ARTIODACTYLA

Artiodactyla Id code: amd027

Bovidae
Syncerus caffer

(Sparrman, 1779)

(Eng) African buffalo

(Fre) Buffle d'Afrique

Taxonomic notes

No significant taxonomic notes.

IUCN threat category

Lower Risk, conservation dependent (LR: cd).

Available information

A vast amount of literature on the African buffalo is available and its ecology has been widely studied especially in East Africa.

East Africa: The main works on the ecology of the species are by Sinclair (1977) and Prins (1996). The authors studied this species for several years in the Serengeti Plains and at Lake Manyara respectively. Most aspects of the ecology of the species are widely discussed by the authors. Diet and feeding strategies have been investigated by Field (1975), Grimsdell & Field (1976), Sinclair & Gwynne (1972) and Versy-Fitzgerald (1974). Information on the diet and spacing patterns is found in Leuthold (1972). The only specific paper on habitat use is by Versey-Fitzgerald (1969), but some information on habitat requirements, particularly in relation to the impact on vegetation, can be found in several authors (Cumming, 1982; Plumptre, 1993). Patterns of movement and water availability are analysed in Western (1975). Population structure, herd size, and density are discussed in Eltringham (1980), Eltringham & Din (1977), and Sinclair (1973, 1974a, 1974b, 1974c, 1974d). Notes on the presence of the species in Somalia and Ethiopia are found in Funaioli (1971), Varty (1988) and Yalden et al., (1996).

West and Central Africa: The ecology of the species, particularly habitat use, diet, and coexistence with other ungulates, in the Baoulé district is described by De Bie (1991). In Nigeria, habitat use has been investigated in a savanna area (Afolayan & Ajani, 1980) and in a forested area (Osemeobo, 1988). Some information on habitat is also given by Gautier-Hion et al. (1980) who focused mainly on the diet of a community of coexisting herbivores in Gabon. Data on population density and species' presence are available for several areas (Ajayi et al., 1981; Ayeni, 1980; Geerling & Bokdam, 1973; Grettenberger, 1984; Mertens, 1985; Stark, 1986; Verschuren, 1975).

Southern Africa: A complete account of the main aspects of the ecology of the species is given by Mills & Hes (1997) and Skinner & Smithers (1990). A study on habitat selection and spacing patterns was conducted by Funston et al. (1994) in north-eastern Transvaal (South Africa). In Zimbabwe, feeding habits have been investigated at Lake Kariba by Taylor (1989), while the effects of drought on population movements and number in the Zambesi woodland are described by Dunham (1994). Buffalo population has recently been monitored in Botswana (Anonymous, 1993, 1994a, 1994b, 1995a, 1995b, 1995c). Some data on presence and population numbers are also available for South Africa (Lynch, 1983, 1989; Rowe-Rowe, 1994). General information on the ecology and distribution is found in Estes (1991), Kingdon (1997) and Stuart & Stuart (1997).

Known extent of occurrence

Widely distributed south of the Sahara, the African buffalo occurs from Senegal to south Ethiopia and southwards to South Africa (Wilson & Reeder, 1993; East, 1996). Its distribution map was obtained from Skinner & Smithers (1990) (Fig. 8.6.34.a). Dr. R. East revised it (23 June ‘97) and remarked that the buffalo range would be more accurate if marked as "possible", with presence "certain" only in protected areas.

Categorical-discrete (CD) distribution model

The species can live in a variety of vegetation types, from forest to semi-arid zones near permanent water. Open savanna is preferred, although the forest race occupies more closed habitats, both in lowland and montane areas (De Bie, 1991; Wilson, 1989; Geerling & Bokdam, 1973; Osemeobo, 1988; Kingdon, 1997; Mills & Hes, 1997; Stuart & Stuart, 1997; Prins, 1996).

Based on these environmental preferences, the following scores were assigned (Fig. 8.6.34.b) (Tab. 8.6.34.a):

Score
1	Forests and savannas occurring inside a 10-km buffer around permanent water.
2	Dense thicket and woodland occurring inside a 10-km buffer around permanent water.
3	Croplands; all vegetation types occurring outside a 10-km buffer around permanent water.

suitable		moderately suitable		unsuitable		Total
km²	%	km²	%	km²	%	km²	%
9 054 938	80	249 862	2	2 060 509	18	11 365 309	100

Tab 8.6.34.a: Cumulative size (km²) of areas pertaining to each environmental suitability class within the Extent of Occurrence.

	Number Patches (NP)	Mean Patch ize (MPS) km²	Patch Size SD (PSSD) km²	Largest Patch Index (LPI) %	Mean Shape Index (MSI)	Area-Weighted Mean Shape Index (AWMSI)
suitable	699	13 511	339 239	92.05	1.27	30.86
moderately suitable	2 412	127	2 487	1.23	1.16	7.72
Total AO	442	22 059	441 944	95.4	1.27	25.62

Tab 8.6.34.b: Area of Occupancy fragmentation indexes.

Probabilistic-continuous (PC) distribution model

The output of the probabilistic-continuous (PC) distribution model is shown in Fig. 8.6.34.c.

Validation

% of EO in sample areas	Number of valid plots	Index of Accordance (%)
6.93	210	51.90

Tab 8.6.34.c: Categorical-discrete (CD) distribution model validation parameters.

Comments and conservation issues

Like many large distribution ranges, the EO of the buffalo tends to be imprecise along the margins. The CD model (Index of Accordance 51.9%) shows unsuitable areas in northern Kenya and eastern Ethiopia and also in Sudan. The effective separation of the small areas in Sierra Leone and Guinea should be verified. The greater part of the EO (80%) is classified as suitable. As the environmental preferences of the species are linked to water, it is natural that all areas have a very articulate shape (high AWMSI) even though they are sufficiently interconnected (the number of patches of AO is limited compared to the size of the overall AO). Less than 10% of the total AO is protected: as the species is heavily poached and hunted, the role of the protected areas is particularly critical.

SUITABILITY CLASS	inside	outside	Total
suitable	7.27	72.40	79.67
moderately suitable	0.33	1.87	2.20
unsuitable	1.94	16.19	18.13
Total	9.53	90.47	100

Tab 8.6.34.d: Percent of environmental suitability classes within EO (as obtained from the categorical-discrete distribution model) inside and outside the protected areas.

References

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