A heavy caliber is essential as this thick skin animal is tough and can take a pounding before going down. I reccommend a heart shot as this is effective and offers the hunter the largest kill zone. The most likely position for a Cape Buffalo to be in when taking a the shot is either head on or off-sided. In both these positions the bullet has to travel a long way before penetrating to the heart. Use hardened soft nose ammunition as the bullet needs to penetrate through a thick skin, then has to go through thick muscle and breast bone. Shot distance will be 50 to 100 yards.

WOUNDED CHARGING CAPE BUFFALO

Africa's Cape Buffalo is well known for the number of fatalities on hunters. From there the name "Africa's Black Death". It is reccommended to load a solid brass round for the second round in case of a hunt turning bad. The only way to stop a charging buffalo is a brain shot. Bullet placement is essensial but it is not easy to hit the brain on a moving target. In a case where the brain is missed, the solid brass point will penetrate deep enough and hopefully hit the spinal chord that may stop the charging cape buffalo. Therefore a solid brass bullet gives the hunter a second chance.

Cape buffalo will rarely chrage directly after the first shot. It can run for many miles when wounded. This is when they lead you to an ambush. Wounded Cape Buffalo will go for thick cover, then wait. They normaly lead you to a upwind position as they rely heavely on their smell. Tracking a wounded Cape Buffalo is dangerous and should be done with extreme caution.

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