Although there is no law that decrees the carabao to be a national symbol in the Philippines, it is generally considered by most Filipinos to be our national animal. The carabao (Filipino: kalabaw) or Bubalus bubalis carabanesis is a domesticated subspecies of the water buffalo found in the Philippines, Guam, and various parts of Southeast Asia. Carabaos are typically associated with farmers, being the farm animal of choice for pulling the plow and the cart used to haul farm produce to the market.

Adult carabaos weigh seven to eight hundred kilograms—almost 2,000 pounds—and have fairly long gray or black hair thinly covering their huge bodies. They have a tuft of hair on their forehead and at the tip of their tail. Normally, they are silent and docile, but they will give a trembling snort if they are surprised. Both male and female have massive horns. Since the carabao has no sweat glands, it cools itself by lying in a waterhole or mud during the heat of the day. Mud, caked onto its body, also protects it from bothersome insects.

The carabao eats grass and other vegetation mainly in the cool of the mornings and evenings. In some places of the world the carabao is a source of milk just like the cow. Its lifespan is 18 to 20 years and the female carabao can deliver one calf each year. - from wikipedia.com

Candaba, Pampanga.

06.01.08