Ankole-Watusi cattle, a 6000-year-old breed, live in east-central Africa and can trace their ancestry back to the Nile Delta, where their ancestors lived about 4000 years ago.
Their enormous horns, bigger than those of any other breed, serve as a cooling system. The blood flows through them, dispersing the body heat of these large animals.
Daniel Semambo of the Uganda National Animal Genetic Resources Data Bank explains in this film why Ankoles must be protected.
Due to the farming practice of cross-breeding these hardy local animals with exotic breeds in order to produce more milk and meat, the numbers of purebred Ankoles is going down.
As communal pasture land reduces, and as droughts increase with more forests being cut, the government of Uganda is working with farmers to ensure the long-term viability of this ancient and resilient breed.
Ankole cattle also have cultural significance in marriage and other ceremonies of the people who raise them.
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