On Safari

Eastern Africa which consists of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda and Southern Africa which consists of Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa have plenty of wildlife and are considered countries for [tag]wildlife safaris[/tag].

Predators

Lions, leopards and cheetah can easily be spotted in many parts of sub- Saharan Africa.

Lions the top predator on Africa’s plains are the easiest to see because they tend to live in prides made up of the dominant male and several females. They have no natural enemies. They are however in constant battles with the spotted hyena for territory and kills.

Leopards are the hardest to spot. They will often hunt at night although they are considered cheif opportunities who will take advantage of any situation for example a leopard will not think twice about hunting an antelope that may have strayed close to the tree even though it may already have a meal stored on the tree branches.

Cheetah prefer flat open ground, where they can out run their prey. Botswana’s Okavango Delta is a great place for seeing them, as is Kenya’s masai mara.
Hyenas can also be seen especially in the morning. These scavangers as they are widely known do actually hunt at night.

These are the most famous of afrca’s predators others include civet, genets, caracals, jackals and africa’s wild dogs.

Where the predators are, there the game shall be gathered. Wildebeest, zebra and several species of antelopes that make up these predators meals can also be found.

Masai mara where over 1.5 million wildebeest take part in an annual cyclical migration between Tanzania’s serengeti grasslands and Kenya’s masai mara in a never ending cycle.

The Best places to see elephants in Africa are in Kenya’s Amboseli, South Africa’s Kruger National Park and Tanzania’s Tarangire National Park but by far the best place is Kenya’s Amboseli National Park- a flat basin in the shadow of Mout Kilimanjaro Africa’s higest mountain. This is the most scenic area for elephants with the back drop of mout Kilimanjaro.

Rhinos, Africa’s most endangered mammals the white and black rhino can be found in East and Southern Africa.

They are most easily seen in privately run game reserves, often set up to protect them from poachers.

In southern Africa, rhino sightings are guaranteed in Botswana at Mokolodi where you can view game on horse back and on top of an elephant. This experience is so much different from using a vehicle because when you are on horse back or on an elephant, animals especially the herbivores will let you come closer to them than they would on a vehicle.

In East Africa - where the poaching of rhino was at it’s worst, rhino can be viewed in Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Crater.

Kenya’s Aberdares National Park and Uganda Murchison Falls National Park have their population of rhino.

Hippos often known to be Africa’s deadliest animal kill more people than any other animal in Africa. (Not counting the mosquito) The reason being that they are extremely possessive of their water holes so natives going to fetch water in the morning sometimes find themselves between the hippo and the water.(Hippos leave the water at night to graze and return at dawn.)

Crocodiles

The Nile crocodile is the largest of crocodiles and can be found on the nile and in Lake Turukana.

Birds

Africa has an amazing species of birds with over two thousand bird species recorded for the bird lovers.

• African Beaches

Wild dogs use team tactics to catch prey

When it comes to team work, the african wild dogs illustrate it best. Their cooperation in hunting down prey is supreme.

Together these marathon runners work as relay team to chase large prey such as gazelle, a wildebeest or an antelope, until it drops from exhaustion. The [tag]African wild dog[/tag] is built for stamina. A deep chest, slim legs and a short coat that allows the animal to lose body heat quickly.

These animals don’t really stalk their prey they however do lower their heads and flatten their large rounded ears on approaching a grazing herds until they pick a victim.

Like all predators wild dogs generally pick injured young or weak animals whenever they can. Thomson’s gazelle ‘stot’ or bounce stiff legged. The fitter the animal, the louder the stot and the more energetic the bounce. This they do this to intimidate predators almost communicating the message that the predator doesn’t stand a chance.

It is during the chase that this team work becomes very effective. Dogs may take the lead in turn while the other members of the park ease off or sometimes or sometimes change route to intercept if the victim takes a turn. The dominant lead pair play the main role in the kill, attacking the tied animal’s belly and flanks and tearing it into two.

Animals will fight back if flight is impossible

A domestic cat, when cornered, reacts with bared teeth, flattened ears and fierce hisses. The same applies for a dog. Even the most cowardly of dogs will stand and fight back when escape is not an option.

Animals less able to defend themselves still instinctively put up a fight if fleeing is impossible – the victim may even manage to inflict severe damage on its attacker.

Lions prey on wide variety of animals, and occasionally their prey turns on them. A kick from a zebra stallion can knock out a lion’s eye, and a giraffe’s kick if well placed can kill a lion. – or even cripple it.

There are reports of a gemsbok snagging a lion on its long, curved horns and tossing it over its back. An enraged herd of wildebeest has been seen to trampled hunting lions to death.

Packs of yellow baboons in southern Africa attack leopards if sufficiently aroused, and even the torpid sloth of South America can be provoked into giving a vicious swipe with its arm.

Hyenas known for being cowardly have been known to fight to the death when surrounded or cornered by lions.

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