(101 things to know when you go) ON SAFARI IN AFRICA

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Patrick Brakspear. (101 things to know when you go) ON SAFARI IN AFRICA

CALL OF AFRICA

Map of Africa

Introduction

Acknowledgements

Author’s note

DEDICATION

What is a safari?

To Do List (before you go)

Some safari travel tips

Dietary requirements

Cash & Credit Cards

Cash

Credit & debit cards

ATM machines

Electric current

Country Plug type:

​Mobile (cell) phone & WiFi access

Check-in luggage

Hand luggage

Single-use plastic bags BANNED

Jewellery

Drinking water

Heat

Dust

Personal safety

Tipping

Tipping for gorilla trekking: trackers, guides + porters

Charity on safari

Keeping a travel journal

Tips for self-drivers

Some dangers.

Here are some of the dangers to be aware of: The African sun

Malaria

Bilharzia (schistosomiasis)

African sleeping sickness (Nagana)

Yellow Fever

Ebola & Covid-19

HIV/AIDS (and Hep B.)

Hepatitis A

Typhoid

Tetanus

Polio

Travellers' diarrhoea (& probiotics)

Vaccinations

Vaccination certificates

IMPORTANT

Considerations for families (& solo travellers)

Anti child-trafficking

General precautions

Swimming pools

Safety

Meals and meal times

Sleeping arrangements

Children’s activity programs

Age restrictions on activities

Pregnant Women (flying in small planes)

Tips for solo travellers

What to pack for your safari

Clothes and toiletries

Some suggestions:

Camera, video and binoculars

Phone, music, tablet or laptop

Passport, itinerary, travel insurance docs and etickets

Prescription glasses (sunglasses, hat, sunblock et al)

Prescription medications

Selective pharmaceuticals

Odds & ends

What to expect on safari

Be prepared for/to:

Don’t expect:

Do not be surprised/alarmed:

Be sure to:

Try to avoid:

Think about…

Safari Jargon

Vehicle Etiquette

Safety on safari

A Warning:

Your safari guide

Guide styles

How to help your guide:

How to help yourself:

The difference between a safari guide and a driver/guide

Safari activity options

Thrill seeking

Active

Passive

So what types of activities are available ‘on safari’?

Safari camps vs. lodges vs. bush camps & fly-camps

So what different accommodation styles can you expect?

Wellness & Health Spas

What else you can expect on safari. Food & Wine

Beer is another story altogether…

Tea & Coffee

Meat & Veg

Shopping & Buying tips

The Night Life

Around the camp fire

The Sundowner

Final Check-List

Getting the most out of your safari

Observing (& Questioning)

Standing, walking and running

Tails

Horns, tusks and teeth

Bills

Colouring & markings

Posture

Spoor (signs)

Environmental factors

Smell & hearing

Keep in mind…

The wonder of evolution

Animal Behaviour

Who’s with whom?

Alpha pairs (dominance hierarchy)

Monogamous couples

The territorial male (or female)

Mixed herds

Bachelor herds (the lads)

Solitary (lonely hearts club)

Harems (polygamous)

Matriarchal and matrilineal (Mum rules)

Keeping a low profile

Who’s talking to whom?

Scent marking

Mutual grooming and greetings

Bulletin boards

Chemical signals

Vocal communication

Visual communication

Submission and aggression

The stare

Posturing

Size matters

More visual signs

Other behavioural traits

Nocturnal or Diurnal?

Terrestrial or Arboreal?

Browsers or Grazers?

How do they know to do that?

Why do they do that/why is it that?

Animal Physiology

Animal Senses (sight, sound & smell)

Sight

Hearing

Smell

Keeping out of trouble

Speed and deception

Sight, Sound & Smell

Early warning systems

Camouflage

Defense mechanisms

More anatomical specialisations and adaptations

Desert adaptations

Adaptations among birds

Melanism, Leucism and Albinism

What's in a name?

What's in a name?

Ungulates, Ruminants, Herbivores, Carnivores & Primates

Collective nouns - pod, herd, pack!

Naming conventions (bull vs ram, cow vs ewe)

Rabbit or Hare?

Is it an ape, a monkey, or a baboon?

Fireflies and Glow worms

Grubs, maggots and nymphs?

Scientific & Common names

Naming conventions

National Parks vs. Game Reserves vs. Conservancies and Private Game Reserves

National Park

Game Reserves

Game Management Area (GMA) or Safari Area

Private Concession Areas

Private Game Reserves & Conservancies

Intensive Protection Zone (IPZ)

Wildlife ownership

Wildlife Corridors

Community Based Tourism Projects

The African Elephant

African elephant ( Loxodonta africana )

Forest elephants

Desert-adapted elephants

The Ivory Story

Some Elephants of Distinction. Jumbo the Elephant

Ahmed - the legend

The Presidential Elephants of Hwange

The Magnificent Seven

Satao - one of Africa's last 'tuskers'

The Big Cats (lion, leopard & cheetah)

Lion ( Panthera leo )

Leopard ( Panthera pardus )

Cheetah ( Acinonyx jubatus )

Large Herbivores (buffalo, rhino, giraffe, hippo, zebra)

Buffalo ( Syncerus caffer )

Rhinoceros - Black (Diceros bicornis) & White (Ceratotherium simum)

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BLACK & WHITE RHINOCEROS

Giraffe

Hippopotamus ( Hippopotamus amphibious )

Plains zebra ( Equus quagga )

So why do zebras have stripes?

Canids (wild dog, jackal, bat-eared fox)

African Wild dog ( Lycaon pictus )

Jackals (Genus Canis )

Bat-eared fox ( Otocyon megalotis)

Smaller cats & other carnivores

Caracal ( Caracal caracal )

Serval ( Leptailurus serval )

African Wild Cat ( Felis silvestris lybica )

Honey Badger ( Mellivora copensis )

Mongooses, Genets and Civets (Family Viverridae )

Nile Crocodile ( Crocodylus niloticus )

The Big 5 (& Little 5)

The Little 5

Klipspringer ( Oreotragus oreotragus )

Dik Dik ( Madoqua kirkii )

Grysbok ( Raphicerus sharpei )

Oribi ( Ourebia ourebi )

Steenbok ( Raphicerus campestris )

The Shy 5 (aardvark, porcupine, meerkat, pangolin, tortoise)

Aardvark ( Orycteropus afer )

Porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis)

Meerkat ( Suricata suricate )

Pangolin ( Manis temminckii )

Leopard Tortoise (Stigmochelys pardalis)

The Ugly 5 (hyena, wildebeest, warthog, marabou, vulture)

Spotted hyena ( Crocuta crocuta )

Blue Wildebeest ( Connochaetes taurinus )

Warthog ( Phacochoerus africanus )

Marabou Stork

Vulture

The Mighty 5

The Ant Lion ( Neuroptera myrmeleontoidea )

The Mighty Dung Beetle ( Scarabaeinae coprinae )

The Formidable Termite ( Macrotermes sp. )

The Fearless Army Ant

The Flying Ace – the Dragonfly

The Stately 5 (kudu, sable, oryx, eland, roan)

Greater kudu ( Tragelaphus strepsiceros )

Sable ( Hippotragus niger )

Oryx (O ryx gazella )

Eland ( Taurotragus oryx )

Roan ( Hippotragus equinus )

The Wet & The Swift

The Wet Ones (Tribe Reduncini)

Waterbuck ( Kobus ellipsiprymnus )

Sitatunga ( Tragelaphus spekeii )

Ugandan kob ( Kobus kob thomasi )

Lechwe ( Kobus leche )

Reedbuck ( Redunca arundinum )

The Swift Ones (Tribe Antilopini)

Thomson’s gazelle ( Gazella thomsonii )

Grant’s gazelle ( Gazella granti )

Springbok ( Antidorcas marsupialis )

Impala ( Aepyceros melampus )

Gerenuk ( Litocranius walleri )

Primates (gorilla, chimpanzee & baboon)

Mountain Gorilla ( Gorilla beringei )

Chimpanzee ( Pan troglodytes )

Baboons (Genus Papio )

Did you know..

Did you know.

Animal spoor charts

Birding.

So what is ‘birding’ all about?

Some interesting facts about birds

Some other aspects of birding…

Colouration in birds

Grasses, flowers & trees

Grasses

Wild flowers

Africa’s Trees

Getting to know (a little) about trees on safari

Medicinal uses of trees

The night sky.

Some star-gazing tips. Dark adapted eyes

Averted vision

Using binoculars

Star-gazing apps

What to look for… Stars

The Sun

Planets

The Moon

Constellations

The Celestial “Big 5”

Some Star gazing trivia

Africa - its people

The Peoples of Africa

Bantu, Khoisan & Pygmy peoples

Nilotic peoples

Arab, European & Asian influences

The Africans of today

Beliefs and practices

Greetings

Be aware

Keep calm (at all times)

Land Ownership

Cattle

Time

Political Authority & Tribalism

Language

Religion

Marriage

Family

Names

Work

Traditional healers

Cultural exchange (and the borrowing of beliefs and rituals)

Body decoration (& traditional attire)

African dance & music

African Superstitions & Folklore

Digital photography

What to take on safari

Other suggestions

A last word.

About the author

About the artist

Glossary

Отрывок из книги

On Safari in Africa has but a single purpose - to enhance your safari experience. There is so much for you to see and experience on safari, so much to take in, that it would be all too easy to get only a superficial glimpse of what a safari is all about. By introducing you to the many facets of an African safari, to which you might not otherwise be exposed, it is hoped that you will become more fully immersed in the bounty it offers. In the following chapters you will be presented with many interesting and poignant facts and theories, an A to Z of the safari world if you like, designed to help you observe more keenly and question more often. If you hold to the belief that through knowledge comes understanding, and through understanding comes true appreciation - then you will gain much from these pages.

Although I have not always been successful, this narrative attempts to be simple and uncomplicated - intended to be light reading and an easy reference. The dialogue is intentionally ‘light’ and tries not to get bogged down in tedious ‘technical’ details. Sometimes this has been done ‘tongue in cheek’ - I mean only to pique your interest and feed your curiosity, not provide a scientific reference work. I am not an accredited Zoologist, nor a noted expert on Africa’s wildlife or its peoples, but I am passionate about Africa and what it has to offer the safari-goer. I must apologise that certain aspects are sometimes repeated – it is just that some things are worth repeating!

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There is such a great selection of luggage styles to choose from these days that I hesitate to make any strong recommendations other than to say that it is IMPORTANT that you use only soft-sided bags if you are making use of light aircraft charters for your inter-camp transfers. This means no hard suitcases or cases with frames (this includes soft bags with wheels if they have a frame for the retractable handle). In this situation you will also be restricted to as little as 15kgs (35lbs) – including your hand luggage and camera equipment *. Check with your travel agent to confirm the actual allowance as this will vary from country to country and from one air charter company to another. The pilot needs to squeeze your luggage into compartments only 25cms high. There is of course the safety issue (overall weight) and it is important that he/she gets it right. Such weight restrictions will present quite a challenge. Start packing well in advance of your departure date and use your bathroom scales to be sure to keep within the limit. Having to repack on arrival only causes embarrassment, is unfair on the pilot and results in delays. When you see your pilot trying to stuff the luggage into every available nook and cranny you will see why the need for restrictions!? Do try to work with them on this.

Please keep in mind that most safari camps/lodges provide basic toilet amenities - shampoo, conditioner, bug spray and even suntan lotion; that laundry can generally be done on a daily basis (and many camps provide this service free of charge); and finally, that only casual clothing is required.

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