23rd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest People
The Evening Cattle Call

Mundari tribesmen during the traditional call used in the evening to summon their cattle back to the resting area (South Sudan). The Mundari are cattle herders who live in symbiosis with their Ankole Watusi cattle, characterized by their large horns. They use the ash created by the fires to rub on themselves and their cattle, creating a protection against mosquitoes. Mundari massage their bovines twice a day. In a cattle camp, everyone plays their role. The men lead the cows into the fields during the day. The cattle disperse from the banks of the White Nile river into the long grasses of the alluvial floodplain and they return at dusk instinctively before the sunset, when the dust lift by the herd and the smoke of the fires intermingle to create an evocative atmosphere. Few guardinas are sleeping with the cows. The ash from dung fires, as fine as talcum powder, is often used as bedding.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 02.2025
Date Uploaded: 10.2025
Photo Location: South Sudan
Camera: ILCE-7M3
Copyright: © Roberto Pazzi