The Kalahari Desert – Land of the San and Wildlife
The Kalahari Desert is a place that captures the imagination – rugged, breathtakingly beautiful, and full of contrasts. This vast landscape is the ancient home of the
Although officially a desert, the Kalahari harbors a remarkably rich biodiversity. Particularly in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR), one of Africa’s largest protected areas, large numbers of wild animals thrive.
Wildlife in the Kalahari
The vast plains of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve are the domain of impressive desert animals that have effortlessly adapted to life in drought and heat. Here, zebras and gemsbok roam across endless sand flats, while springbok graze in large herds in the golden grass. In the shade of thorn bushes, giraffes rest, elegant and undisturbed, their heads high above the landscape.
The Kalahari is also the realm of predators: black-maned lions and leopards that quietly hide in the bushes. Even the rare brown hyena sometimes shows itself in the early morning.
Those who go on safari here experience a rugged, pure world where animals move freely in one of Africa’s last true wildernesses – a place where every encounter still feels like a discovery.
Nowhere in Southern Africa is the chance of seeing a cheetah in the wild as high as here. Despite the global decline in their population, a healthy group of these graceful predators still lives in the Kalahari.
For those with an eye for nature’s smaller wonders, the Kalahari also offers unique encounters with special animals such as the honey badger, jackal, porcupine, meerkat, and – with a lot of luck – the rare pangolin.
An Encounter with the San
The San (also known as Bushmen) have been living in harmony with this seemingly inhospitable landscape for more than 50,000 years. Their culture, knowledge, and attitude towards life are truly fascinating. They have no word for “mine” or “yours,” but do have twenty different words to describe a smile.
An encounter with the San is an enriching experience and an essential part of a trip to the Kalahari. Go on a traditional walking safari with a San guide and learn how they read tracks, make fire, search for scorpions, use medicinal plants, and effortlessly adapt to the vagaries of nature.
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