Common Name: Wild Water Buffalo
Scientific Name: Bubalus arnee
Family: Bovidae
Nepali Name: Arna ( अर्ना )
Size: 150 to 190 cm (shoulder height)
Location: Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal

In Nepal, the wild water buffalo exists solely in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, which is at an elevation of 75 to 81 meters above sea level. This wild water buffalo has a grayish-to-black complexion, coarse and thin hair, small ears, and a forehead tuft, and significantly surpasses the domestic water buffalo in size. It also weighs more than a domestic water buffalo, with a weight between 600 and 1,200 kilograms.

Classified as endangered due to challenges such as habitat degradation, hybridization with domestic buffalo, and human-wildlife conflict, conservation efforts have helped stabilize their population.

Playing a crucial ecological role in maintaining the grassland and wetland ecosystems, the wild water buffalo relies on a habitat comprised of wet grasslands, swamps, floodplains, and densely wooded river areas for its survival.

Please feel free to comment below if the above species has been misidentified.

Subscribe to Prakritinepal.com for blog updates. Stay informed!