Whale, whale, whale, what have we here? Yes the Big 5, Table Mountain, and a spectacular flower season, but this month we celebrate the whale season in South Africa and the gentle giants of the sea as they grace our coastlines with their presence. Brush up on your lingo, and watch several different types of whales showing off their breaching, fluking, lobtailing, logging, spouting and spyhopping from the comforts of the South African shore. It really is an over-whale-ming experience. Migrating from their feeding grounds in Antarctica to the safe, warmer and nurturing shores of Cape Town, it’s a whale baby boom around this time.
When can you see the whales?
Marvel at the Southern Right, Humpback and Bryde whales and their unrivaled power during their water aerobics between June and November of each year. This six month window gives you enough time to explore the South African coast line and its quaint towns, while catching incredible views of the whales. This season also overlaps with the wildflower season in the Western Cape, the perfect opportunity to hit two birds with one stone. You’ll whale if you miss these phenomenona!
Photo credit: Jorge Vasconez
Where is the best place to see the whales?
South Africa undoubtedly has the best land-based viewings of these beautiful creatures frolicking in the water only metres away. Following the Whale Route, on South Africa’s West Coast and East Coast, is the scenic way to see the whales, while meandering through small towns full of charm. Here are some of our favourite whale viewing places:
Hermanus, the whale capital, was ranked in the top 12 whale watching locations in the world by the World Wildlife Fund. Only a two hour drive from Cape Town, this little town is the heart of the Whale Route. Watch as whales come within metres of the shores, and join in on the festivities of the annual Hermanus Whale Festival (this year held on the 29th of September until the 1st of October 2017). Great viewings can be had from terraces such as Old Harbour and Gearing Point and other great spots include Gansbaai, Grootbos Nature Reserve, Dreunkrans, Siever’s Point, VoelKlip and Grotto beaches.
In and around the Cape Town area lies the picturesque False Bay. With many roads hugging the coastline and on higher points, you’re bound to catch great sightings of the giants of the sea. Roads such as Boyes Drive, Clarence Drive, Chapman’s Peak, Jager’s Walk, Baden Powell Drive and Cape Point are some of the best routes on which to see the whales. Self-drive through the many meandering roads in the Cape Town region with this guide: Dreamy Drives- Roadtrips Around Cape Town. You can even catch great views of the whales just sitting at coastline restaurants, such as The Brass Bell in Kalk Bay.
Embark on a five-day Whale Trail walk, which transverses the De Hoop Nature Reserve and Marine Reserve, one of the Western Cape’s most beautiful and unspoiled coastlines with whale nurseries spread across its’ shores (Note: the Whale Trail needs to be booked at least a year in advance). Only three hours out of Cape Town, explore the beautiful, diverse and fynbos-filled nature reserve, breathing in the salty sea air and staying at comfortable accommodation along the route. Over 50 whales have been spotted together mere kilometres from the coast. Close by lies the idyllic coastal village of Arniston, another great whale watching spot and a must-see if in the area.
The Garden Route is a long and scenic chunk of South Africa’s southern coastal region, the perfect route for a leisurely drive. Visit quaint coastal towns and enjoy the diverse floras against the dramatic rocks and turquoise sea. Great whale viewing can be done at Wilderness at Dolphins Point, Map of Africa view point, Wilderness Beach, Leentjiesklip and Flat Rock Beach. The seaside town of Knysna also offers panoramic views of the ocean from points such as The Heads, Noetzie and Brenton-on-Sea. Further up the coast lies Plettenberg Bay and Mossel Bay more great towns to explore and providing breathtaking views of the whales on their journeys. You really are spoiled for choice when it comes to the Garden Route.
Knysna – photo credit: Vaiz HaKnysnaKnysnaPlettenberg Bay
What types of whales can you see?
Courting, nursing and playing, the whales are really going to be showing off for you. It’s handy to be able to identify which whales you might be seeing. Some are rarer than others, so make sure you are able to distinguish them apart. Here are three types of whales you might see as well as other sea life:
1. Southern right whale
The southern right whale’s most distinctive feature are the callosities on its’ head. The callosities patterns formed on their heads are individually distinctive, so look out for southern right whales you may have previously spotted. Another important feature to note are their fan-shaped flippers which they may decide to wave at you. These giants are 15m in length, can reach weights of at least 100 tons and are mainly black in colour. White patches can be seen on their bellies and on the odd occasion on their backs. They have large heads, a bowed mouth-line, a snout which is very narrow and broad flukes. Hopefully the southern right whale is friendly this season and puts on a performance for you.
Pectoral fin of a southern right whale – photo credit: Anna PhillipsCallosities on the head of a southern right whale – Photo credit: Michael Catanzariti
2. Humpback whale
The most confident and common to visit our coastline are the humpback whales, migrating towards Mozambique and Madagascar to breed and calve. They can be identified by their robust bodies, humps and their long and bumpy pectoral fins (up to one third of its’ bodies length). Their flukes are concave and have a serrated edge, and their small dorsal fin sits on their hump on their lower back. The anterior of their mouths are covered in bumps, each containing a single sensory hair follicle. This black or dark grey bodied creature also has white underneaths (underneaths of belly, pectoral fins and fluke) and can reach lengths of 16m and weights of 35 tons.
Humpback whale – Photo credit: Christopher MickelHumpback whale – Photo credit: Thomas Kelley
3. Bryde’s whale
These are the shy giants, making their way up our shores and are often more difficult to find due to longer diving times (up to 20 minutes to depths of 300m). A distinguishing characteristic is their 40 to 70 throat pleats, as well as the three ridges near their blow hole. Their dorsal fin rises abruptly out of the back and is tall. They often exhale under water and so a little blow or no blow at all makes them harder to spot. They are present all year round, reach up to 15m long and can weigh up to 25 tons.
Dorsal fin of a Bryde’s whale – Photo credit: Jolene BertoldiBryde’s whale
4. Other sea life
South Africa is not only home to the Big 5, but also The Marine Big 5. While you’re watching the water aerobics performance of the whales look out for pods of many dolphins, Cape fur seals, great white sharks and the cute African penguins.
Cape fur seals – Photo credit: Sergey UryadnikovGreat white shark – Photo credit: Chris FallowsAfrican penguins – Photo credit: Namaste South Africa
Brush up on your whale lingo
Breaching: leaping out the water and falling back with a splash.
Blowing/spouting: the exhaling of air through their blowhole at the water surface.
Fluking: Lifting the tail/fluke out of the water before diving beneath the water.
Lobtailing: flapping the tail/fluke on the water creating a loud sound which can be heard from some distance.
Logging: resting on the surface, swimming slowly. Often done very close together, revealing dorsal fin.
Spyhopping: lifting of the upper body, bringing at least one eye out of the water, allowing the whale to see above the surface (for example when they’re near a boat).
Two whales close to the shore – Photo credit: Robyn Carmel
For those with sea legs
There are many opportunities to view the whales from boat, giving you a different perspective and potentially catching closer sightings of the marine life in South Africa. Please ensure you check with the boat company that they have a license for approaching whales.
Whales normally breach from three to eight times in succession and it is believed that this could be a form of communication or relieving the itch of the parasites living on them.
Humpback whales can live up to 50 years.
The Bryde’s whale was named after a Norwegian consul to South Africa, Johan Bryde, who built the first whaling stations in South Africa.
The correct pronunciation of Bryde’s is ‘brewdus’.
Lobtailing is thought to try and scare predators away with the loud sound created.
Spouting looks different depending on the whale/dolphin, generally the larger the animal the higher the spout (the spout of a blue whale can reach up to 12m high).
Skyhopping has also been said to help whales recognize different landmarks when migrating.
Bryde’s whales produce an offspring every two years and have a gestation period of 12 months.
A fully grown southern right whale can weigh as much as eight adult African elephant.
Have you ever noticed the skin folds rhino’s have on their shoulders? Or the wrinkles and lines in their skin? Or why they are for ever rubbing themselves against trees? Well, Rudyard Kipling has the answer. Developing a skin as thick as a rhino is more complicated than you might have thought. For those with an imagination here’s another edition of his Just So Stories collection.
Photo credit: Wrensch Lombard
In the words of the man who wrote The Jungle Book, Rudyard Kipling, this is his story of how the rhino got his skin (with slight modifications for an easier read):
Legend has it rhinoceros’s skin fitted him quite tight. There were no wrinkles in it anywhere. Not a single wrinkle or fold was to be seen, believe it or not.
Living in co-existence with the rhinoceros was a Tswana man, from whose headpiece the rays of the sun were reflected in more-than-oriental splendour.
The Tswana man lived with nothing but his headpiece and his knife and a cooking-stove of the kind that you must particularly never touch.
One day, the Tswana man took flour and water and made himself one loaf of bread, which was two feet across and three feet thick.
But, before he could eat his loaf, one rhinoceros with a horn on his nose, two piggy eyes and a few manners, scared the Tswana man away. He quickly climbed a baobab tree, with nothing but his headpiece, from which the rays of the sun were always reflected in more-than-oriental splendour.
Photo Credit: Joel Herzog
In the rhinoceros’ defense he was very hungry. All the same, he had no manners then, and he has no manners now, and he never will have any manners. And the rhinoceros bumped the loaf, which then rolled into the sand. He spiked that loaf on the horn of his nose, and he ate it, and he went away, waving his tail to the Tswana man in the baobab tree.
The Tswana man, very distressed by this, spoke to the sky and asked for the weather to turn hot and dry. On this very warm day, the rhinoceros went for a swim in the river, but first, he took his skin off. In those days, it buttoned underneath with three buttons and looked like a waterproof.
Photo credit: Pilanesberg National Park
He waddled straight into the water and blew bubbles through his nose, leaving his skin on the banks of the river. The Tswana man found the skin and rubbed his hands and smiled one smile that ran all round his face two times.
He took that skin, and he shook that skin, and he scrubbed that skin, and he rubbed that skin with old, dry, stale, tickly breadcrumbs. He put as many crumbs in that skin as ever it could possibly hold.
Waiting up in the baobab tree, the Tswana man watched as the rhinoceros came out of the water and put his skin back on. He buttoned his skin up with the three buttons, and it tickled like breadcrumbs in bed.
Photo Credit: Chris Minihane
Then he wanted to scratch, but that made it worse. He then he lay down on the sands and rolled and rolled and rolled. Every time he rolled the breadcrumbs tickled him worse and worse and worse.
Photo credit: Rhino River Lodge
He ran to a tree and rubbed and rubbed and rubbed himself against it. He rubbed so much and so hard that he rubbed his skin into a great fold over his shoulders, and another fold underneath, where the buttons used to be (but he rubbed the buttons off), and he rubbed some more folds over his legs.
This spoiled his temper, but that didn’t make the least difference to the breadcrumbs. And from that day to this, every rhinoceros has great folds in his skin and a very bad temper, all on account of the tickly breadcrumbs inside.
So, living up to our name, we’ve put together an African animal alphabet. No, we’re not lion – we really did. Take a look at our quick index to the outrageous and wonderful creatures which inhabit our continent. It’s a little sealy, but hopefully it’ll have you coming to visit them yourself.
Photo Credit: Gillian Maskell
The African Animal Alphabet:
Absurd, amusing and ant eating – the aardvark
Bustling through Botswana – the buffalo
Charming and camouflaged – the cheetah
Photo credit: Bryan Busovicki
Dipping and diving – the dolphin
Photo credit: K. Kulikov
Enchanting and enormous – the elephant
Fascinating, fabulous and funky – the flamingo
Goofy but glamorous – the giraffe and guinea-fowl
Photo credit: Little Ogava
Hilarious and hungry hyena, and heavy and (arguably) handsome hippopotamus
Immaculate and inspiring – the impala
Photo credit: Villiers Steyn
Jittery and judicious – the jackal
Killer Kingfisher with Keen eyes
Lavish and luxurious – the lion and leopard
Photo Credit: Mike Walsh
Mischievous and meddlesome – the meerkats
Naturally nimble – the nyala
Outrageous and oh-so-odd – the ostrich
Photo credit: Shannon Wild
Puzzling but very precious – the pangolin and penguin
Photo credit: Twalu Kalahari Reserve
Quirky and quaint- the quail (in this case, its’ cousins – the francolin and grouse)
Robust and rare – the rhino
Sneaky and secretive – the serval
Tranquil in turquoise- the turtle
Unbelievable and undiscovered – the unicorn (or in this case, something similar)
Vicious and valiant – the vulture
Wondrous whale and the whiney wild dog
Xenodochial Xenus squirrel
Yikes, a Yellow mongoose
Zesty and zippy – the zebra
And there we have it, the African Animal Alphabet.
Tell us about your favourite African animal in the comments below.
How did the giraffe get his long neck? And the porcupine her 30,000 black and white painted quills? Or the pangolin his scaly, unusual body? Africa is full of strange and quirky creatures, and for those of you with an imagination, there’s a weird and wonderful story for each of our beautifully-bizarre animals.
In the words of the man who wrote the Jungle Book, Rudyard Kipling, this is his story of how the elephant got his trunk (with slight modifications for an easier read):
Legend has it that the elephant never used to have a trunk. Instead he had a blackish, bulgy nose, as big as a boot, that he could wriggle about from side to side. He couldn’t pick up anything with his useless nose.
But one day, there was a new elephant. An elephant’s child was born. He was different in the way that he was full of insatiable curiosity.
Photo credit: Hailey Bowden
He wondered why the ostrich’s tail feathers were just so, and the giraffe, why he had spotty skin.
Next he asked the hippopotamus why her eyes were red. And so the elephant’s child continued to worry all the animals with countless questions.
He asked questions about everything that he saw, or heard, or felt, or smelt, or touched. The most frustrating unknown for this elephant child was the mysterious question: what does the crocodile have for dinner?
He finally stumbled across a Kolokolo bird who said with a mournful cry, “Go to the banks of the great grey-green greasy Limpopo River, all set about with fever trees, and find out.”
Photo credit: Magnus Manske
And so the elephant’s child set off, taking with him a hundred pounds of bananas (the little short red kind), and a hundred pounds of sugar-cane (the long purple kind), and seven melons (the green-crackly kind). As he went, eating melons, he threw the rind about with his useless nose.
Finally he made it to the banks of the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River, all set about the fever trees, precisely as Kolokolo bird had said.
Photo credit: Derek Keats
Bear in mind that till that very week, and day, and hour, and minute, the elephant’s child had never seen a crocodile. And finally he asked an unknown creature (the crocodile himself) the question which he hoped to finally relieve himself of, “What does the crocodile have for dinner?”
The crocodile winked one eye as the elephant’s child came closer. He put his head down close to the crocodile’s musky, tusky mouth and the crocodile caught him by his little nose and said between his teeth “I think today I will begin with an elephant’s child”.
The elephant sat back on his haunches and pulled, and pulled, and pulled against the crocodile’s tug. His nose began to stretch and stretch. The crocodile threshed his tail like an oar, and he pulled, and pulled, and pulled, and at each pull the elephant’s child’s nose grew longer, and longer, and it hurt!
Illustrated by Rudyard Kipling
Eventually the crocodile let go of the elephant’s nose with a plop that you could hear all up and down the Limpopo River.
Photo credit: Danny Goirdano
The elephant’s child waited three days for his trunk to shrink, but it never grew any shorter, and, besides, it made him squint.
At the end of the third day a fly stung him on his shoulder, and before he knew it he lifted up his trunk and hit that fly dead. Vantage one.
He plucked large bundles of grass and stuffed them into his mouth. Vantage two.
He then schlooped up a schloop of mud from the banks and slapped it on his head, where it made a cool schloopy-sloshy mud-cap all trickly behind his ears. Vantage three.
And so with the many vantages provided by this extended trunk- elephants never missed their old blackish, bulgy noses, as big as a boot, that they could wriggle about from side to side.
‘The only man I envy is the man who has not yet been to Africa, for he has so much to look forward to’– Richard Mullin.
I stand with Richard on this one. If you haven’t been to this continent yet, well, then, Africa is your oyster. There is nothing quite like a safari and you will only truly understand this once you pack your bags and see with your own two eyes the wildlife and landscape silhouetted by the setting sun.
To give you a taste, here’s a typical day in the bush:
Rise and shine! Generally, you will be waking with the birds (times differ based on season). For all those shocking morning people, don’t worry, it will all be worth it – we promise! The best game viewing is undoubtedly early in the morning. Rising with the sun you will meet your ranger and tracker for tea and coffee, before jumping into a 4×4 safari vehicle. No two mornings are the same, and so the anticipation is half the excitement.
With all that exhilaration, you are going to be ready for a well-earned, scrumptious breakfast. Return to your camp for tummy refueling, while catching up on the unbelievable wildlife you just encountered.
The adventure doesn’t end there. Depending on the reserve and the season, the lodges offer a safari walk with an armed tracker. Marvel at the smaller wonders of the game reserve, spotting hidden creatures such as insects and birds. Be told fascinating stories by your tracker and learn more about the traditional, cultural, and medicinal properties of trees and plants.
It’s time to eat again, and yes you will be in your element with the spread of delicious food provided for you. Feeling satisfied and lethargic, enjoy time relaxing, reading, swimming in the pool or give into a well deserved nap.
As the day cools down and shadows form across the bushveld, enjoy afternoon tea with an African sunset as a backdrop and chirping crickets as your music. With dusk approaching the animals become more active and so the nocturnal hunting ground begins.
Just picture it: you’re sipping on your favourite, refreshing beverage with a picturesque view, watching the copper African sun set behind a glowing horizon. Is there anything more magical? This is a classic safari tradition, and your gin and tonic will probably be the most memorable one you’ll ever have!
Now it’s time to catch the action hidden behind the blanket of the night. A powerful spotlight is used to catch sightings of creatures in the dark. See the reflective eyes of some of Africa’s most elusive, nocturnal animals such as leopard and the sunset hunters- the lions.
Just when you thought your thrilling day had come to end, you’ll find that there’s more to the agenda. Enjoy a scrumptious meal and be told stories by the fire underneath a blanket of stars.
From adorable cubs to snarling, no-nonsense apex predators, there’s a lot to admire about lions. Maybe, more than anything, the fact that they spend between 16 and 20 hours each day resting and sleeping. That’s got to fill them with ‘pride.’
The only social member of the cat family, lions mostly hunt from dusk till dawn. Well, the females do. Male lions defend the pride’s territory while females do most of the hunting. Despite this, the males eat first.
Before we jump into the incredible photos – mostly coming from our year-long photography competition, Africa’s Photographer of the Year – here are a few more interesting facts about lions;
A lion’s roar is the loudest of any big cat and can be heard up to 8 km away.
Lions were once found throughout Africa, Asia and Europe but now exist only in Africa with one exception. The last remaining Asiatic lions are found in Sasan-Gir National Park in India, which was primarily created to protect the species. Currently, there are approximately 350-400 lions in the park.
Entrance to the Tower of London used to be free if you brought a dog or a cat to feed to the lions.
Lions’ tongues are huge, pink and covered with sharp papillae, they are rough enough to scrape meat from bones or make human skin bleed.
During the mating season, lionesses have sex up to 50 times a day for four days and nights in a row with as many as five males – but each bout lasts only ten seconds.
Snarling male lionTwo lion cubs at sunsetTwo young lions sitting in the grassMale lion emerging from a bushTwo lion cubs play fightingYoung lion restingNamibian desert lion Photo Credit: Flip StanderLion sitting in the grass at sunsetLion emerging out of the mist in Sabi SandMother and her two cubsDark-maned male lionMale lion lying between long grassYoung male lion up a treeLions sitting on a rock in the African bush Photo Credit: William J. GreenFour male lions walking along a dirt road Photo Credit: Werner SchmäingLion cubs sitting on a rock Photo Credit: Tea RiemsdykLion with his kill Photo Credit: Stefania UrbiniLion cub close-up Photo Credit: Rodrigues JorgeClose-up of a lioness Photo Credit: Neil PreyerMale lion with a game vehicle in the background Photo Credit: Peter GauchelA rare white lion Photo Credit: Phil JuddLioness chasing off a male lion Photo Credit: Phil JuddDark-maned male lion Photo Credit: Pravin Kumar VanchiLioness drinking Photo Credit: Neil PreyerClose-up of a male lion Photo Credit: Neil PreyerA male lion scratching his mane on a tree Photo Credit: Mike WalshHead of a lion emerging from long grass Photo Credit: Mike WalshThree lion cubs Photo Credit: Mike WalshMale lion standing between trees Photo Credit: Marli PotgieterLion portrait at night Photo Credit: Michael RaddallLions walking across a river Photo Credit: Mike SutherlandLion cubs walking along a road Photo Credit: Mike SutherlandLion sitting by a river Photo Credit: Mike WalshPortrait of a lion in long grass Photo Credit: Marli PotgieterLions up a tree Photo Credit: Marie SchoferYoung lion drinking water Photo Credit: Liam DonnellyPortrait of a lion surrounded by grass Photo Credit: Lalith EkanayakeMale lion snarling Photo Credit: Karin van der MerweYoung male lion sitting in long grass Photo Credit: Jane PearcePride of lions walking along a road Photo Credit: Julie ChapmanPortrait of a lion on the edge of a road Photo Credit: Karen FeldmeierTwo lion cubs biting a branch Photo Credit: Karin KellerLion with a paw over his face Photo Credit: Karin van der MerweFour lion cubs drinking from a puddle Photo Credit: Jane PearceLion cub trying to play with a an adult Photo Credit: Jane PearceTwo lion cubs lying in the grass Photo Credit: Jane PearceTwo male lions resting Photo Credit: Jane PearcePride of lions walking along a dirt road Photo Credit: James WalkerClose-up of a lion lying in the grass Photo Credit: David BrimsMale lion walking down the trunk of a fallen tree Photo Credit: Eddie HydeLion lying in the grass at sunset Photo Credit: Eddie HydeA lone lion at dusk Photo Credit: Gillian MaskellBlack and white portrait of a male lion Photo Credit: Jacha PotgieterLion and her cub walking Photo Credit: David BrimsClose-up of a male lion Photo Credit: Danijel SurićAriel shot of a lion and its kill Photo Credit: Oliver Celerier AbidjanLions and their kill Photo Credit: Mike WalshBaby elephant taken down by a lion with its herd in the background Photo Credit: Luca FrigerioBlack and white close-up of a lion yawning Photo Credit: Camille BoerderieA lion standing among wildebeest and zebra Photo Credit: Chase WellsBacklit silhouette of a lion Photo Credit: Clint RalphTwo lion cubs playing Photo Credit: Clint RalphPortrait of a male lion Photo Credit: Clint RalphTwo male lions walking through long grass together Photo Credit: Anton PretoriousLion drinking from water at night Photo Credit: Anna-MartLion cub playing over a branch Photo Credit: Anja ImmelmanPride of Lions in Madikwe having a drink at a local waterhole Photo Credit: Alex MaasLion lioness walking though long dry grass Photo Credit: Alex MaasTwo lion cubs in the background of a lioness and her kill Photo Credit: Alpesh DabasiaLion lying in lush grass Photo Credit: Andrew Tudor Morgan
While delving into the best live cams in the African wild for this blog post, I realised two things; even if there’s no action, listening to the genuine, real-time sounds of the African bush – and, in particular, its birds – is enchanting, and because it’s a live feed, you never know what is going to happen or what you’re going to see. So keep your eyes peeled!
Many of the cameras are not held in place but actually follow the animals around the waterholes. This is thanks to a volunteer corps of people around the world known as ‘zoomies’ who remotely control the cameras. They log into the camera according to a schedule in shifts, and pan, tilt and zoom in search of animals. With the volunteers at the helm, you’re guaranteed to see good close-ups of animals and birds.
Top tip: If you’re having a problem watching a live cam it could be the internet browser you’re using. Google Chrome is especially bad, so if you’re having issues try using a different browser.
1. Djuma Game Reserve
This camera watches over Gowrie dam on Djuma Game Reserve, in the Sabi Sand Concession, South Africa. In fact, this is the oldest waterhole cam in the world. It’s been broadcasting live from this spot since 1998. With some luck, you’ll see big cats coming for a drink or even on a kill close by. You can also expect to see a lot of impala, waterbuck, nyala and many other types of mammals, birds and reptiles.
2. Wild Earth
This is something a little different. Wild Earth livestreams safari drives (click here) from different spots around Africa. Rangers, driving around the reserves with cameramen in the back, stream in from their different locations and present to the camera as if you are in their vehicle with them. It’s personal and engaging and a completely different experience to a fixed live cam.
SUNRISE SAFARI (Monday to Sunday)Central African Time (CAT): 06:00am – 09:00amEast African Time (EAT): 07:00am – 10:00amEastern Daylight Savings Time (EDT): 00:00am – 03:00am
SUNSET SAFARI (Monday to Sunday)Central African Time (CAT): 15:30pm – 18:30pmEast African Time (EAT): 16:30pm – 19:30pmEastern Daylight Savings Time (EDT): 09:30am – 12:30pm
3. Africam
Africam’s webcams are always on and always watching popular water holes in protected areas of southern Africa. See elephants, giraffes, zebras, hyenas and other species in the wild from your computer at home. It features Tembe, Nkorho, Idube, Naledi and Elephant Plains in Southern Africa.
4. Explore.org
Explore.org has live nature cams from around the world. You can watch bears fishing in Alaska, tigers in India and a puffin burrow in Maine.
Their ‘African Animals’ camera in Kenya pans about 120 degrees from the fever trees just to the left of the hippo pool all the way upriver to “Basking Beach.” The view overlaps with that of the African River Wildlife Camera, but with a lower angle.
They also have live footage of gorillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo (see below).
5. Mpala Live
Mpala Live! (Click here for cam) takes you to Kenya’s Laikipia County, a vast area that is home to wildlife and private and community ranches, where herds of cattle, sheep, and camels graze amid wild animals. Nearly 7,000 elephants roam Laikipia, a rolling grassland dotted with shrubs and Acacia trees. In the centre of Laikipia, watched over by Mount Kenya, is a 77-square-mile (200 km2) mix of wildland and ranch land called Mpala.
Mpala Live! gives you around-the-clock look at the lives of elephants, lions, zebras, giraffes, hippos, birds, and other animals in a fascinating swath of African landscape. The Hippo Pool cameras, for instance, take you to a watering hole that attracts hippos, monkeys, zebras, giraffe, scores of bird species, and the occasional crocodile.
The animal kingdom is as weird as it is wonderful. While looking up unusual additions to our Africa Facts That Will Make You Say ‘Wow!’ post, we came across some pretty amazing snippets about Africa’s animals, too. So much so, we decided that African animal facts needed its very own post – and here it is:
1. Giraffes only sleep for about 30 minutes per night – the shortest sleep requirement in the entire animal kingdom – and often only at five-minute stretches at most.
2. In contrast, lions can sleep up to 20 hours a day. They’re predators. What do they really have to worry about?
3. Don’t be fooled by his adorable looks and cute name. The honey badger is one of the most dangerous animals to be found in the bush and has few natural predators thanks to its thick skin, ferocity, and superb defence mechanisms.
4. African wild dog packs are led by one monogamous breeding pair. It’s rare that another female in the pack will breed, but if she does, the head female will often take the pups as her own or kill them to keep the pack at its optimum size.
5. We all know that rhino horns and animal hooves are made out of keratin, but did you know that a pangolin’s scales are, too?
6. Elephants have incredible memories. In times of drought, the matriarch can lead her herd to places where she thinks there might be food or water because she was there once decades ago.
7. Springbok can spring (see what I did there?) up to two metres in the air in multiple leaps. We call this ‘pronking’.
8. Porcupines are rodents (the prickliest rodent of them all) whose Latin name means ‘quill pig’.
9. Ancient Egyptians believed that jackals guided spirits to the netherworld where their souls would be judged.
10. An elephant may not forget, as the old saying goes, but a buffalo is known to never forgive. Buffalo have been documented attacking people who have hurt them many years after the event has taken place.
11. Small they may be, but slow they are not. Warthogs can run up to 30 miles (48km) an hour!
12. Great white sharks have such terrific senses; they can sense tiny amounts of blood in the water from an impressive three-mile distance (almost five kilometres!).
13. Elephants’ smell senses are just as good – they can smell water from miles away!
14. Seahorses mate for life (Aaw!) and one species, in particular, the Knysna Seahorse, can be found in only three bodies of water in the world. These three habitats are all found along the Garden Route: Plettenberg Bay‘s Keurbooms River, Knysna‘s lagoon, and Sedgefield’s Swartvlei estuary.
15. We all know cheetahs are fast, but did you know how fast? They can go from a standstill to 68 miles per hour (110km per hour) in under five seconds.
16. Chimpanzees, our closest living relative, have been observed using tools. In short, scientists have equated this to chimps entering their Stone Age.
17. The closest relative to the elephant shrew, a member of the Little Five, is not, in fact, a shrew, but an African elephant, a member of the Big 5.
18. Female gorillas only start having babies when they’re around ten years old.
19. Millennia ago, lemurs were found in Africa but faced stiff competition from other primates. When Madagascar separated from the mainland, lemurs tagged along and now are endemic to the micro continent.
20. Southern Yellow-Billed Hornbills, made famous by Zazu from The Lion King, have been given the nickname ‘the flying banana’. Can’t imagine why…
21. It may not look like it, but penguins do actually have knees.
22. Dugongs, found in Indian Ocean waters like those around the Bazaruto Archipelago, live almost as long as humans do – an impressive 70 years.
23. Many people believe that these underwater grass grazers were the inspiration for ancient folklore surrounding mermaids.
And there you have it, folks. Go share this unusual knowledge with someone else!
Maybe you know it’s a parliament of owls, a shrewdness of apes and a murder of crows, but what is a group of wildebeest called?
You won’t believe it.
It’s an implausibility of wildebeest.
I find the collective nouns for hawks very interesting too. In general, a group of hawks is called a cast. In flight, they’re called a kettle, and if they’re circling, they’re called a boil. Who comes up with this stuff?
Whatever the case, they make for some great fun facts. Next time you’re on safari, pull one of these obscure collective nouns out to impress your ranger…
An armoury of aardvarks
A shrewdness of apes
An army of ants
A troop of baboons
A cete of badgers
A cloud of bats
A herd of buffalo
A coalition of cheetahs
Image credit: Randal Ormston
A cartload of chimpanzees
A quiver of cobras
A bask of crocodiles
A murder of crows
A pack of wild dogs
A convocation of eagles
A herd/parade/memory of elephants
A leash of foxes
A flamboyance of flamingos
A tower/journey of giraffes A band of gorillas
A cast of hawks (general)
A kettle of hawks (in flight)
A boil of hawks (spiraling)
A bloat of hippos
A cackle of hyenas
A leap of leopards
A conspiracy of lemurs
Image credit: Vladislav T. Jirousek
A pride of lions
A troop/barrel of monkeys
A band of mongooses
A parliament of owls
A pandemonium of parrots
A prickle of porcupines
An unkindness of ravens
A crash of rhinos
A venue of vultures
An implausibility of wildebeest
A dazzle of zebras
We like to revel in the eccentricities it has to offer
Image credit: David Brossard
As well as ogle at its cute animals
Image Credit: Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge
You start to become a tree-hugger after a while
Image credit: Kurt Bauschardt
But you’re not the only one
Image Credit: Jamala Madikwe
The traffic jams are… different
And quite difficult to manoeuvre at times
Image Credit: Mohlabetsi Safari Lodge
Pro tip: Don’t leave your windows open
Try to stay in your car for that matter
Photo Credit: Karen Vermaak
You never know when you might bump into a lion on the loose in Africa
Image credit: Anthony Parkes
There’s always room for someone in need
And a bit more space for your luggage
Sometimes both
The signs are… informative
And unique
Image credit: Uwe Aranas
It can sometimes get crowded
Image Credit: Linyanti Bush Camp
But thankfully there are wide open spaces to compensate
Image Credit: Ngama Tented Safari Lodge
There are many ways to explore Africa: You can take a mokoro
Image Credit: Linyanti Bush Camp
A balloon
A boat cruise
Image Credit: Kings Pool Camp
Perhaps even a horse
Image Credit: Equitrekking
You can even take a leisurely stroll if you prefer
Image Credit: Tom’s little hide
The views are diverse
Image Credit: Linyati Bush Camp.
And captivating
Image Credit: Somalisa Acacia Camp
Sleeping outside is now a luxury
Image Credit: Lion Sands
And you’re actually starting to enjoy camping
Image Credit: Honeyguide Mantobeni
As long as you can do it in style
Image Credit: The Hide Safari Camp Room
Sunsets are important in Africa
Image Credit: Somalisa Acacia Camp
But not as important as sundowners
Image Credit: Kanga Camp
Don’t worry, a plan is always made to get that drink, wherever you may be
Image Credit: Tom’s little hide
Eating is… an experience
Image Credit: Tswalu Turkuni Lodge
You meet some interesting creatures at the dining table
Image Credit: Giraffe Manor
Dinners are usually accompanied by fire and boundless skies
Image credit: Mapito Tented Camp
The crackling of a fire and the laugh of your loved ones is probably a better way to bond than watching another rerun of ‘Frasier’ (no judgement, I’m on the 7th round)
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He plucked large bundles of grass and stuffed them into his mouth. Vantage two.
A band of gorillas
