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Wondrous Ennedi + the great giraffe debate + our wild Hwange conservation safari
I have just returned from an epic Hwange conservation safari with our 2024 Photographer of the Year winners.
We handed over three sponsored lion collars to a team of dedicated predator researchers and learned how these collars keep local villagers safe from roaming lions that threaten lives and livelihoods. We discussed elephant politics with a local village headman, attended a school assembly, chatted with young learners and toured a village clinic paid for by an innovative rhino project.
We marvelled at herds of elephants and buffaloes emerging from the dust, craggy male lions patrolling their kingdoms and warrior lionesses nursing tiny furry bundles. We ogled sable antelope with sweeping horns and watched striding ground-hornbills and secretary birds.
After saying goodbye to our photographer winners, I journeyed on to the remote wilderness of southern Hwange – guided by a local legend with Hwange soil in his veins. He educated me about conservation issues beyond the realm of photo tourism, of a rapidly growing elephant population that is impacting heavily on woodland, of broken national park fences and desperately poor communities whose daily struggle to find water and food defines their relationship with wildlife.
Watch out in the coming months for my travel diary and photo gallery from our photographers as we celebrate this incredible place called Hwange. Also expect a Hwange safari package that combines epic wildlife sightings with conservation learnings and impact.
I also got to ponder the meaning of modern human life with master photographer guide Greg du Toit as we watched desperately thirsty buffaloes and elephants crowding artificial waterholes as the drought tightens its grip. Predators feast on stricken elephants, baby antelope die agonising deaths, and dust devils whirl through naked trees. Yet, humankind increasingly distances itself from our biological home and reality – distracted by technology, ideological constructs and fantasy digital worlds.
Of course, this drought will end – and the bushveld will recover. Real life is about seasons and cycles, feast and famine. I love this place – Hwange, Zimbabwe, Africa.
Simon Espley – CEO, Africa Geographic
From our Editor – Taryn van Jaarsveld
Drive through the Karoo on a summer evening and you may spot a swirling apparition in the sky. Bats? A whirlwind of debris? Or kestrel manoeuvres in the dark? Every South African summer, thousands of lesser kestrels leave their Eurasian breeding sites on cliffs and rooftops for the plains of the Karoo. Before settling down into their evening roosting spots in tall trees in the farming towns of the Karoo, these feathered fighter jets electrify the sky in their hundreds while foraging, swooping and soaring in formation. They’ve been performing this epic display for years – until recently.
Daily Maverick recently published a piece on how fewer kestrels are arriving in the Karoo, and the exact reason is unclear. In De Aar alone, the number of roosting kestrels dropped from 12,000 in 2012 to 180 in 2024. On their transoceanic journeys, kestrels face power lines, wind farms, and storms. Add in predators, humans with guns, skyscrapers covered in glass, and the war-torn sites of artillery conflict along their routes, and it’s a wonder they can navigate the skies at all. Thankfully, these little warriors haven’t vanished completely, with sightings – albeit fewer – still reported around their Karoo roosting areas. Perhaps the rest have simply found somewhere better to settle for summer? But, it’s clear that the skies aren’t as packed with these avian acrobats as they used to be.
This week we delve further into the great giraffe “necks-for-sex-or-food” debate, with ecologist Rob Simmons exploring the evolutionary biology behind the giraffe’s iconic neck. And we follow the final leg of Kingsley Holgate’s Afrika Odyssey expedition, where he and the team journeyed to the mystical Ennedi Natural and Culture Reserve in Chad. Check these stories out below.
DID YOU KNOW?
We donate a portion of the revenue from every safari sold to carefully selected conservation projects that make a significant difference at ground level. YOUR safari choice does make a difference – thank you!
Story 1
https://africageographic.com/stories/ennedi-energy/
ENNEDI ENERGY
Kingsley Holgate & the Afrika Odyssey expedition are connecting 22 African Parks protected areas. Read about their trip to Ennedi, Chad
Story 2
https://africageographic.com/stories/necks-for-feeding-or-fighting-giraffe-evolution/
FEEDING OR FIGHTING?
Is the giraffe’s long neck for feeding or sex? The giraffe necks-for-sex-or-food dispute continues, with new findings re-kindling debate
TRAVEL DESK:
Explore these prime safari spots in Botswana and Zimbabwe – whether you’re looking for a brief adventure, solo trip or unique bushveld safari. Or why not combine the two and experience both in one safari? Let our safari experts start crafting your authentic, tailored safari today!
A wilderness experience to get you hooked on the Okavango Delta and an excellent introduction to this watery paradise. Glide down the waterways on a mokoro, and encounter big cats, elephants, cheetahs, hyenas, and wild dogs. Not to mention over 400 bird species that call the delta home!
Searching for something different? Browse a wide variety of safari destinations, experiences and ideas here
Our Hwange conservation safari
Our Photographer of the Year 2024 winners have just returned from a conservation safari in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe, sponsored by Imvelo Safari lodges and in Association with Southern African Conservation Trust (SACT) and WILDCRU.
In addition to their safari prize, each winner became a proud sponsor of a lion research collar to help the conservation of Hwange’s wild lions. Africa Geographic has paid for these sponsorships – to the value of $2,500 each. SACT chairperson Brian Courtenay presented these collars during the safari.
These GPS satellite collars allow SACT, WILDCRU (Oxford University), the Trans-Kalahari Predator Programme (TKPP), and Nelson Mandela University to track the natural movement of lions between protected areas and develop lion management plans. They also provide an early-warning system to local communities should lions be in the vicinity, allowing them to prepare, protect livestock and prevent incidents of human-lion conflict.
Find out more and make your mark by sponsoring a collar in full or donating any amount in support of lion conservation.
WATCH: Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique is a thriving, biodiversity-rich conservation landscape. This short film showcases the wonders of Gorongosa through the eyes of Dadiva David Salomão, the youngest safari guide in Mozambique. See how responsible tourism supports the ongoing transformation and conservation efforts within Gorongosa. (01:47) Click here to watch
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