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The water buffalo or domestic Asian water buffalo (''Bubalus bubalis'') is a large bovid originating in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and China. Today, it is also found in Europe, Australia, and some American countries. The wild water buffalo (''Bubalus arnee'') native to Southeast Asia is considered a different species, but most likely represents the ancestor of the domestic water buffalo.〔Lau, C. H., Drinkwater, R. D., Yusoff, K., Tan, S. G., Hetzel, D. J. S. and Barker, J. S. F. (1998). Genetic diversity of Asian water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis): mitochondrial DNA D-loop and cytochrome b sequence variation. ''Animal Genetics'' 29(4): 253–264.〕 Two extant types of water buffalo are recognized based on morphological and behavioural criteria – the river buffalo of South Asia and further west to the Balkans, Egypt, and Italy, and the swamp buffalo, found from Assam in the west through Southeast Asia to the Yangtze valley of China in the east.〔〔Cockrill, W. R. (ed.) (1974). ''The husbandry and health of the domestic buffalo''. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome.〕 The origins of the domestic water buffalo types are debated, although results of a phylogenetic study indicate that the swamp type may have originated in China and was domesticated about 4,000 years ago, while the river type may have originated from India and was domesticated about 5,000 years ago.〔Yang, D. Y., Liu, L., Chen, X., Speller, C. F. (2008). (Wild or domesticated: DNA analysis of ancient water buffalo remains from north China ). ''Journal of Archaeological Science'' 35: 2778–2785.〕 Water buffalo were traded from the Indus Valley Civilisation to Mesopotamia, in modern Iraq, 2500 BC by the Meluhhas.〔McIntosh, J. (2008). (The Ancient Indus Valley: New Perspectives ). ABC-CLIO, Santa Barabara.〕 The seal of a scribe employed by an Akkadian king shows the sacrifice of water buffalo.〔Khan, G., Church, S. K., Harding, R., Lunde, P., McIntosh, J., Stone, C. (2011). (The First Civilizations in Contact: Mesopotamia and the Indus ). The Civilizations in Contact Project, Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Cambridge.〕 At least 130 million domestic water buffalo exist, and more human beings depend on them than on any other domestic animal.〔Scherf, B. D. (2000). ''World watch list for domestic animal diversity''. Third edition. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome.〕 They are especially suitable for tilling rice fields, and their milk is richer in fat and protein than that of dairy cattle. The large feral population of northern Australia became established in the late 19th century, and smaller feral herds are in New Guinea, Tunisia, and northeastern Argentina.〔 Feral herds are also present in New Britain, New Ireland, Irian Jaya, Papua New Guinea, Colombia, Guyana, Suriname, Brazil, and Uruguay.〔Long, J. L. (2003). Introduced Mammals of the World: Their History, Distribution and Influence. Csiro Publishing, Collingwood, Australia. ISBN 9780643099166〕 ==Characteristics== The skin of river buffalo is black, but some specimens may have dark, slate-coloured skin. Swamp buffalo have a grey skin at birth, but become slate blue later. Albinoids are present in some populations. River buffalo have comparatively longer faces, smaller girths, and bigger limbs than swamp buffalo. Their dorsal ridges extend further back and taper off more gradually. Their horns grow downward and backward, then curve upward in a spiral. Swamp buffalo are heavy-bodied and stockily built; the body is short and the belly large. The forehead is flat, the eyes prominent, the face short, and the muzzle wide. The neck is comparatively long, and the withers and croup are prominent. A dorsal ridge extends backward and ends abruptly just before the end of the chest. Their horns grow outward, and curve in a semicircle, but always remain more or less on the plane of the forehead. The tail is short, reaching only to the hocks. Height at withers is for males, and for females. They range in weight from , but weights of over have also been observed.〔 ''Tedong bonga'' is a black pied buffalo featuring a unique black and white colouration that is favoured by the Toraja of Sulawesi.〔Priyanto, D., Suradisastra, K. (2010). (''Ko-evolusi dan Panarchy: Integrasi Ternak Kerbau dalam Sistem Sosial Etnis Toraja'' ). Seminar dan Lokakarya Nasional Kerbau 2010〕 The swamp buffalo has 48 chromosomes; the river buffalo has 50 chromosomes. The two types do not readily interbreed, but fertile offspring can occur. Buffalo-cattle hybrids have not been observed to occur, and the embryos of such hybrids do not reach maturity in laboratory experiments. The rumen of the water buffalo has important differences from that of other ruminants.〔Wanapat, M.; Ngarmsang, A.; Korkhuntot, S.; Nontaso, N.; Wachirapakorn, C.; Beakes, G.; Rowlinson, P. (2000). ''A comparative study on the rumen microbial population of cattle and swamp buffalo raised under traditional village conditions in the northeast of Thailand''. Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences 13 (7): 918–921.〕 It contains a larger population of bacteria, particularly the cellulolytic bacteria, lower protozoa, and higher fungi zoospores. In addition, higher rumen ammonia nitrogen (NH4-N) and higher pH have been found as compared to those in cattle. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Water buffalo」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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