Horizon, the world's most expensive buffalo. Photo: Piet du Toit/Caters News
The African cape buffalo is worth $12.2 million because of his massive horn-span and extraordinary genes, both of which are enviable qualities for breeding animals strictly for big-game hunting.
His 56-inch-long horn-span is 20 inches above the average, according to a report by Caters News.
When Horizon impregnates a cow, the pregnant cow’s value more than triples — from about $54,700 to over $170,000.
The United States has no African cape buffaloes like Horizon. But its distant relatives, the water buffalo, number in the thousands here and go for the same price as purebred domestic cattle, about $4,000.
Horizon is shared by four South African businessmen, each holding a 25 percent stake in the animal. The latest was Peter Bellingham, who paid $3 million for his piece of the bull in February.
Piet du Toit, one of the bull’s four owners, spoke of his prize beast’s good genes.
“It is rare that a bull carries genetics to his next generation, sometimes a good bull has offspring that are not of great quality,” he said. “[Horizon’s] offspring have unbelievable genetics and we therefore know that we are guaranteed excellent offspring.”
There is a strict cap on the buffalo’s conjugal visits. Each owner can breed him with just 10 cows per year.
And it’s the Summer of Love for this bachelor — the next group of cows is scheduled to arrive in July.
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