Skip to content

Buffalo Gather Around Water and Forest as the Dry Season Arrives

Large herd of African buffalo at a waterhole
Research: Ecology · Conservation: Population & status

As the savanna dries out, water and shade become especially important for African buffalo (Syncerus caffer). In Ethiopia’s Gambella National Park, researchers found larger herds and greater use of forest during the dry season. Yet the buffalo continued eating much the same grasses and maintained a similar daily pattern of feeding and resting.

The team studied buffalo through the wet and dry seasons of 2022 and 2023. They recorded herds along 35 line transects, or fixed survey routes through different habitats. They also examined plant remains in dung and signs of grazing, and watched the animals’ daytime behaviour.

Larger herds and greater use of forest

Herds averaged about 66 animals in the wet season and 97 in the dry season. The share of records from open savanna fell from roughly 28% to 13%, while the forest share rose from 15% to 26%. Permanent wetlands remained important in both seasons, accounting for around 30–31% of records.

Buffalo occurred more often near water and where tree canopy cover was greater, and less often near settlements. The researchers point to the shade provided by forests and the water and green forage retained by wetlands as grasses in drier areas lose nutritional value.

Similar grasses and daily routines

Eleven grass species featured in the diet, with Urochloa mosambicensis the most common. The researchers found no clear seasonal change in the grass species eaten. Feeding accounted for about 30% of daytime activity in both seasons, peaking in the morning and late afternoon. Resting and mud wallowing became more prominent around midday.

The pattern suggests that buffalo respond to the dry season mainly by using different parts of the landscape. Access to water, shade and green grazing can therefore help them maintain their feeding habits and daily routines.

Population estimates were close to 4,600 animals in both study years, but were too uncertain to establish small changes. The researchers describe the population as stable in the short term, while stressing that the concentration of large herds into limited areas makes those places particularly important to protect.

They therefore recommend protecting wetlands, maintaining buffer areas near settlements and preserving movement corridors across national borders. If farming, livestock or other development encroaches on the areas buffalo depend on during the dry season, access to food and water could become more difficult.

Sources and image credit

  1. Deng, B. P., Takele, S., Rolkier, G. G., Shibru, S., & Barnabas, J. (2026). African buffalo in focus: population structure, habitat use, and systematic behaviour in Ethiopia (Gambella National Park). BMC Ecology and Evolution.Primary open-access research article published 17 September 2026. Publisher article and primary abstract checked. Field monitoring covered wet and dry seasons in 2022–2023, with 399 independent herd encounters. Annual abundance estimates were similar but imprecise, while dry-season habitat use shifted strongly toward permanent wetlands and forest.

Image: Large herd of African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) at a waterhole south of Lower Sabie, Kruger National Park, South Africa, photographed 29 January 2014. Photo: Bernard DUPONT. Source: Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.0. Representative waterhole image; not the Gambella study herd. · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Source

About this content: This story was produced with AI assistance within an editorial workflow developed by Wildlife Vagabond. Editorial responsibility remains with Wildlife Vagabond.How AI is used

Ecology

SPECIES IN THIS STORY

Species in this story

African Buffalo Syncerus caffer Explore species

Independent research and conservation news archive

Did you find this information useful?

Wildlife Vagabond is independently built and maintained. Voluntary support helps cover source verification, hosting and continued work on research and conservation news.

Support Wildlife Vagabond

The news archive will remain freely available.