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S P O R T I N G C L A S S I C S 1 5 1 challenging quarry for the bowhunter. Fortunately, the terrain proved well-suited to the close-range stalking opportunities we needed in order to kill them cleanly. The animals usually spent the night grazing in open fields near the tideline, then moved uphill during the morning to wallow and sleep in the shade. The ridges were studded with gum trees and leafy, green cycads, which often provided cover while we maneuvered into point-blank bow range. At that time of year—summer on our calendar but the dry winter in Australia—the land felt parched, even though we were rarely out of sight of the sea. The only fresh water was in stagnant pools in otherwise dry creek beds. The pools provided wallows for the buffalo and ambush sites for the crocodiles. Wallabies constantly exploded from underfoot, and the tree canopy rang with constant chatter from a menagerie of cockatoos and parrots. The local Aboriginal population lies on the distant western end of the island, concentrated around the village of Snake Bay. The only people inhabiting the area near our camp were Laurence staring at us as if someone had just shot his dog. Dan maintained a tight grip on his bow, although the animal's frontal angle offered no opportunity for a shot. With my arm around the nearest eucalyptus, I was busy wondering whether I could still shinny up a tree as quickly as I could when I was a kid. A backup rifle would have lessened the palpable tension in the air, but we didn't have one. In a fit of bravado, we'd decided to leave our firearms behind. The ensuing 20 minutes provided our introduction to what I now call the buffalo stare. The bull bored holes through us with his eyes and ran his tongue over his nostrils to help him identify our unfamiliar scent. Dan remained frozen, waiting for the bull to turn and expose his ribs, although none of us was sure that taking a shot would be a particularly good idea. Finally, something broke the spell, and the massive animal turned with a snort and cantered away. Then we headed back to camp ahead of the lengthening shadows to wash our dry mouths out with cold beer and rethink our approach to bowhunting Asiatic buffalo. A ustralia differs more from the rest of the world than any place I've ever visited. Among other things, no placental mammals are native to the continent. Most are marsupials like our opossum, and then there is the platypus, the world's only egg- laying mammal. The dingo apparently derived from canine stock introduced from Asia by Malay traders. Early colonists quickly began filling in this blank spot in their new home's fauna by importing ungulates ranging from camels to six species of deer. The buffalo arrived from Asia in the 1820s. The idea was to domesticate them as a source of meat and hides. While that may have seemed like a good idea at the time, the huge bovines quickly proved unmanageable. Impossible to confine, they spread across the remote Northern Territory where large free-ranging populations persist to this day. Asiatic buffalo are massive beasts, with mature bulls frequently weighing more than a ton. Their size and belligerent disposition make them a particularly