Shamwari Game Reserve has more than its fair share of African elephants but those that want to work mainly or exclusively with elephants often go to the Addo Elephant Park, which is just a short drive from Shamwari.
I often flit between the two reserves and I know that many students also choose to spend a few days of their Shamwari holiday working with animals at Addo and the Addo students vice-versa. The park is one of the few places in South Africa that can actually claim to contain all of the big seven – lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros, buffalo, whale and shark. The park is also known for its thriving bird population and, as well as my fellow oxpeckers, the park contains Amur falcons, red bishops, dikkops and weavers.
I was up early in the morning with the students as they had planned to go on a game drive and see if they could spot the newest addition to the park a month old elephant calf. The park gates are closed until 4.25am and I’m pleased to report that the sleepy students were there 10 minutes before at 4.15am. However, none of them minded the fact it was so early and had actually requested an early start with the hope of spotting more wildlife.
Watching the sunrise over the savannah was a rewarding experience for all of the students and, as the jeep turned left down a dirt road, the students got their first sighting of the day, a hyena strolled right out in-front of the jeep. However, the students soon gauged that there was a lot more to be spotted in the trees. The students snapped away at ground hornbills, Amur falcons and I’m proud to say they even took my picture I must be famous!
However, the students soon discovered what they were looking for, when they spotted a herd of elephants ahead of them. The herd of four elephants consisted of three adult elephants and a baby elephant that the ranger estimated to be around a month old. As the students snapped away at the elephant herd they all concluded that the early start had been well worth it.
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