Research shows that water buffalo are very affectionate, like to make friends, and will play with anyone they like.

It seems that finding a true friendship in this world is difficult.

In the animal world, there are stories of friendship that surprise us. A dog plays with a cat, a monkey befriends a giraffe, or even strange relationships between humans and dolphins.

As with humans, we often expect friendship to be sincere, selfless, and open. But in fact, with some animals, such as Japanese macaques, previous studies have shown that their friendships are fraught with calculation.

Japanese macaques maintain a hierarchical society and monkeys usually only befriend other monkeys who are considered to be of the same caste as themselves. Meanwhile, some try to befriend monkeys of higher caste in the troop to gain their favor, share more food, protect from conflict and avoid punishment when they make mistakes.

It is embarrassing to look at ourselves in the mirror, we humans also more or less notice a similar tendency. It seems that finding a sincere friendship in this world is really difficult.

Water buffalo - an animal often associated with the image of diligently plowing the fields, working hard under the hot sun.

But a team of researchers at the City University of Hong Kong recently said they have found a friendship that is sincere, unpretentious, and carefree in the animal world. It is the friendship between water buffalo .

That's right, water buffalo, an animal often associated with the image of hard-working plowing the fields, toiling under the scorching sun. Who would have thought that under that "dusty" appearance lies a heart full of emotions. When making friends, they do not care about the social status of other buffaloes, they do not make friends just to flatter, rely on the strength or power of the larger ones in the herd.

Water buffalo will play with each other, only if their personalities and interests match , regardless of age or bloodline. This conclusion was drawn after researchers used cameras to monitor the behavior of a herd of semi-wild water buffalo living in Hong Kong.

There's a Water Buffalo Paradise in Hong Kong

When mentioning Hong Kong, most people only imagine Kowloon Walled City, or the image of a megacity, with a terrible population density that makes land funds thoroughly exploited.

Few people know that inside this city, there is still a national park, with vast green grasslands, wetlands, and muddy swamps that become a paradise for water buffalo.

That's Lantau , an isolated island off the west coast of Hong Kong. Although the island is still home to more than 100,000 people, it's overcrowded. But Hong Kongers have set aside half of its land to maintain a country park, where scientists have attempted to reintroduce a herd of wild water buffalo to study their behavior.

Lantau Island is one of the few places where water buffalo live in the wild.

Not only do Lantau Island water buffalo live freely, not forced to work like in some other places, but they are also protected and respected by the local community. They live a leisurely life, freely roaming, foraging for food, and enjoying a slow pace of life in harmony with nature.

In terms of numbers, the water buffalo population on Lantau Island is currently estimated at 120–150 animals (according to recent reports from Hong Kong). In terms of size, the water buffalo population on Lantau is not among the top in terms of numbers.

Areas like India, Nepal, and Thailand have much larger populations of water buffalo, with thousands of animals. However, in terms of quality of life and almost "paradise" living environment , Lantau Island stands out and is unique, becoming a bright spot in the conservation of water buffalo in the wild.

This is one of the few places where water buffalo are allowed to live in the wild without human pressure. This has allowed scientists to study the animals closely, helping them learn about the buffalo's behavior that they never display in captivity and domestication.

Such as the ability to make friends

Like many other herd animals, water buffalo have social relationships, including siblings, relatives, and friends. And in a new study, three scientists from the City University of Hong Kong wanted to find out how water buffalo tend to form and maintain friendships.

" Personality similarity or similarity promotes strong social bonds known as friendships in humans and some non-human primates. However, we currently know very little about the "decision principles" that underlie friendships in other animals. 

"Therefore, in this study we observed a population of wild and free-ranging water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) to determine whether personality similarity promotes friendships between females in this social ungulate ," the scientists said.

Buffaloes with similar personalities tend to approach and play together more.

To do so, they placed cameras on a herd of more than 30 female water buffalo living on Lantau Island. The buffalo were classified by age, kinship, and especially personality, based on observations of their social behavior.

Scientists have identified seven main personality types in buffalo herds , including those that are sociable and enjoy grooming. Others are wary and avoidant, some are lazy and sit still, while others are active and playful. In contrast to some gentle buffalo, some are dominant.

Based on the pedigree, age, and personality of these buffaloes, scientists monitored their interactions with each other. They noticed a general trend, in which buffaloes with similar personalities were more likely to approach and play together. They often ate together, stayed together, and invited each other to play and roll around in the mud.

"Our study provides evidence that water buffalo friendships can form between individuals with similar behaviours . These findings provide valuable insights into the evolution of friendship ," said Dr Debottam Bhattacharjee, one of the study's co-authors from the City University of Hong Kong.

The friendship tendencies of water buffaloes according to their personalities have been statistically analyzed.

Why do animals value friendship?

In social species, including humans, 'bonds' within a social network, such as kinship, kinship, and friendship, have been shown to correlate positively with health, happiness, and even survival advantages for the organism.

Recent studies have shown that friendships not only appear in humans, but also in animals, and tend to be stable and long-lasting , forming beyond the scope of kinship relationships. Individuals within an animal species tend to form friendships with each other if the benefits of friendship outweigh the costs they incur to maintain that friendship.

For example, friendship promotes cooperation, which helps protect each other from danger. Dolphins and lions, for example, often work together in close groups to ensure safety. When they have trusted friends, the risk of being left behind or attacked is greatly reduced.

Friendship helps animals share information and resources . For example, in some species such as wolves or African wild dogs, friendship leads to a high level of coordination in hunting and defending territory.

Individuals that cooperate well often have a big advantage in survival compared to solitary individuals. Meanwhile, chimpanzees often cooperate and share food with close friends. This not only ensures a stable source of nutrition but also helps save energy when searching for food.

Next, friendships also increase the chances of animals reproducing , even if they are same-sex friendships. For example, some animals often seek out mates in groups. Sparrows often form "allies" of the same sex to help each other attract mates. Having many friends increases the chances of them attracting a large group of mates.

And finally, friendships, like ours, also help animals confide in each other, reduce stress, and improve their health. Studies have shown that friendships between animals, both within and outside their species, increase the hormone oxytocin, which promotes happiness and increases overall longevity.

Research shows that water buffalo are highly social animals.

So it's no surprise that water buffalo also make friends, graze together, and go mud bathing together. The new findings from this study are consistent with previous findings that water buffalo are highly social animals.

" Understanding the friendships between individual water buffalo can help us improve the welfare of this animal, making their conservation activities more optimal and effective ," the scientists concluded.