ACTIVITIES
Kalahari Bush Breaks allows you to choose a wide range of adventures. We are convinced that you will fall in love with the deafening tranquillity and that your impressions will be unforgettable.
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A 20km Self Drive 4x4 Route which take you past the ancient Bushman engravings and brings you in close contact with our ample wildlife. Kalahari Bush Breaks boasts with over 20 species of antelope.
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1x Walking Trail with spectacular views into Botswana.
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Birds
Of the 264 species recorded in the Kalahari, only 78 are residents (always present), 16 species are regular seasonal migrants. Another 18 are classified as nomads, meaning that they visit the Kalahari regularly but not during any predictable season. And the great majority of species recorded (152) are vagrants – irregular visitors which may be common in some years, depending on conditions.
78 RESIDENT BIRDS
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The resident bird species are mainly Raptors, like the Chanting and Gabar Goshawks, Martial and Tawny Eagles, or insectivores, such as the Marico and Chat Flycatcher. The striking Chrimson breasted Shrike, the Forktailed Drongo and the familiar Anteating Chats. A few mixed feeders (insects and fruits) such as the Red eyed Bulbul, Pied Barbet, and Cape and Burchell’s Glossy Starlings are also common residents. These species do not reach the numbers of the nomads because they live off the lower density, although more predictable food supply than seeds.
Small 500
We do not have the Big Five, but we are extremely excited about our “Small 500”. Usually the Kalahari is cloudless. Humidity is low, and this combined with high daytime temperatures creates high rates of evaporation. Plants are either perennials, which live for many years, or annuals, which germinate, grow, flower, seed and die in one year.
Perennials are the backbone of the system, providing many animals with a stable supply of nutritious, high quality food in both the wet and dry season. The annuals can be regarded as an unreliable luxury, exploding into abundance when conditions are favourable, but remaining unseen during droughts.
The Kalahari has amazing strategies for survival and plants exhibit ingenious adaptations to accomplish this. For example some seeds take advantage of strong winds by having wind dispersal aids such as “wings”. Others like the Devils Claw, (Harpagophytum Procumbens) have fruits armed with long hooks which become entangled in animal hair.
Two major additional problems confront animals that live in hot, arid regions like the Kalahari. Firstly, the animals must be able to breathe and excrete waste products from their bodies without loosing too much water. Secondly, they must be able to keep their body temperature below lethal limits and yet, as far as possible, avoid cooling themselves by water-expending panting or sweating.
