I spent this past weekend hunting Water Buffalo in South Texas. A good friend of mine tagged along, and was gracious enough to spend some time with us during the stalks, taking photos with his Nikon D90 as the hunt progressed. He was able to capture a truly outstanding series of photos when I shot my bull….

We had a great time hunting, and this bull made us work for him….with several failed stalks, but ultimately a successful end to the hunt with the bull being taken quickly and cleanly. He was an old mature bull that we estimated around 1,800 lbs.

I’ve always known Water Buffalo were tough, but I had no idea just how tough they actually were. The bull took four shots from my .375 H&H using 300 grain Swift A-Frames….with none of the shots producing exit wounds (this surprised me). First shot was in the center of the shoulder, second was behind the shoulder, third shot severed the spine, and fourth shot was in the shoulder as well. The bull only covered about 40-50 yards during the course of my shooting, and even I was surprised at how fast I was able to make follow-up shots on the bull as he was running at 120 yards. My adrenaline was pumping, my instincts took over….and I think also my years of competitive clay shooting contributed to my intense focus and quick shooting.

I hope everyone enjoys the photos….

Bull spotted….time to go after him….


Bull in the thick stuff, need to get closer for a clear shot….


The bull busted us, and this is right before he took off….


Wondering what to do next….


Walking a sendero later in the day….


Looking for the bull….


Bull has been spotted again (4 hours later)….


We spotted the bull on the far side of a pond, and he knew something was up. However, I did not feel comfortable taking a frontal shot….

I got into a better position against a brush line for a clean broadside shot. I am getting ready to shoot….


First shot (shoulder)….


Shot reaction, notice my hand is already on the bolt handle….


Chambering a second round….


Second shot, behind shoulder (notice the bullet impact)….


Third shot, spine (notice dust from bullet impact)….


Rear legs collapsing from spine shot….


Bull is down….


Moments after the fourth and finishing shot to his shoulder….


Drag marks from the bull’s rear legs on the dam of the pond….

Trophy photos….










Beautiful South Texas sunset (photo taken with my cell phone)….

Cool photos..Camera man was on the spot

awesome pictures! good job man! Lots of meat!!

Cool pics, nice camera work. Big critter.

Cool pics. Big ol' bull!

awesome! congrats!

Awesome pics bud!

Great Pics

Cool pics and story. Good shot too

Wow, awesome

Awesome photos, Congrats What was the .45 for? Just incase you ran out of 375's.

Awesome hunt/pics! Congrats on a great trophy!!

Congrats and great shooting!!!
I didn't think that water buffalo were that hrs to take down.....(considering the fact that my ancestry comes from a country where they are treated like cows)...until I saw a TV show in Australia where this old bull took 3 neck/shoulder area shots with a 416 before finally dieing.
Great hunt and great photography

Awesome hunt man, what a sweet camera man to have around!

what an adventure

They are extremely hard to kill. When in Vietnam...I shot one carrying 122mm rockets for the VC. Two 3 second bursts which is about 400 rounds...most of which hit the animal and he still was moving...then the rocket rounds obliterated him.

That is a massive animal, great photos!

Great photos and story. Shoulder mount forthcoming?

Impressive and amazing!

Great trophy, great experience and even greater photos, ejected shell caught in mid-air is unreal cool

Great photos, will make an awesome shoulder mount! Impressive horns!

I am actually getting a "table top" pedestal European mount done....

It's a skull mount on a short pedestal so that it can be displayed on a table, desk, etc...