Buffaloes: The Knights of the Jungle
There are three or four kinds of buffaloes that live in different
countries. The kind that lives in America you may have already heard
about. I am sorry to say that hunters have killed so many of them,
that there are very few buffaloes left in the United States now; and
these few are kept in parks.
So in this book I shall tell you about another kind of buffalo, that
lives in the jungles of India. These are the buffaloes that have to
live in herds just because they have to guard themselves from the
tiger. Yet they are much bigger than all other kinds of buffaloes in
the world. Many of them are more than ten feet long, and a span taller
than a tall man.
They have two huge horns which stand outward, one from each side of
the head. Each horn is at least a yard long; and there are some
buffaloes that have horns two yards long! (See the picture facing the
next page.)
So you can understand that this kind of buffalo is a strong and mighty
animal. But still, if just one buffalo tried to fight a tiger, the
tiger could kill him every time. Why?
Because the tiger is much _quicker_ than the buffalo. The tiger could
jump to the side to escape the buffalo's horns. Then the tiger could
turn quickly, and strike the buffalo on the neck from behind. And
though the buffalo's neck is very thick, the tiger himself is so
strong that he could break the buffalo's neck at one blow.
So, to guard against the tiger, the buffaloes have to live together
like a band of soldiers, so that the tiger never gets the chance of
catching just one buffalo alone.
Now I shall tell you how these buffaloes live. They live in a part of
the country where there is plenty of water, and lots of trees and
grass. There is sure to be a stream or two in the jungles there, like
the one where we saw the buffaloes drinking at midnight.
When the buffaloes are feeding in the jungle, and wandering here and
there to find good grass to eat, they always try to remain somewhere
near one of these streams.
Why do they do that? To drink, of course.
[Illustration: The Buffalo that lives in India]
And as the country is hot, they may want to drink more than once in
the day.
Still, there is another reason why they like to be near water. Can you
tell what it is?
"To bathe in the water, when it is hot," you may say.
That is quite true; the buffaloes do enjoy a good bath. In fact, they
like to remain in the water for a long time, when the sun is very hot.
Then they lie down in the shallow part, and remain neck deep in the
water. And every now and again they dip their heads in the water to
keep them cool.
But even when the sun is not at all hot, when the sky is cloudy, the
buffaloes like to go into a stream or a pond. Why?
"Of course to wash themselves, and make themselves clean," you may
say.
_Buffaloes Cover Body with Mud against Flies_
No, my dear, you are wrong this time! Like some little boys, buffaloes
do not _want_ to make themselves clean! In fact, the buffaloes go into
the stream or the pond to _cover themselves with mud_! To _wallow_, as
it is called. They do that by rolling in the mud where the water is
shallow.
And why do they want to cover themselves with mud? Because of the
tormenting flies! Buffaloes of this kind do not have long hair on
their necks, like the American buffaloes. In fact, they do not have
much hair anywhere on their bodies--just like the ordinary cows which
you have seen near your home. So they are very much tormented by the
flies.
I have told you that an elephant can "swat" the flies with a bough
which he holds in his trunk. But the buffalo has no trunk, and his
tail can whisk off the flies for only a yard around. So, what can the
buffalo do to guard other parts of his body from the flies?
The only thing he can do is to go down into the mud, roll about, and
cover himself with the mud. Then he does not feel the flies at all,
even if they swarm all over him. And he need not trouble to work his
tail at all, as he is protected all over by the mud.
And when he comes out to feed again, if the sun happens to be very hot
at that time, he does not mind it. Why? Because the mud on his body
keeps off the sun. So, you see, the mud is useful to the buffalo in
two ways.
But now come with me into the jungle while I show you all that the
buffaloes do.
You must _imagine_ that I am taking you quietly through the jungle,
where the buffalo herd is grazing right ahead of us. We are following
them from behind. You must be careful not to make a sound. If you
should tread on a rotten twig, the buffaloes would hear the sound as
far away as a quarter of a mile.
In another book I shall tell you why all animals that keep their _ears
close to the ground_ while they are feeding can _hear a sound a long
way off_.
But now let us hide behind this bush for a minute, and watch the herd.
They are eating the grass as they walk along. But do you see the
wonderful way in which they are arranged? It is just like the shape of
the moon when it is new, that is, something like the letter C, and
which we call a crescent.
You saw at the midnight pool that, when the buffaloes drink or march,
they are in rows close together, like soldiers. But when they are
eating grass, they could not be in rows; because then they would be
too close together to pick out the best bits of grass. So, how could
they have enough to eat, and yet guard themselves from danger? To do
this they thought of arranging themselves in the form of a crescent.
_How Buffaloes Guard against Tiger while Feeding_
It is a big crescent, as there are so many buffaloes that make it up.
The ends of the crescent bend in toward each other, just as if the two
tips of the letter C were to close up a little, leaving only a small
opening between the tips.
The buffaloes have their faces toward the _outside_ of the crescent.
So, as we are following the buffaloes from behind, we are looking at
them through the gap between the tips.
There are only bulls in the line making up the crescent; the cows and
the calves come behind them, so that they are _inside_ the crescent.
So you see, while the buffaloes are grazing and moving along, if they
meet any danger, the Papa buffaloes will face the danger. And as the
Mammas and the children are inside the crescent, they are quite safe.
This is the way the buffaloes feed and move along:
The Papas on the outside of the crescent tear off a mouthful of grass,
with one or two bites, and walk on a step or two while they are
munching the mouthful. Then, with another bite or two, they take a
fresh mouthful and walk on a step or two while they are munching that.
In this way they leave enough grass for the Mammas and the young
buffaloes that are following them.
But now let us come out of this thicket, and go after the herd very
quietly from behind. We shall see some wonderful things.
You notice at once that the Mammas and the children do not show any
fear at all, as they graze along; they are quite sure that the Papas
are taking good care of them all the time. The little ones even play
about here and there.
See that very young calf! He is playing about near the middle of the
space. He is only a few weeks old, and not much bigger than the calf
of the ordinary cow. Watch and see how playful he is! He is just like
any other calf. His Mamma is grazing along quietly, and he is now
standing still for a minute, looking at nothing. A calf and a baby can
do that quite well--just stare, and yet look at nothing.
But now this buffalo calf rushes to his Mamma very suddenly, and has
a mouthful of milk. He does not seem to want more than a mouthful at a
time. So he looks up suddenly, and stares. Then just as suddenly he
plunges into a frantic race over the ground, all by himself.
The race also ends suddenly--after going only ten yards. Then he stops
there for a minute, stares, and trots back to his Mamma for another
mouthful of milk. After that he looks up again for a minute, stares at
nothing, and plunges into another mad gallop all by himself.
So you see that he spends his time doing two things--having a mouthful
of milk, and then a mad gallop. And he does both very suddenly. He
likes to have his joys suddenly.
A kitten or a puppy dog is different, and is nearly always doing
something. It tumbles head over heels, or chases its own tail, or
keeps frisking about in some way or other most of the time. But the
buffalo calf is not like this; and when you see him standing quite
still, staring at nothing, you can never tell whether he is going to
be hungry for a mouthful of milk the next minute, or whether he is
going to break into a frantic race.
But, you may ask, while he and all the other calves are playing about
like that, is there no danger?
No, there is no danger, for the Papas are taking good care of the
Mammas and the children, as I have told you before.
But, you may say, the Papas do not seem to be doing anything; they are
just feeding and moving along. Then how are they taking care of the
Mammas and the children?
Yes, but look carefully! See how close the horn of one Papa is to the
horn of the next one! Why, there is not more than a couple of yards
between the two! If there were any sudden danger, it would not take
more than two or three steps for them to close up, and stand horn to
horn.
_How Buffaloes Know Danger is Coming--Three Ways_
"But how could they _know_ if any danger were coming?" you may still
ask.
They could know it in three ways: they could _smell_ the danger, or
_hear_ it, or _see_ it. I shall tell you how they do all that.
First, if the danger came from the direction in which the wind was
blowing, they would sniff the air, and so _smell_ the danger. If the
danger were a tiger, the buffaloes could smell him half a mile off;
that is about as far as ten blocks in a city. And if the wind were not
blowing that way, the buffaloes could still smell the tiger five
blocks away. They could smell the tiger, or any other danger, even if
it came from behind.
The second way of finding out the danger is to _hear_ it. As I said a
little while ago, if you should put your foot on a rotten twig, the
buffaloes could hear the sound of it as far off as five blocks. And
even if the danger came from behind, or from the side, or from
anywhere, they could still hear it coming, if it made the least bit of
sound that you and I could not hear.
The third way of finding out the danger is to _see_ it. The buffaloes
do that by keeping a lookout nearly all the time. I shall show you
how.
Just watch for a minute the buffalo in the middle of the crescent; he
is the leader of the herd. We can see him only from the back; but as
he is the biggest and tallest buffalo there, we can make him out quite
easily. He is grazing quietly, and then moving along.
But see, what is he doing now? Why, he is looking up, straight ahead
of him! No, he sees no danger there. So he gives a glance to his
right, and then to his left. No, there is no danger there either. So
he puts down his head, and starts feeding again.
Thus, you see, every now and again he looks to see that no danger is
coming from anywhere in _front_ of the herd.
But what if any danger came from the _side_ of the herd,--right near
the end of the crescent,--or even from the _back_ of the herd?
_Buffalo Sentinels_
Let us see what the two buffaloes at the two ends of the crescent are
doing. They are the watchers, or _sentinels_, as they are sometimes
called. They keep a lookout nearly all the time.
Do you see the one on our left? After every two or three mouthfuls he
stops, and takes a look around; he even looks right to the back. Then
he takes four or five strides to catch up with the herd, and starts
grazing again. Then in a minute or two he takes another look around in
the same way.
And the sentinel on our right is doing just the same. Yes, the herd is
quite safe; the two sentinels are sure to see if any danger comes
from their side or from the back.
"But will not the sentinels have less to eat, if they are watching
half the time?" you may ask.
Yes, that is quite true. So all the Papa buffaloes take turns being
sentinels. After a while the two sentinels from the ends move up
toward the middle, and the next ones then begin to keep watch. And
they keep changing places like that from day to day. That makes it
quite fair for everybody.
When they go to sleep also they are arranged in the form of a
crescent; but the two ends are closed up, so that the Papas make a
ring, while the Mammas and the children sleep inside the ring.
When the Papas lie down, they are closer together than when they are
feeding; and they still keep their heads pointed to the outside of the
ring, so that they can get up in a minute, and be quite ready to drive
off any tiger. Of course they have sentinels keeping watch all the
time.
But now let us see other wonderful things that the buffaloes do, while
they are feeding.
We must be very careful how we follow the herd. The ground is now
changing, and getting quite rough; so the grass is getting scarce here
and there. The buffaloes have not enough grass all the way; so they
have to walk on a few yards without eating, till they come to the next
patch.
Some of the buffaloes are even having a bite at fresh young shrubs in
passing, as they will eat anything green, when they have not enough
grass.
But see! The buffaloes are spreading out, as there are not even enough
shrubs in one place. You can see gaps in the line of buffaloes now.
And the gaps are getting bigger and bigger! Let us watch a few
minutes.
Now the gaps are very wide, as some of the buffaloes are lagging
behind; and some are turning too much to the side in trying to reach a
mouthful from a shrub or a bush here and there.
Why, what is happening now? Some of the buffaloes cannot even see one
another now, because of the bushes between them! What are the
sentinels doing? And what is the leader doing? Suppose a tiger
suddenly comes--
But do you _hear_ that?
"Moo! Moo!"
That is the leader. He has just found out that the herd is spread out
too far; so he is calling. He is saying, "Where are you?"
"Moo! Moo!" Do you hear that answer? It comes from the sentinel on the
right, who is very far away now; but still he has heard the call. His
answer means, "Here I am!"
And "Here I am!" comes the answer also from the sentinel on the left.
"Then close up!" cries the leader.
Each sentinel moves up toward the place from which he heard the
leader's voice come. And on his way there he tells all the buffaloes
he meets to move up also. Besides, all the buffaloes hear the leader's
voice too; so they begin to close up at once.
Is not that a wonderful way of bringing up all those that are lagging
behind?
But let us watch the herd again. They have closed up now, and there is
no big gap in their line. The ground is level again.
Let us move on from thicket to thicket, and come as near the buffaloes
as we can.
What is that? See! The sentinel on the right is looking hard at that
jungle grass far away to the side. This kind of jungle grass grows
very tall, taller than a man. But why is the sentinel staring at the
tall grass? What does he see there?
Yes, there, far away, something is happening! The jungle grass is
waving gently, but just in one place! What is making the tall grass
wave like that? Is it the wind? No, it cannot be the wind! Why not?
Because if it were the wind, _all_ the grass there would wave. Then
what is making the tall grass wave in just one place?
It can be only one thing! Some _animal_ is hiding there in the tall
grass! And as the animal is coming nearer and nearer to the buffaloes,
he is making the grass wave!
See, the sentinel has guessed that also! What is he doing now? Can you
_hear_ him? He gives a bellow, deep and long.
"Danger! Look out!" That is what he means.
The whole herd hears him. They all close up as near together as they
can!
Quick! Let us get up on that tree near by! _We_ are in danger as well
as the buffaloes!
One branch higher--and another! Now we are quite safe! But see what
the buffaloes are doing!
_Buffaloes Make a Ring when Tiger Comes_
The two ends of the crescent have come close together, and all the
Papa buffaloes have made a perfect ring around the Mammas and the
children. The Papas are facing the outside of the ring; so they can
meet the danger from whatever side it comes.
Why do they do that? Look again at the grass! The tall grass is waving
nearer and nearer. So, the animal that is in the grass is coming
nearer and nearer.
He comes right to the end of the tall grass. There he makes a gap in
the grass, and walks out into the open. It is a tiger!
He was trying to sneak up to the buffaloes; but the sentinel found
that out. And now the bull buffaloes are ready for him. The tiger
growls in rage. He prowls round and round the ring of bull buffaloes,
as you see in the picture. But he dare not try to break through those
horns.
He roars with fury, shaking the ground; it is just like thunder. The
jungle around is taking fright at the roar. See! All the small animals
rush out in fright--wild pigs, wild goats, and all sorts of small
deer.
[Illustration: The Tiger and the Ring of Buffaloes]
In their fright they run hither and thither very stupidly. That is
exactly why the tiger roars--he wants to make the small animals behave
so stupidly, in their fright, that some of them may make a mistake and
run straight into his jaws.
See! The small animals scatter to right and left, trying to reach a
bush or thicket. But some are cut off from safety, as the tiger stands
in their way. What can they do?
_Small Animals Find Safety in Buffalo Ring_
Yes, there is the ring of buffaloes! So those small animals rush
straight toward the ring and creep inside--and the buffaloes raise
their heads to make a way for them under the horns. Some of them, like
the wild goats, jump _over_ the buffaloes' horns to get inside the
ring. Anyway, the small animals reach safety inside with the Mammas
and the children of the buffaloes.
The tiger stands outside the ring, and still roars in fury. But now
nobody is afraid. The bull buffaloes paw the ground impatiently with
their hoofs, and rattle their horns. They are going to charge!
But that tiger does not wait for the charge. He does not want to be
trampled into a mess. So he slouches away, growling and snarling.
So, as you see, the bull buffaloes guard the Mammas and the children
from danger, and they also guard all small and weak animals that come
to them for safety.
Did I not tell you that the buffaloes are the Knights of the Jungle?
[Illustration: Tame Water Buffaloes Plowing in the Rice Fields]