2 24 THE OX AND ITS KINDRED 
The forehead is highly convex and vaulted. When 
fully adult, buffaloes have the hide but sparsely covered 
with hair, while in old age it may be almost bare. 
Other characteristics of buffaloes are the large ears, 
which may be thickly fringed with long hair, the broad 
muzzle, the short, deep neck, heavy body, in which 
the line of the back is nearly straight, without any 
ridge or hump on the withers, the thort, thick limbs, 
and the moderate length of the tufted tail. All the 
species appear to have thirteen pairs of ribs. The 
larger kinds are bulky, ungainly animals, which differ 
from other wild cattle in their partiality for wallowing 
in mud, or standing up to their necks in water. They 
associate in herds which may number hundreds of 
individuals ; and they are, for the most part, surly and 
ferocious in disposition. Although fawn-coloured 
buffaloes are known in India, and red ones common 
on the west coast of Africa, black is the characteristic 
buffalo-colour ; and it is particularly noteworthy that 
in most cases this specialised sable livery is common 
to both sexes. 
The arna or wild Indian buffalo is so like a 
large edition of some of the domesticated breeds of 
the species, of which two portraits are given on 
Plate XIX, that it will be unnecessary to give a figure 
in this place. As a species, the Indian buffalo is 
characterised by the long and relatively narrow head, 
and the great length of the horns, which taper 
regularly from base to tip, and are separated from 
one another by a wide space on the forehead ; their 
direction is largely outwards, but, as will be noticed 
later, there is a racial difference in this respect. The 
ears are relatively narrow, and not bordered with 
a fringe of long hairs. Black is the normal colour, 
