A Bushbuck, or Imbabala, seen in South Luangwa National Park, Zambia
The Bushbuck is a small antelope species from Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite being so common, I only spotted a few of them during my travels through eastern Africa.
This Bushbuck was photographed in South Luangwa National Park in Zambia. Recent research indicates that the Bushbuck should be divided into two different species, meaning this Bushbuck would be an Imbabala. The other Bushbuck species, found further west and north in places like Senegal would be called the Kéwel. Even with that division naming specific Bushbuck subspecies is a bit of a headache. There are no less than 16 subspecies listed for Bushbucks, but no real consensus has been reached.
Confusion aside in terms of what exact species / subspecies this is, this Bushbuck is different than the commonly seen Impala and larger antelopes, as it has a unique colouration of spots and lines.
Thornicroft’s Giraffes – a species only found in South Luangwa, Zambia
There are currently nine different species / subspecies of Giraffes recognized to exist in Africa.
This is the Thornicroft’s Giraffe (formerly called the Rhodesian Giraffe), which can only be seen in the South Luangwa Valley in Zambia. This isolated species, G. c. thornicrofti, is believed to have fewer than 1500 individuals in existence.
As with other species of Giraffe, you can differentiate the Thornicroft’s Giraffe by it’s colouration and shape / location of it’s spots. This species has an almost cream coloured skin with ragged dark spots that extend all the way down from it’s neck to it’s legs. Compared to the Masai Giraffe, it’s spots are relatively light and spread apart.
Did you know that all Giraffes, both females and males, have what look like horns atop their heads? It is actually just built up cartilage, not a horn, and the males can use them as weapons while fighting for females during mating season.
A Male Puku in South Luangwa National Park, Zambia
Sleek and simple, the Puku is one of the classiest looking antelopes of Africa.
It’s home range is the grassy marsh areas of Namibia, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This male was spotted in some dry grass in South Luangwa National Park, Zambia.
On a safari side trip to donate some mosquito nets to a local village outside of South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, we came across something that was unexpected.
Lined up in rows and piles beside the road, and guarded by a small group of soldiers, were Hippo skulls, bones and tusks.
Skulls and bones from Culled Hippos near South Luangwa National Park
Going on safari in Africa, you envision wild mammals running around, playing out the eternal battle of predator and prey.
That is the case for the most part, but even in Africa fragmented habitats create situations where populations of certain species can get out of control. One such place is South Luangwa National Park in Zambia.
Piles of Hippopotamus bones near South Luangwa National Park
Overall, I found this park more impressive for wildlife viewing than the Serengeti. There were Hippos everywhere! As well as plenty of Giraffes, Elephants, Zebras, Warthogs and other animals.
Apparently the Hippopotamus population in South Luangwa is extremely healthy, to the point that authorities regulate a controlled cull of the animals to keep their populations in check.
Hundreds of Hippos are killed during these culls. When we arrived, these dried out skulls had obviously been around for some time, but it is hard to imagine what kind of operation it takes to cull these wild and dangerous animals.
Hippo Ivory and Skulls outside South Luangwa National Park in Zambia
We were told that the hippo meat is given to poor villages around the park and perhaps some butcher shops (although how they refrigerate and keep all that meat clean is a mystery to me). Other items are sold, with funds going to ZAWA (Zambia Wildlife Authority) towards the protection of the country’s parks.
What I didn’t know before seeing these skulls and bones lying around was that Hippo tusks, those big sharp teeth of theirs, are made of ivory.
One of the many South Luangwa Hippos that wasn't culled in Zambia
While Elephant ivory gets all the attention in the media, due to poaching, Hippo ivory is the second most common source of ivory in the world. You can see some Hippo tusks have been set aside in these photos.
