Lantau lobby out of luck in its search for a lone buffalo ranger

A month-long search for a cowherd on Lantau has drawn a blank, despite offering pay of HK$100 an hour for 15 to 20 hours' work a month.

The post was advertised online in the hope of attracting environment-minded young people or animal-lovers to herd the island's wild buffaloes and cattle.

The advert, which the Lantau Buffalo Association has circulated by e-mail to conversation and environmental groups, has drawn only one applicant, who was ruled out because she lives too far away.

The association is seeking an 'on-call herdsman' to monitor buffaloes and feral cattle on the island and deal with reports from residents and the Agriculture Fisheries and Conservation Department about them approaching homes and fields. The herdsman would also need to conduct an annual survey of the bovine population.

'We see the need for further protection of the animals amid the decline of the buffalo population,' said Ho Loy, the association's director, adding that the buffaloes were the victims of a dispute between expatriates and indigenous villagers, who were more concerned with development than conservation.

The association received one application from a woman in Discovery Bay. It says the successful applicant would need to live nearer to where the buffaloes roam - mainly Mui Wo, Pui O and Tong Fuk.