Southern African Wildlife

This new, thoroughly revised edition of Bradt's Southern Africa Wildlife guide provides an overview of all southern African wildlife – not only ‘big game' and other large mammals, but also birds, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. Excellent for independent travelers, it is reliable as a standalone guide combining both wildlife and visitor information, and is also a perfect complement to traditional field guides. Countries covered include Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini and Zimbabwe, with Malawi and Zambia both added to this new edition. Colour photographs illustrate all key species and the engaging text extends beyond basic identification features to illuminate the natural history and ecology of the wildlife that visitors will encounter. Text has been updated throughout to reflect the latest conservation initiatives and wildlife population figures. Included are a practical guide to tracks and signs, plus top tips for optimising your wildlife experience, as well as a ‘where to go' overview which outlines the key wildlife attractions of each country and, together with a seasonal highlights calendar, enables visitors to plan a safari that suits their interests.

ISBN-13: 9781784779184

Media Type: Paperback

Publisher: Bradt Publications UK

Publication Date: 07-01-2022

Pages: 328

Product Dimensions: 5.38(w) x 8.58(h) x 0.55(d)

Mike Unwin’s experience of southern Africa began in 1988, when he arrived as a teacher in Zimbabwe and spent much of the next two years chasing wildlife around the bush. He quickly fell in love with the region – its people and its wildlife – and, over five more years based in Eswatini, he was able to explore all its key conservation areas. Hands-on wildlife experience ranged from safari adventures, such as wild camping in the Kalahari and canoeing the Zambezi, to volunteer work for the Southern African Frog Atlas Project and setting up the Swaziland Bird Club. Since returning to his native UK and becoming a freelance writer, Mike has returned regularly to southern Africa on assignment, revisiting old haunts and discovering new ones. Today his body of work reflects his knowledge, experience and passion. Author of more than 35 books on wildlife for both adults and children, and regular contributor to numerous publications – from national newspapers such as the Telegraph to specialist magazines such as Travel Africa – Mike’s numerous awards include UK Travel Writer of the Year (British Guild of Travel Writers, 2013) and Bradt/BBC Wildlife Nature Writer of the Year (2000). He is also an accomplished photographer, illustrator and public speaker, and an enthusiastic imitator of unusual animal noises.

Read an Excerpt

[From ‘Looking for animals’]

Anticipating an animal’s needs will help you to find it. Water, particularly in the dry season and in arid habitats, attracts everything from thirsty herds of antelope to basking terrapins and foraging waders. Look for potential food sources: a large herd of buffalo is a magnet to lions, whose kill draws scavengers such as vultures and hyenas; elephants go mad for marula trees in season, while their droppings are picked through by francolins, baboons and dung beetles. Raptors flock to termite swarms, storks and jackals follow grass fires for the exodus of rodents and reptiles, and a fruiting sycamore fig provides a real bonanza, with hornbills, monkeys and louries flocking to the canopy by day, bushbabies and fruitbats arriving by night and bushbuck foraging for pickings beneath.

 

[from birds]

In the arid west, dusk and dawn at the waterhole are heralded by a soft ripple of whistled calls, as sandgrouse wheel swiftly in. The noise swells as more birds arrive in the half-light, each landing a few metres back from the waterhole before shuffling forward to the water’s edge. Thirst quenched, the first birds take to the air with a clatter of wings and disappear towards the dark horizon, while the next rank presses forward to take their place.

Sandgrouse are pigeon-sized birds, perfectly adapted to the arid conditions of the Kalahari and Namibia. Males are ornately patterned, while females have the typical cryptic camouflage of a ground nester. Their daily visits to water are not only to slake their own thirst. During the breeding season, males will wade in belly-deep to soak up water with their specially-adapted breast feathers, before returning with their precious cargo to the young on the nest, sometimes over 50km away.

There are four species of sandgrouse in southern Africa. Most common in the west is the Namaqua sandgrouse (Pterocles namaqua), easily identified by the male’s long pointed tail. This species is joined at waterholes by Burchell’s sandgrouse (Pterocles burchelli), whose ochre plumage is sprinkled with fine white spots. Doublebanded sandgrouse (Pterocles bicintus) also occur in dry woodland further east. The male is identified by black and white bars on his breast and forehead.

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Table of Contents

IntroductionWhat’s new?, How to use this book, The southern African environmentHabitatsSavannah woodland, or bushveld, Grassland, Forest, Desert, The arid zone, Fynbos, Wetlands and waterways, The coast, The human landscapeMammalsCarnivores, African elephant, Hoofed mammals, Primates, Ant-eating oddities, Small mammals, Sea mammalsBirdsSeabirds and waterbirds, Ground birds, Raptors, Near-passerines (louries to honeyguides), Perching BirdsReptiles and AmphibiansTortoises, turtles and terrapins, Snakes, Lizards, Crocodiles, FrogsInvertebratesMillipedes and centipedes, Spiders and scorpions, InsectsTracks and signsMaking tracks, Droppings, Who’s at home?, Feeding signsMaking the most of itPlanning your trip, Looking for animals, Other ways to watch wildlife, Roughing it, Photography, Minimum-impact code, Back home Where to goBotswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, ZimbabweFurther information Index