---
title: "What the sources say about the African Buffalo | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "30 claims from the African Buffalo profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/african-buffalo/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the African Buffalo (*Syncerus caffer*)

> 30 claims from the African Buffalo profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [African Buffalo](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/african-buffalo/)

## Syncerus caffer. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T21251A50195031.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2019-1.rlts.t21251a50195031.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Near Threatened | IUCN Red List category: Near Threatened (NT). (note: stats.conservationStatus; GBIF's copy of the Red List, checked against taxon id inside the DOI) |
| The IUCN Red List rates the species Near Threatened. | IUCN Red List category: Near Threatened (NT). (note: GBIF's copy of the Red List, checked against the taxon id inside the DOI) |

## Syncerus caffer (African buffalo). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Syncerus_caffer/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Grazes grass and sedges | After grazing grass and sedges (note: stats.diet) |
| Bulls that have been recorded fending off more than one lion | Bulls have been recorded to successfully fend off more than one lion (note: stats.superpower) |
| Lions are the main predators of any buffalo more than a year old | Lions (Panthera leo) are the primary predators of buffalo over a year in age. |
| Males have been known to approach lions from a kilometer away to chase them. | Males have been known to approach lions from one km away to chase them. (note: km spelled out) |
| They sometimes chase lions up trees and will kill a lion that fails to escape. | They sometimes chase lions into trees and will kill lions that fail to escape. |
| Bulls have been recorded fending off more than one lion, though they usually come away with severe injuries. | Bulls have been recorded to successfully fend off more than one lion, though this usually results in severe injuries. |
| is a very large even-toed ungulate, a hoofed mammal with a stocky build and heavy horns | African buffalo are very large, even-toed ungulates, characterized by their stocky build and heavy horns. (note: "hoofed mammals" is the page's gloss of ungulates) |
| Males of the largest subspecies, the Cape buffalo (S. c. caffer), can top 835 kg, females reach up to 500 kg, and the horns can span 130 cm. | In the largest subspecies, Syncerus caffer caffer , males can weight over 835 kg while females weigh up to 500 kg. Individuals in this subspecies stand 140 to 160 cm at the shoulder. The horn span is wide and can reach 130 cm. (note: "classic Cape or savannah buffalo" is S. c. caffer in the same account) |
| The forest buffalo (S. c. nanus) is much shorter, standing only 105 cm at the shoulder. | Syncerus caffer nanus individuals stand only 105 cm at the shoulder (note: nanus is the forest subspecies per the account ("rainforest regions")) |
| Buffalo are grazing ruminants. After a meal of grass and sedges, they have to chew their cud to pull more nutrients out of their food. | African buffalo are grazing ruminants ... After grazing grass and sedges, they must spend time chewing their cud, or bolus, to extract more nutrients from their food. (note: 'grazing ruminants' from 'African buffalo are grazing ruminants' in the sentence before) |
| A herd can be a handful of animals or more than a thousand. | congregate in herds ranging from a few individuals to over a thousand. |
| A stampede starts with one or a few buffalo and spreads as their neighbours join in. If the threat is confirmed and serious, it can run for up to a kilometer, or until the young buffalo are too tired to keep going. | Stampedes begin with one or a few individuals and spread as those nearby join the stampede. Stampedes last varying distances depending on how clear the threat appears. For a confirmed serious threat, stampedes can last up to a kilometer, or until young buffalo are too tired to continue. |
| Buffalo once roamed most of sub-Saharan Africa. Their range is now much smaller, and in many areas it is largely limited to reserves. | Historically, African buffalos were found throughout most of sub-Sahara Africa. Today their distribution is considerably reduced and in many areas largely limited to reserves. |
| They can live almost anywhere with permanent water and grass, from dense lowland forest and montane forest to coastal savanna and semi-arid bushland. | African buffalo can inhabit practically any habitat with permanent water and grass. They are found in dense lowland forests, lowland rainforests, montane forests and grasslands, Acacia grasslands, miombo ( Brachystegia ) woodlands, coastal savannas, plains and semi-arid bushland. |
| Their size, aggressive nature and formidable horns make them dangerous animals. | African buffalo are dangerous animals because of their size, aggressive nature, and formidable horns. |
| Newborns in captivity weighed 24 to 60 kg, 40 kg on average. Bigger mothers had heavier calves, and twins are very rare. | In captivity, newborns weighed between 24 and 60 kg, with a mean of 40 kg. Larger cows gave birth to heavier offspring, and twins are very rare. |
| How big depends on sex and subspecies. | African buffalo exhibit variable sizes based on both sex and subspecies. (note: paraphrase) |
| A buffalo stampede starts with one or a few animals and spreads as their neighbours join in. | Stampedes begin with one or a few individuals and spread as those nearby join the stampede. |

## African buffalo. African Wildlife Foundation.

https://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/african-buffalo

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A heavyweight, cow-like grazer whose bulls sometimes chase lions into trees. | Savanna buffaloes are large, heavy cow-like animals. (note: tagline; "sometimes chase lions into trees" quoted at the Males claim below; "grazer" at the diet claim) |
| Dense forest to open plains | Dense forest to open plains (note: stats.habitat) |
| It weighs about 300 to 835 kilograms (660 to 1,840 pounds) | About 300 to 835 kilograms (660 to 1,840 pounds) |
| stands about 1 to 2 meters tall | About 1 to 2 meters tall (4 to 5 feet) |
| The African Wildlife Foundation puts the lifespan at 11 to 22 years in the wild. | 11 to 22 years in the wild (note: attributed: AnAge says 'These animals live up to 18 years in the wild', so the wild maximum is disputed between the two current sources) |
| Herding together in large numbers is one of the buffalo's many defences against predators. In a big herd, lions find it harder to single out any one animal. | Congregating in large herds is one of their many anti-predator adaptations. Large herds decrease the possibility of any individual being singled out by lions. |
| A female has her first calf at four or five years old, and usually calves only every two years. A calf may suckle for as long as a year. | Females have their first calves at age four or five. They usually calve only every two years ... Calves are suckled for as long as a year |

## Syncerus caffer. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Syncerus_caffer

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The record in captivity, listed by the AnAge database, is 32.8 years. | Maximum longevity 32.8 years (captivity) |

## Condy et al. (1985). The duration of the foot-and-mouth disease virus carrier state in African buffalo (i) in the individual animal and (ii) in a free-living herd. Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.

https://doi.org/10.1016/0147-9571(85)90004-9

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Foot-and-mouth disease virus has been shown to persist in an individual African buffalo for at least five years. | foot-and-mouth disease virus was shown to persist in individual African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) for up to at least five years |
| In one small, isolated wild population of 30 to 100 buffalo, two types of the virus kept going for at least 24 years, through several generations of buffalo. | In a small isolated free-living population which varied from 30 to 100 buffalo, two immunological types of foot-and-mouth disease virus were maintained for at least 24 years and through several generations. |