Where to find them
There are about 1,200 heads of cattle spread out over various areas of Lantau Island and the New Territories. They’re most commonly found in Sai Kung and nearby Ma On Shan, with about 500 heads of the descendants of the original paddy cattle roaming about the country park and Sai Kung town centre.
There are about 300 on Lantau Island, particularly in Mui Wo and Pui O, and also in the Central New Territories. It’s harder to capture and track the cattle in more remote areas such as Northern New Territories, so the accurate number remains unknown.
The water buffalo prefers marshes and rivers in places like Kam Tin and South Lantau. They can usually be found in herds of up to 20 and they feast on the grass and vegetation growing around the wetlands. You’ll sometimes catch them taking mud baths when they dunk themselves in deep mud to get rid of insects.
Unlike the water buffalo, the brown cows can make a home anywhere, except on Hong Kong Island, it seems. Their herds can grow up to more than 100 heads, with a dominant male. They have a similar vegetarian diet to the buffalos.
You’ll most often catch these bovines sunbathing on Cheung Sha Beach in South Lantau, hanging out in grass patches in town in Sai Kung, or roaming lazily around Mui Wo. The herds in Mui Wo are descendants of the original herd at the Trappist Haven Monastery, which sustained small-scale operations of producing Trappist milk in the early 1960s until the early 1980s for residents in Lantau Island. They’ve also been caught at times getting into the supermarket in town to feast on fresh fruits and vegetables, or scavenging through trash.
If you live around the cow-populated areas and reckon you’ve seen the same cows every day, you very well may have—just check the number tag on their ears! Under the AFCD programme, cows are often relocated between Lantau Island, where you may even spot them near the Big Buddha and Sai Kung. This has caused many accidents and death after they become disoriented and wander through in attempts to get back home. Oh no!