedia of Mammals: 2.
London: George Allen & Unwin Co., 1985. |
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| Nowak,
Ronald M. Walker's Mammals of the World.
Fifth edition. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University
Press, 1991. |
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