Land of safaris
When you think Namibia, chances are you think safari. While there are many reserves, farms and game ranches where you can go on safari, Namibia's must-see game reserve is Etosha. North of the capital, this immense reserve promises a memorable wildlife experience. The most emblematic are those commonly known as the Big Five: lion, elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros and leopard. This nickname dates back to colonial times, when they were the five most dangerous animals to hunt. Beyond these emblematic figures of the African savannah, we meet dozens of other species in Namibia: roan antelope, chacma baboon, African buffalo, Cape duiker, ruffed jackal, Cape eland, giraffe, blue wildebeest or black-tailed wildebeest, cheetah, spotted hyena, hippopotamus, impala, kudu, oryx, warthog, white and black rhinoceros, springbok, Hartmann's and Burchell's zebra. Ornithology enthusiasts will look up to catch a glimpse of the tawny eagle, the martial eagle, Archer's francolin, the tax shrike or the sooty souimanga.
The living desert of the Kalahari
Namibia is rocked by its deserts. Contrary to popular belief, the Kalahari Desert, cradle of the San people, is known as a living desert. Its red earth and bush are home to a wide variety of flora and fauna. The Kalahari's inescapable inhabitant, nicknamed the "sentinel of the desert" and made famous by Timon in The Lion King, is, of course, the meerkat with his inquisitive face watching over you on the plains. In the vast, bush-dotted expanses of the Kalahari Desert, you'll also come across the oryx. This antelope, frequently encountered throughout most of Namibia, is also called gemsbok by Namibians of Afrikaner origin. With an isabella coat and flanks marked with a black stripe, the oryx boasts two long, finely sharpened horns, forming a gigantic V shape and measuring up to 120 cm. The oryx feasts on naras, otherwise known as desert melons. But don't be fooled by their spiny appearance: like melons, naras are bursting with water.
The Namib has many facets
In the Namib Desert, the landscape varies according to the climate. Watered by Atlantic mists, succulent plants shape the coastline, while the west of the Namib is bare and devoid of vegetation, inviting you to contemplate this great void inhabited by high, shifting dunes. This is the setting for a multitude of small animals. Treading the dunes, you can observe insects such as beetles and reptiles such as snakes, but also small geckos. Mammals, on the other hand, are largely absent from this part of the desert. Antelopes gallop deeper into the plains and dunes of the eastern Namib! Cape oryx, springboks, zebras and ostriches then wait for a generous rainy season, so that the steppes are carpeted with perennial grasses, the dunes with scrub and tall grass, and tall acacias line the riverbeds.
The strange welwitschia tree
It looks like an old, slightly dead aloe. This unique tree has a short stump from which large, intertwining leaves grow. The leaves grow from the base and perish at the tips, sometimes up to three meters away. This plant, endemic to the Namib desert, is part of the landscape.
The elephants of the Namibian desert
Let's go to the north of the Namib, to the Kunene region. Here, particularly around the riverbeds, which all too often dry up, rhinoceroses, lions, jackals, hyenas and elephants live side by side. This is the land of an extraordinary elephant population. Although we often hear "desert elephants", it's more accurate to say that these elephants are adapted to life in the desert. Genetically, they are African elephants, but with larger feet and smaller bodies that enable them to tread sandy plains and rocky mountains, sometimes walking up to 70 km overnight in arid zones in search of water. They can go up to three days without drinking. During the rainy season, these elephants like to feed on sea buckthorn, mopane or myrtle buds. But recent years have been particularly difficult for the species' survival in the face of drought. At the beginning of the 20th century, the population numbered around 3,000 elephants, until poaching and hunting reduced the population tenfold in the 1980s. At independence in 1990, conservation measures helped to repopulate the desert fauna. Today, however, trophy hunting and drought are taking their toll on this unique and rare species of desert-adapted elephant.
"Save the rhino
Two species of rhinoceros are found in southern Africa: the white rhinoceros and the black rhinoceros. Contrary to what the two adjectives that differentiate them might suggest, these two species of rhinoceros are the same gray color! The name "white rhino" is a translation of the English white rhino, itself derived phonetically from the Afrikaans term witrenoster. In fact, the white rhinoceros differs from the black rhinoceros in that it is a herbivore, with a heavier build, a low head carriage and, above all, square lips. Namibia is the only country in the world where the endangered black rhino population is on the increase. Found in Damaraland, black rhinos generally live solitary lives on arid land and are very difficult to observe. There are around 1,800 individuals out of a global population of less than 5,000. The black rhinoceros, smaller than the white rhinoceros, lives in a more hostile environment and feeds mainly on leaves and branches, which it can grab easily thanks to its extremely mobile upper lip. Its mouth is narrower, reminiscent of a tortoise. It can travel great distances every day to feed itself. It is a solitary animal, and only females and their young live together. The young generally walk behind their mothers. Of the 103 plant species found in the Damaraland region, black rhinos eat almost three-quarters, including the famous Welwitschia mirabilis. They are particularly fond of Euphorbia virosa, which has the highest concentration of fats and, above all, water - a precious commodity, despite its high concentration of tannin, which can be toxic to the young. The work of the Save the Rhino non-governmental organization, which aims to protect black rhinos from poaching and to study their behavior in order to ensure effective conservation of the species, is recognized and appreciated throughout Namibia.
Two million sea lions!
On Namibia's west coast, you can't hear yourself talk. Sea lions, as numerous as the country's inhabitants, bleat on the shores. You'll meet sea lions on the Namibian coast on your way to Cape Cross, on the Skeleton Coast. Unlike seals, sea lions move swiftly over land, even over rocks, with their hind legs transformed into large flippers. Fur seals are distinguished from other pinnipeds by the presence of external ears. During the mating season, sea lions live in colonies on beaches, where males fight to secure possession of the greatest number of females.
Once slaughtered for their fur, sea lions are no longer threatened with extinction... to the extent that fishermen blame them for harming marine fauna. This is why the Namibian government has set up a system to control the sea lion population on its coasts: each year, a certain percentage of "overpopulated" colonies are legally slaughtered.
Looking up to the sky to watch the birds
Flamingos, pelicans, cormorants, storks and penguins populate the coastal zone. Around Walvis Bay, sunsets over the flamingo-frequented lagoon are a real spectacle. Birdwatchers will be delighted by the treasures of Southern Africa. This natural sanctuary is home to over 900 bird species, of which just under 700 live in Namibia. Once you've flushed out and photographed the main mammals, once you're able to recognize the dozens of different types of antelope, then it's time to turn your attention to the countless multicolored flying creatures. From that moment on, you'll see the natural world around you in a whole new light! It's usually at times like these that nature puts on its most moving shows. As you sit quietly on your perch, gazing at a magnificent and rare Balearica pavonina, a member of the Gruidae family, commonly known as the "crowned crane", you may be lucky enough to see a superb male lion appear out of nowhere, ready to pounce on a wildebeest drinking at the waterhole... where your crowned crane was fishing!
A hundred birds of prey
It's impossible to give an exhaustive description of the multitude of birds that can be observed in southern Africa... Namibia boasts almost a hundred different species of birds of prey, and only specialists are able to recognize them all. There are half a dozen vultures: the oricou, the bald vulture, the African vulture, the carrion vulture and the rare Cape vulture. Among the many eagles, the easiest to identify are the savannah bateleur - with its black crest, spectacles and red legs - and the fish eagle, whose white head, brown body plumage and, above all, distinctive call make it irresistibly popular... Beware, you'll only find it in northern Namibia, near permanent waterways. Finally, the martial eagle is the largest eagle in Africa. Measuring almost 1.30 m from head to tail, it has a wingspan of 2.50 m. This powerful bird of prey is capable of killing and carrying off small antelopes!
