Chobi National Park

Sep 21

Written By Nathan Lipe

Warthogs

Warthogs are generally not a threat and are a passive, planet-eating animal. They are still wild and dodgy creatures.

They stand 3.5’ tall, weigh up to 300 lbs and have razor sharp teeth and long tusks that will do serious damage and can kill you if they feel threatened.

Maybe it was their role in the “Lion King” but I have always liked them and found them interesting. They have a certain charm to them and they made my list of animals that I wanted to see.

Elephants of the Kalahari

These guys are the star of the show and are on full display.

They are Kalahari elephants and are the biggest in Africa. There are 120,000 Kalahari elephants, the largest on earth.

Make bath time so much fun

The elephants get hot and to cool down they roll around in the mud until they are covered. Here they are teaching the babies how it is done.

Kudu

Kudu is a woodland antelope found throughout eastern and southern Africa. They roam in herds throughout the park. They are graceful animals but any sudden movement and they are gone.

I had a moment with this group.

African Cape Buffalo

hippopotamus for Christmas.

The beautiful holiday song is full of cheer and joy. I didn’t know much about the creature but the song made me want one as a child. As it turns out you can’t have one, well, unless you are a Columbian drug lord. Then you can have as many as you want.
The fact is hippos are not to be messed with. They kill roughly 3000 people a year.

They hangout in tucked away little pockets and relax in the water. One dominant male has a whole mess of ladies and is always on guard and watching. As we approached he started coming our way and was ready to attack at anything that would dare come his way. They are a shoot first, ask questions later.

Nile Crocodile

Nile crocodiles are much more aggressive than American alligators and crocs. They weigh up to 1700 lbs, grow up to 12’ long and are able to swim 22 mph. In other words you will not win this one so play somewhere else.

The Birds

African Fish Eagle- This tough is sitting on a tree stump as the crocs bask all around him.

Lilac Breasted Roller Bird- Looks like a bag of Skittles.

These lazy kitties just sat in the shade and slept. No hello, how you doing…… nothing.

Giraffe Bachelor

Chobi has many giraffes but we only discovered one solitary giraffe. He was a lonely young man looking for love in all the wrong places. Mature males leave the group they are born in when they become an adult, around 4 years. They spend the rest of there lives alone. They come together with females for mating, there is no mating season because females go into heat in regular cycles like humans every couple of weeks, and then go right back to roaming the earth alone.