Large "African Buffalo" Serpentine Shona Stone Sculpture Hand Carved in ZimbabweProduct DescriptionHere is an amazing Shona sculpture of an African Buffalo. Look at the detail in workmanship in this hand carved Shona sculpture fashioned out of a wondeful Serpentine Stone from Zimbabwe and polished to a high lustre. Serpentine stone boasts an array of colors that cannot be described. No one stone is alike. The reason for this is the many mineral inclusions within the stone giving its unique color variation. The name "Serpentine" comes from an association with the characteristics of a serpents skin. Serpentine is the most commonly used stone because of the varying hardness for both master sculptors, as well as his apprentice. Serpentine rates between 2.5 to 5.5, depending on mineral inclusions, on the universally used Mohs hardness scale,a diamond rates at 10. Shona Sculpture is unique to Zimbabwe where this art form has been perfected over generations. This would make a terrific and exotic gift for someone special and would look good on a small table or on a bookshelf. Please check the images for dimensions or contact me for specifics. Thanks for looking and helping to support the artists. Weighs about 39.25lbs! Thanks for looking.African BuffaloFrom Wikipedia:TheAfrican buffalo,affalo,nyati,MbogoorCape buffalo(Syncerus caffer) is a large Africanbovine. It is not closely related to the slightly largerwild Asian water buffalo, but its ancestry remains unclear. Owing to its unpredictable nature which makes it highly dangerous to humans, it has not beendomesticatedunlike its Asian counterpart thedomestic Asian water buffalo. Contrary to popular belief, the African buffalo is not the ancestor ofdomestic cattle, and is only distantly related to other larger bovines.DescriptionSkull of an African buffaloThe African buffalo is a very robust species. Its shoulder height can range from 1 to 1.7 m (3.3 to 5.6 ft) and its head-and-body length can range from 1.7 to 3.4 m (5.6 to 11 ft). Compared with otherlarge bovids, they are have a long but stocky body (their body length can exceed theWild water buffalowhich is rather heavier and taller) and short but thickset legs, resulting in a relatively short standing height. The tail can range from 70 to 110 cm (28 to 43 in) long. Savannah type buffaloes weigh 500 to 910 kg (1,100 to 2,000 lb), with males, normally larger than females, reaching the upper weight range. A record-sized savannah-type male weighed 1,000kg (2,200lb).[2]Forest type buffaloes, at 250 to 455 kg (550 to 1,000 lb), are only half that size.[3][4]Its head is carried low, its top located below the backline. The front hooves of the buffalo are wider than the rear, which is associated with the need to support the weight of the front part of the body, which is more powerful than the backSavannah type buffalo have black or dark brown coats with age. Old bulls have whitish circles around their eyes. Females tend to have more reddish coats. Forest type buffalo are reddish brown in colour with horns that curve out backwards and upwards. Calves of both types have red coats.Thehornsof African buffalo are very peculiar. A characteristic feature of them is the fact that the adult bull's horns have fused bases, forming a continuous bone shield referred to as a "boss," which can not always be penetrated even by a rifle bullet. From the base the horns diverge, then bend down, and then smoothly curve upwards and outwards. The distance between the ends of the horns of large bulls is more than a metre. The young buffalo horn boss forms fully only upon reaching the age of 5–6 years. In cows the horns are, on average, 10-20% less, and the boss is less prominent. Forest buffalo horns are much smaller and weaker than those of the savannah buffaloes and are almost never fused. They rarely reach a length of even 40cm.Ecology:The African buffalo is one of the most successful grazers in Africa. It lives inswamps, floodplains as well asmopanegrasslandsand forests of the major mountains of Africa. Buffalo prefer habitat with dense cover such as reeds and thickets but can also been found in open woodland.While not particularly demanding with regard to habitat, they require water daily and therefore depend on perennial sources of water. Like thePlains zebra, the buffalo can live on tall, coarse grasses. Herds of buffalo mow down grasses and make way for more selective grazers. When feeding, the buffalo makes use of its tongue and wideincisorrow to eat grass more quickly than most other African herbivores. Buffalo do not stay on trampled or depleted areas for long.Buffalo in waterOther than humans, African buffalo have fewpredatorsand are capable of defending themselves against (and killing)lions.Lions do kill and eat buffalo regularly and in some regions the buffalo are the lions’ primary prey. It typically takes multiple lions to bring down a single adult buffalo; however, there have been several incidents in which lone adult male lions have been able to successfully bring down large bulls. TheNile crocodilewill typically attack only old solitary animals and young calves, though they can kill healthy adults.Thecheetah,leopardandspotted hyenaare a threat only to newborn calves, though spotted hyenas have been recorded killing full grown bulls on rare occasions.Social behaviorHerd sizeis highly variable. The core of the herds are made of related females, and their offspring, in an almost lineardominance hierarchy. The basic herds are surrounded by sub-herds of subordinate males, high-ranking males and females and old or invalid animals. The young males keep their distance from the dominant bull, who is recognizable by the thickness of his horns.Bulls in position to sparDuring the dry season, male buffalo will split from the herd and form bachelor groups.There are two types of bachelor herds: ones made of males aged 4–7 yearsand those of males 12 years or older.During the wet season the younger bulls rejoin a herd to mate with the females. They stay with them throughout the season to protect the calves.Some older bulls cease to rejoin the herd, as they can no longer compete with the younger, more aggressive males. Males have a linear dominance hierarchy which is based on age and size. Since a buffalo is safer when a herd is larger, dominant bulls may rely on subordinate bulls and sometimes tolerate their copulation.Buffalo herdAdult bulls will spar in play, dominance interactions or actual fights. A bull will approach another lowing with his horns down and wait for the other bull to do the same thing. When sparring the bulls twist their horns from side to side.If the sparring is for play the bulls may rub each other's faces and bodies during the sparring session. Actual fights are violent but rare and brief. Calves may also spar in play but adult females rarely spar at all.African buffalo are notable for their apparentaltruism. Female buffalo appear to exhibit some sort of "voting behavior". During resting time, the females will stand up, shuffle around, and sit back down again. They will sit in the direction they think that they should move. After an hour of more shuffling, the females will travel in the direction they decide on. This decision is communal and not based on hierarchy or dominance.[13]When chased bypredatorsa herd will stick close together and make it hard for the predators to pick off one member. Calves are gathered in the middle. A buffalo herd will respond to the distress call of a captured member and try to rescue it.A calf's distress call will get the attention of not only the mother but also the herd. Buffalo will engage inmobbing behaviorwhen fighting off predators. They have been recorded treeing lions for two hours, after the lions have killed a member of their group. Lion cubs can get trampled and killed. In one videotaped instance, known as theBattle at Kruger, a calf survived an attack by both lions and a crocodile after intervention of the herd.[edit]VocalizationsAfrican buffalo make various vocalizations. Many calls are lower pitched versions of those emitted bydomestic cattle. Buffalo emit low-pitched 2–4 seconds calls intermittently at 3-6 second to signal the herd to move. To signal to the herd to change direction, leaders will emit "gritty", "creaking gate" sounds.[6]When moving to drinking places, some individuals make longmaaa'calls up to 20 times a minute. When being aggressive, buffalo make explosive grunts that may last long or turn into rumbling growl. Cows produce croaking calls when looking for their calves. Calves will make a similar call of a higher pitch when in distress.When threatened by predators, buffalo make drawn aboutwaaaacalls. Dominant individuals make calls to announce their presence and location. A more intense version of the same call is emitted as a warning to an encroaching inferior.When grazing, buffalo will make various sounds such as brief bellows, grunts, honks and croaks.Cape buffalo and her calf[edit]ReproductionBuffalo mate and give birth strictly during the rainy seasons. Birth peak takes place early in the season while mating peaks later. A bull will closely guard a cow that comes into heat, while keeping other bulls at bay.This is difficult as cows are quite evasive and attract many males to the scene. By the time a cow is in full estrous only the most dominant bull in the herd/subherd is there.Cows first calve at five years of age, after agestationperiod of 11.5 months. Newly born calves remain hidden in vegetation for the first few weeks while being nursed occasionally by the mother before joining the main herd. Calves are held in the centre of the herd for safety.[14]The maternal bond between mother and calf lasts longer than in most bovids. However when a new calf is born the bonding ends and the mother will keep her previous offspring at bay with horn jabs. Nevertheless the yearling will follow its mother for another year or so. Males leave their mothers when t
