The Widowmaker

 

A Cape buffalo doesn't look — it glares. Quick to anger and built to win an argument, Cape buffalo are among the most dangerous animals in Africa. Meet an amazing creature that has earned its nickname: the widowmaker.

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A lion stalks a herd of Cape buffalo in South Africa's Kruger National Park. The young lion had enough friends with him to back up the menace. 

The largest Cape buffalo bulls can weigh 2,000 pounds. They are often covered in mud to help ward off biting flies.

Bulls form bachelor herds outside breeding season. These two were hanging out in the tall grass of Kruger National Park. Most lions won't mess with them.

Buffalo can be found individually or living in enormous herds like this one in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda.

Most of the time, buffalo behave like domestic cows, grunting and placidly grazing with their tail constantly swishing away flies. But there is a reason people get hurt every year underestimating them. Even experienced wildlife experts can get into trouble when Cape buffalo are around. An injured bull surprised and nearly killed renowned lion filmmakers Dereck and Beverly Joubert at their bush camp in Botswana.

They have a hard bony plate on their head surrounded by keratin, the material that makes our fingernails. you can see all the weathering on this closeup. It’s as hard as petrified wood.

Like other grazers, buffalo try to follow the rains to greener pastures.

Cape buffalo often feed in tall grass, which helps clear foliage for other grazers. 

Life is hard. Besides the constant threat of lions, they are tormented by biting flies.

Buffalo take shelter from the flies in a waterhole at Murchison Falls National Park. These poor animals were plagued by tsetse flies, which are like greenheads on steroids. Just one tsetse fly got into our truck and it took three of us to subdue it with a rolled-up magazine and heavy artillery.

These poor animals looked genuinely miserable. The flies targeted their sensitive ears and faces. 

A buffalo in Uganda relaxes in the tall grass.

A bull has horns with an enormous full curve in Uganda. Their ears are often torn and I wonder if it's from constantly rubbing against the horns.