Visit Night Safari, The World's First Wildlife Park For Nocturnal Animals, To See Oxen

By Isabel Cheng

Singapore - Chinese Zodiac sign of the „Ox signify prosperity through hard work. With the upcoming Year of the Ox, come and spot the six different types of cattle from the different “continents” at the Night Safari, as it is the only park to have numerous species from the bovine family. The six are the ankole, anoa, banteng, Cape buffalo, gaur and the water buffalo.

“Many associate the word ox to buffaloes. However, it is not confined to just buffalos but defines cattle that belong to the bovine family. At Night Safari, we have six different species from the bovine family,” says Mr Kumar Pillai, Assistant Director, Zoology, Night Safari. While they come in different colours and sizes, the ankole, anoa, water buffalo, Cape buffalo, banteng and the gaur do share a few similar bovine traits. They are generally big weighing between 500 kg to approximately 900 kg, with the exception of Anoa, the smallest buffalo species. They have horns and live in a herd with diets consisting of grass and leaves. There are however traits that are distinctive to each species.

Ankole: The ankole is found mostly in the African continent and are also known as the ankole longhorn or the watusi cattle. They have a distinctive horn which can grow to a length of 1.8m. Being hardy animals, they can survive without much food and water. First domesticated thousands of years ago, these African cattle were kept for their milk and rarely for their meat as an owners wealth was determined by the number of animals they have. Considered sacred, these animals were slaughtered during rituals and tribal ceremonies. Anoa Found only in Sulawesi. Indonesia, the shy anoas live in the lowland forest. They are the smallest wild cattle and weighs about 150 – 300 kg. Unlike other cattle, anoa lives singly or in pairs. It gives birth to one calf each year and has a gestation period of about 9 months. The anoa is feared by the locals as its horns are short and sharp and can delivers a fatal blow when it charges. On occasions white spots can sometimes be seen between the eyes. They are classified as endangered (IUCN status) due to hunting and habitat destruction.

Banteng: Ranging from Myanmar, Thailand and Laos to Borneo and Java, the banteng lives in flat, dry, deciduous forests and live in a herd of 20 to 60 animals. Both male and female have horns. In the herd, the males will stand out because of its larger size and darker, almost black coat, while the females and young are chestnut brown in colour. The white patch on its legs gives it an appearance of “wearing white stockings.” Matured males stand at about 1.5m and weigh between 600 kg to 800 kg. In the wild, living in a herd offers protection from predators such as tigers which usually stalk lone males. 

Banteng has a keen sense of smell and hearing and is considered as the mostly likely ancestor of the domestic cattle in Southeast Asia. In Bali, because it has been extensively domesticated, it is known by its local name Bali cattle. In areas with intensive farming activities, hybridisation with domestic cattle threatens the genetic purity of the banteng. There are fewer than 5,000 banteng in the wild.

Cape Buffalo: Unlike the banteng, the Cape buffalo is found in African savannas including areas near swamps and rivers. Of all the wild cattle, the Cape buffalo is the most feared as it is highly unpredictable. Adult males can weigh as much as 900 kg and have massive horns that spread outward and upwards which resembles a „shield covering the entire forehead. From the front, the horns look like a „W with a shallow centre. Females have shorter horns. Cape buffaloes move in a herd keeping the weak and the young in the centre to give maximum protection against predators such as lions. When threatened, cape buffaloes may charge at intruders at 57 km/hr and with its powerful horns would-be predators may be gored to death. To seek respite from hot weather and to ward off insects and other parasites, Cape buffaloes wallow in muddy water holes and coat themselves with mud.

Gaur :The gaur is found in the forested hills and fringes of Nepal, India, Indochina and the Malay Peninsula. It is the largest wild cattle in the world. The male is endowed with a muscular hump a bulging forehead ridge between the horns and are dark brown, while the females are much lighter and lack the muscular hump on their shoulders.
Gaur move around in herds which may consist of several bulls, females and the youngs. In forest fringes where domestic cattle are kept, bull gaurs may mate with domestic cows to produce „selembu (seladang means gaur and lembu means cow in the Malay language) The gaur produces different calls. When alarmed, it gives out a whistling snort. Bull gaur roars during mating period and make “herd calls” to halt or gather the herd.

Water Buffalo: An extremely hardy and adaptable animal, water buffalo has been widely domesticated and is able to survive in varying conditions in Asia, Middle East, Australia, Africa and also the Amazon. Like the Cape buffalo, the water buffalo is fond of coating its skin in mud to cool off and to protect it insects. Unlike its wild cousins, water buffaloes are small weighing less than 500 kg while those in the wild weigh between 800 and 1200 kg. Domestic water buffaloes are valuable livestock as they are highly adapted to swampy areas and are well suited to plough paddy fields. Water buffaloes yield good quality leather, meat, milk and butterfat. Its milk is used for the production of cheese, including mozzarella cheese.

About Night Safari: Night Safari, the worlds first wildlife park for nocturnal animals is a seven-time winner of the Best Leisure Attraction Experience, awarded by Singapore Tourism Board. It aims to preserve biodiversity and to undertake public education, research and collaboration as well as maintain and update the exhibits in the most humane, naturalistic and yet efficient manner. This internationally acclaimed leisure attraction embodies innovation and creativity in products and services, and service quality, thus attracting more than 1.1 million visitors yearly. The attraction offers eight geographical zones, which can be explored either on foot via three walking trails, or by tram. Over 1,000 animals from 120 species (of which almost 30% are threatened species) inhabit the 40-hectare park. Night Safari is part of Wildlife Reserves Singapore. The Park is a designated wildlife rescue centre by the governing authority.

Photo #1 Banteng

Photo #2 Ankole