This past week has heralded two significant landmarks – firstly, that interprovincial travel (and alcohol sales!) may re-open, and secondly the return of the yellow-billed kites. Coincidentally, the yellow-billed kites all started to leave South Africa right at the start of lock-down, and this past week I saw my first “YBK” of the season, just as South Africa moves Read more

One of the questions that gets asked by guests is whether the lockdown affected the behaviour of animals. With only a limited number of vehicles on the reserve during the lockdown, this naturally resulted in animals coming into contact with vehicles a lot more seldom. Based on discussions with the wildlife team, guides and the anti-poaching units, there does Read more

Thanda Safari – IsiZulu for ‘Love’ – is a private Big Five reserve that protects a vast tract of undulating savannah and its wild inhabitants in the heart of the subtropical Zululand region. It lies a stone’s throw north of Hluhluwe-Imfolozi, which is not only the oldest game reserve in South Africa but also the most important in terms Read more

How do you tell the difference between a male zebra and a female zebra? Well, the one is black with white stripes and the other is white with black stripes! In fact, embryological evidence has shown that the zebra’s background colour is dark and the white is an addition. All zebra have a unique stripe pattern, similar to fingerprints, Read more

One of my favourite songs – Africa – is by the American rock band Toto and appeared on their fourth studio album. The song was an instant success and reached number one on the United States’ Billboard chart, although ended up being their only Billboard number one.

I hear the drums echoing tonight But she hears only whispers of Read more

If lions are the ‘king of the jungle’, then leopards have got to be its’ ‘prince regent’! Powerful, athletic, graceful and stealthy, they are the epitome of an apex predator. Leopards are one of the most adaptable of all cats, having a wider distribution than any other large carnivore. The fact that it is the most common large predator Read more

One of the more remarkable trees at Thanda Safari is the marula tree or umganu. Marula trees are of course famous for the liqueur Amarula, which is made from the fruit of the marula tree and is a staple for any fireside nightcap. Marula trees are deciduous trees, found over much of Africa, and can grow up to 18 Read more

One of the positives of the lock-down as a result of COVID-19 pandemic is the BirdLasser LockDown Challenge. The objective of this challenge is to record as many bird species over the lockdown period observed from the comfort of your house using the birdlasser app. As of today, the 30th of March 2020, the top birder – Adam – Read more

Meet our very newest baby rhino, just a few hours old in this photo (19/03/2020). For us at Thanda Safari, he represents all that is positive in this time of uncertainty and fear. He indeed has a story to tell.

Ryan (Rhino Monitor) and Lorraine (Wildlife Manager) were sitting with the new rhino mom who had just given birth Read more