Guide to the animals of Namibia

NAMIBIA has 26 parks and reserves making its abundant wildlife one of its greatest tourist assets.

The most famous of these parks is the Etosha National Park which harbours 114 mammal species. There are eight mammal species endemic to Namibia, including the black-faced impala, several mice, gerbils and bats.

The black-faced impala is similar to the common impala, except for the distinctive black stripe down its face. The Namibian desert is well known for its large number of endemic dune dwellers, especially lizards, of which there are 30 endemic species. Namibia is also home to many bird species.

Namibia’s endangered species include the wild dog, black rhino, oribi and puku. The puku antelope is limited to about 100 individuals along the Chobe River in Botswana and the Linyati marshes in Namibia.

The black and white rhino have suffered the most from poaching and are on the verge of extinction. If there had been no moves to save them in the last 20 years they probably would have disappeared from the wild altogether.

Although both species occur naturally in Namibia, today you will find them in many of the reserves where they have been reintroduced.

The country also has the largest population in southern Africa of cheetah not contained within National Parks.

There are over 20 species of antelope in Namibia ranging from the largest, the eland, to the smallest, the Damara dik-dik.

The gemsbok, a striking antelope with long symmetrical horns and distinctive black and white markings is featured on the Namibian coat of arms. Namibia also harbours a wealth of small mammals including mongoose, jackal as well as the less common antbear and honey badger. These are not often seen as they are solitary and nocturnal.

Namibia’s parks and reserves range from the open bush of the central areas and the north where wildlife is relatively plentiful, to the barren and inhospitable coastal strip with its huge sand dunes.

The three main tourist attractions for wildlife in Namibia are Etosha National Park, Waterberg Plateau National Park and Cape Cross Reserve.

Etosha’s name translates as ‘Great white place of dry water’. The wildlife is typical of the southern savannah in Africa with large herds of ‘plains game’ such as springbok, Burchell’s zebra, gemsbok and blue wildebeest, as well as smaller numbers of red hartebeest and mountain zebra.

It is also home to lion, cheetah and the elusive leopard. Some 300 black rhino live in Etosha as well as an elephant population that fluctuates between 750 and 1500 as they migrate between Kaokoveld, Etosha and the Zambezi region.

Waterberg Plateau was proclaimed for the purposes of breeding and maintaining populations of rare and endangered animals, such as the tsessebe, roan and sable antelope.

Buffalo were introduced from the east and white rhino were reintroduced from South Africa.

Cape Cross is a seal reserve which covers 60 square kilometres. The seal numbers fluctuate between 80 000 and 100 000, with only one in four seal pups surviving as they often fall prey to jackals and the hyena. – Cardboard Box Travel Shop – info@namibian.org

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