Zoo Or Park

SItuated in the semi arid Karoo the national park is filled with rock art, fascinating fossils and a variety of wildlife including the endangered black rhino, buffallo and cape zebra. The park also plays host to one of the largest concentrations of black eagle in the world.

Accommodation is availble at the park in the form of self catering cape dutch styled chalets or a restcamp with huts and basic facilities

Get up-close-and-personal with nature at Knysna Elephant Park. With the help of the resident African elephants and the well-informed guides- you will learn about the sad and mystical story of the Knysna Elephants – the world’s Southern most elephants. The park offers a rare and exciting opportunity to get close to these gentle giants, who live in a controlled, free range environment in the heart of the famous Garden Route...

The Knysna Elephant Park was born of the struggle by the Elephants in the Knysna Forest, who for many years roamed freely in large numbers in their natural forest habitat. Today, a sad testimony to our society’s conservational failure, a mere 3 have been reported to survive in the dwindled forest area, making their future uncertain

Knysna and its surrounds is an area rich in natural beauty and history, with the ‘World’s most southerly elephants’, (Big feet), forming an integral part of this fascinating history. Though small in the face of the African Elephants plight across the continent, the sad story of the Knysna elephant and their demise is perhaps true.

Monkeyland is unique in that the sanctuary caters for several species of primate, and they are not caged, they are free to move about the forest, and do so in harmony.

The primates are therefore not found on predetermined points displayed on a map, the emphasis is to search for them, and the reward is to see them as they should be: free and in the wild.

Monkeyland is a modern primate sanctuary established in a pristine natural high canopy forest, which is well suited to those primates fortunate enough to live there. Perhaps the most significant aspect of the sanctuary is that it is both a multi-species and free-roaming facility. Monkeyland, which is only three years old, is totally self sustaining from the revenue it derives from tourism. This revenue is generated by enthusiastic rangers who take visitors out on monkey safaris . The safaris, which are fun and exciting, are also educational and generally result in our guests leaving the sanctuary with a whole new focus on the primates of the world and the problems they are facing.

Possibly the most important aspect emanating from the existence of the sanctuary is that Monkeyland is a living example that these wonderful creatures can be kept in an almost wild state. From this must surely come the realisation that re-introducing primates to their habitats of origin from this wilder state must stand a far greater chance of success.

Born Free Foundation: A guided visit to the world-renowned ‘Big Cat’ sanctuary on Shamwari Game Reserve, where lions and leopards live in the peace and freedom offered after being rescued from appalling conditions around the world.

Track/Spoor Identification and Skills: Learn to identify almost all the signs that nature leaves, whether on the ground; bark of a tree or dung pile. An enjoyable exercise of deliberating and learning whom wentwhere and when. This helps one to piece together the puzzle and see the Bigger Picture that nature has to offer.

Stargazing/Astronomy: Weather permitting, one can view and enjoy the beautiful Southern Skies and learn how to navigate at night and explore the mythology surrounding the ‘Milky Way’.

Botany/ Vegetation impacts: Many scientifically confirmed medicinal values exist in the diverse vegetation on Shamwari Game Reserve thus its ability to offer a large no of species. Monitoring the impact of Elephant, Rhino and all other browsers and grazers have on the vegetation help to ensure that over population doesn’t occur.

Field guiding and Conservation Ethic’s: Many unanswered questions still exist when it comes to approaching, monitoring and viewing animals in their natural environment. Ethical game ranging, viewing and guiding is important for safety any minimum stress for both man and animal. Thus monitoring and identifying animal response to humans on foot or vehicle is important.

Addo Elephant Park is one of the world's best parks in which to come face to face with elephants. Although the elephant is the big attraction in the park, one is also able to see buffalo, black rhino, warthog, eland, kudu and many other species. One is able to game view privately in your own vehicle or on a guided tour. The park is situated approximately 75 km north of Port Elizabeth and has various accommodation options available (chalets, bungalows, camping).

Situated about 25km west of Cradock, the Mountain Zebra National Park is a sanctuary for the endangered Cape Mountain Zebra. The park is also home to many antelope, caracal and over 200 bird species. There is also a rich variety of plant species.

Accommodation in the park is available as well as a fully licensed a la carte restaurant, curio shop and day visitor facilities. Petrol and diesel are available in the park.

Nestled in the Magaliesberg Mountains, approximately an hour from Johannesburg and Pretoria, the Elephant Sanctuary lies in a malaria-free area. Surrounded by natural bush and home to impala, klipspringer, baboons, porcupine, caracal, and leopard and the six magnificent rescued African Elephants.

The Elephant Sanctuary provides a safe-haven the elephant and offers a platform for guest education and interaction.

Various programmes are offered and the sanctuary focuses on education through interaction, so you will not only learn a lot about elephants, but also get to touch, feel, feed, walk trunk-in-hand and even ride these magnificent animals.

Booking is essential for all the programs. Please request special programs for corporate groups and teambuilding events.

Kafue is Zambia’s oldest park and by far the largest. It was proclaimed in 1950 and is spread over 22 400 square kilometres - the second largest national park in the world and about the size of Wales.

Despite the Park’s proximity to both Lusaka and the Copperbelt, it has remained underdeveloped until the most recent years. Despite the depravations of poaching and lack of management, the Park is still a raw and diverse slice of African wilderness with excellent game viewing, birdwatching and fishing opportunities.

From the astounding Busanga Plains in the North-western section of the Park to the tree-choked wilderness and the lush dambos of the south., fed by the emerald green Lunga, Lufupa and Kafue Rivers, the park sustains huge herds of a great diversity of wildlife. From the thousands of red lechwe on the Plains, the ubiquitous puku, the stately sable and roan antelopes in the woodland to the diminutive oribi and duiker. The solid-rumped defassa waterbuck, herds of tsessebe, hartebeest, zebra and buffalo make for a full menu of antelope.

Large prides of lion, solitary leopards and cheetahs are the prime predators. There is a host of smaller carnivores from the side-striped jackal, civet, genet and various mongoose.

Birdwatching - especially on the rivers and the dambos is superb. Notables include the wattled crane, purple crested loerie and Pel’s fishing owl. Over 400 species of birds have been recorded throughout the park.

The Kafue and Lunga Rivers offer superb fishing opportunities, especially good bream, barbel and fresh water pike. Most lodges have fishing tackle, rods, boats and bait available. Musungwa Lodge in the south, hosts an annual fishing competition in September on Lake Itezhi Tezhi.

What to See

Spread over such a vast area, the Kafue National Park encompasses a variety of landscapes.

The spectacular Busanga Plains in the north is a vast flat expanse that stretches in all directions as far as the eye can see - one of Zambia’s most significant wetland resources and one of the few untouched by development or human activity. This vast watery wilderness, flooded in the wet season by several rivers and streams covers an enormous 750 square kilometres. It drains into the Lufupa River, a tributary of the Kafue River. The floods reach their height from March to May, after the rains and large herds of hippo are stranded in the shallow pools left as the water recedes in the dry season.

The lush grasslands are grazed by red lechwe in their thousands. Fifty years ago, lechwe were almost extinct in this area. The establishment of the national park has seen a phenomenal recovery in their numbers and it is a sight of great beauty to see them wandering in such vast herds across the golden plains. During the wet season they splash about in the shallow waters, and, interestingly enough, lion, who usually dislike water, can be seen chasing them through water at least a half a meter deep.

Other antelope found here are blue wildebeest, Lichtenstein's hartebeest, (frequently seen) buffalo, zebra, reedbuck, oribi, puku and impala (frequently seen) . Bushpig and warthog are also inhabitants of the plains. The shy swamp-dwelling sitatunga is found here, its widespread hooves enabling it to walk on the floating reedmats.Roan antelope are seen regularly in the northern sector as well as big herds of sable 30-40 strong.

The wealth of game on the plains are a big attraction for lions and prides of up to twenty are spotted regularly. Cheetah and Leopard also roam the plains, the cheetah being able to exercise their famous turn of speed, reaching up to 125 kilometres an hour. They are often seen on the plains.

Quote from one of the Game Guides in Kafue: "We have been having some incredible sightings over the last few weeks: a brand new wildebeest calf trying to gain its feet for the first time, going straight for the nipple and then being blown over by the wind; mating lions with all the grimacing, lip curling, teeth baring, ear biting and to round it off, strange noises; a pair of cheetah on a termite mound, completely relaxed and then ten of the hugest crocodiles resting their ugly snouts on a Kudu bull one of them must have pulled into the water - a truly sobering sight!"

Mkambati is the largest Wild Coast reserve – about eighty square kilometres. Situated close to the KwaZulu-Natal border, the reserves coastline stretches along 10km of rugged, rocky beaches, offering visitors a glimpse of unspoilt nature. Other scenic features include forested ravines, a swamp forest and splashing waterfalls. The reserve consists mostly of open grassland dissected by streams and flanked by the magnificent forested ravines of the Msikaba and Mtentu rivers.It is mainly grassland bracketed between the deep forested gorges of the Mtentu and Msikaba rivers, with a coastline so amazing that it leaves most visitors speechless. Its unique swamp forest, open grassland and ravines provide habitats for a variety of plant and animal species. This is also the spot where two ships - the Sao Bento and the Grosvenor - came to their sad ends.

The Oceanarium in its present form was constructed over a period of 10 years, the first phase of which was the 900 000 litre main fish tank which was built in 1959. After housing dolphins for a number of years, the pool was re-established as a fish tank in 1968 when the new dolphin lake was completed and is now home to a wide variety of large fish, sharks and turtles.

Alongside it is the smaller tropical tank where a variety of tropical fish and sea turtles found alongside the East coast are displayed.

The large dolphin lake is undoubtedly the focal point of the Oceanarium. 60m long, 45m at its widest point and up to 4,5m deep, it contains 4, 75 million litres of filtered seawater and is still one of the largest dolphin lakes in the world. Two Indian Ocean Bottlenose dolphins, Domino and Dumisa, delight visitors to the Oceanarium on a daily basis. The past 47 years have seen a tremendous growth in knowledge of bottlenose dolphins on an international scale. The knowledge gained by scientists and the curators at Bayworld through their experience with the dolphins forms a significant part of this growth. Although many people are opposed to keeping dolphins in oceanaria, the role of these ambassadors of the ocean in shaping public awareness and attitudes cannot be ignored.

A large seal pool enclosure houses a small colony of Cape fur seals, as well as Sub Antarctic seals. Penguins and other sea birds are on display in a landscaped area including a swimming hole and waterfall. Several penguin pairs breed successfully each year.

Please note: this is a thing to see, there is NO accommodation at this Game Reserve, please do not enquire!

Enjoy this reserves two different eco-systems - the grassy plains with large herds of game, and the bushy mountain region with baboons, mountain reedbuck and many.

The game reserve is situated approximately 30 km from Ventersburg and 150 km from Bloemfontein. The turn-off to the nature reserve is on the N1 between Winburg and Ventersburg. The Sand River and Allemanskraal Dam divide the Willem Pretorius Game Reserve of 12 000 ha into northern and southern parts.

The northern side creates suitable homes for baboon, mountain reedbuck, red hartebeest, kudu and duiker, Huge white stinkwood and karee trees also occur. On the southern side. eland, blesbok, springbok, black wildebeest and zebra can be found, while white rhino and buffalo are equally at home on either side of the reserve.

There is a modern fully equipped education and conference centre. Environmental education programmes are presented to groups on request. Groups of up to 100 people can be accommodated in two complexes. A large recreation hall in the same complex can accommodate 200 people. The 10 fully equipped holiday chalets each has its own car port and barbecue.

The restaurant is licensed and serves a la carte and take-away meals. Essentials and curios can be obtained from a small shop. In one of the kloofs of the game reserve is a lapa with barbecue facilities.

There is also a bush camp that sleeps 16 people and has a kitchen and ablution facilities. The caravan park is well equipped with power points, ablution facilities and a kitchen.

The world renowned Kruger National Park covers nearly 2 million hectares of diverse ecosystems. Offering you a unique wildlife experience Kruger is the flagship of the South African national parks, and home to an impressive number of species and home to the Big Five! Also on offer is 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals as well as offering you a collection of bushman rock paintings to majestic archaeological sites.

The region of Kruger North extends from the Shingwedzi to the Limpopo rivers. The northern area of Kruger is the least occupied and driest part of the park and is very different to the rest of Kruger. Despite the low rainfall making this part 'less desirable' to game, there is still a good population of antelope, sable and eland. The wild dog has a strong population in the north due to the small presence of lion.

The Limpopo National Park also falls under this area and forms part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park which at 35,000 sq km, is roughly the size of Belgium. It's the largest transfrontier park in South Africa and one of the largest parks in the world.

Commercial ostrich farming started during the late 1880's in South Africa, with the Oudtshoorn district quickly being established as the Ostrich capital of the world.

During the first decade of the previous century, ostrich feathers gained record prices on foreign markets, amazingly ranking 4th on the list of South African exports after gold, diamonds and wool... The consequence of this newly found opulence meant that ostrich farmers were able to build beautiful sandstone mansions.

A unique feature, of the Safari experience is a visit to the Ostrich Palace "Welgeluk" which was built at the height of the feather boom in 1910. The homestead is a National Monument and a superb example of the type of architecture that was used at the time.

Safari Ostrich Show Farm is an operating farm where visitors will see large flocks of ostriches at different stages of development in the surrounding fields.

The tour starts in the breeding camp, with a nest of ostrich eggs, where the first stage of the ostrich life cycle is explained. You can even test the strength of the eggs by standing on them - a great photo opportunity.

During the breeding season visitors get to see ostrich eggs hatching in the incubator rooms. Visitors get to sit on an ostrich and those who are brave enough can even try their hand at riding one!

Every tour ends with an "Ostrich Derby" where local jockeys display their riding skills. A highly entertaining and educational tour is guaranteed.

Nestled in a picturesque setting at the base of the Drakensberg escarpment in the Limpopo Province Lowveld of South Africa, Moholoholo has become a haven for the rehabilitation and care of abandoned, injured and poisoned wildlife.

Wildlife is brought to the center from all corners of South Africa, and once healthy enough are re-introduced into their natural environments. Those creatures who cannot be returned to the wild due to the nature and extent of their injuries, are cared for at the center and are used to educate the many people who visit us each year, both from across South Africa and abroad.

Another important function of the center is breeding. We have successfully bred and released into the wild the endangered Crowned Eagle, Serval and many others.

This Centre is a non-profit organization, relying completely on the support of the public.

Moholoholo Rehabilitation Centre was started in 1992 on a Game Farm owned by a wildlife enthusiast Mr. J.A. Strijdom. Brian Jones the manager had a Crowned Eagle when he arrived and then was brought in a day old Zebra, from there word got out that Brian was able to care and release animals and birds�and so the Rehab Centre started.

At first donations where welcomed but as the Rehab grew he realized that money was needed for the medicines and up keep of the cages and plus the expense of feeding so he then decided to ask a fee which started at R5 an adult. The tours lasted from an Hour to two, sometimes three depending on the interest of the public.

The rehab now houses confiscated Lions from a Mozambique Circus, Leopard, Caracal, Serval, Cheetah, Crowned Eagle, Marshall Eagle, Vultures and many more that have been confiscated, orphaned, abandoned or injured.

The costs have been high and at times desperate but the rehab seems to just survive with the donations and money paid by the public to do a tour.

His aim is to get to the public the awareness of the plight of the Environment in Southern Africa.

The Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre, situated near the Kruger National Park, is one of the leading privateresearch and breeding facillities in the country.The centre developed from a cheetah-breeding project established by Lente Roode in the late 1980's the the world-renown breeding and research establishment for various endangered species that opened its doors to the public in 1990. Besides the cheetah, the king cheetah, wild dog and black-footed cat and Arican wild cat have been successfully bred.

The centre has also provided sanctuary to numerous orphaned, abandoned and sick animals over the years. Internationally renowned, it's often approached by animal rights organisations to assist in the rescuing and evacuation of animals in need.The veterinery staff operates an animal hospital where injured and destitute animalsare cared for and eventually released back into the wild.

The Hoedspruit centre operates as a non-profitable organisation and relies on donations and sponsorships to survive.

Tours

Tours of the centre are conducted daily at hourlyintervals. Tours begin with a DVD presentationand provide an opportunity to view cheetah, African wild dog, many other endangered speciesin their natural habitat and a fascinating vulture restaurant. Prior reservation for large groups are essential.

Tours end at a well stocked curio shop and a tea garden where light lunches and refreshmants can be enjoyed. Enquire about specials when entering the cente