Namibia’s wildlife survives despite the harsh regimes nature dictates in this largely arid country. Fourteen major vegetation zones support at least 134 species of wild mammals in niches where they feed, establish territories and reproduce. Some are “Namibian specials”, endemic animals which live nowhere else. Most have developed unique and interesting adaptations which help them survive in their dry and hot environment.
Cheetahs on a game ranch in Otjiwarongo.
FLPA
All of Africa’s “Big Five” (elephant, rhinoceros, buffalo, lion and leopard), plus the well-known prey animals, are present in Namibia. Some are specifically adapted to the desert; others display unique survival mechanisms.
The lion (Panthera leo) is by far the largest African predator: an adult male may weigh anything up to 240kg (530lb). Lions are unique among the cats in that they live in social groups or prides, which hunt cooperatively. There is also greater sexual dimorphism (differences between sexes) than in other species.
A pride consists of a coalition of males, generally two or possibly three brothers who defend and hold a territory, up to 15 females who are usually related, and usually some youngsters. Females do the hunting, bringing down prey as large as buffalo and young elephants.
Like other big cats, lions hunt by ambushing prey and then sprinting after it for a short distance. They have little stamina, so unless their quarry is close when they break cover, they have little chance of success. Once lionesses have killed, the males and the cubs feed first.
A spotted hyena scavenges a carcass.
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Occasionally, lions make their way down the river valleys into the Skeleton Coast National Park, where they struggle to make a living, scavenging the tide line and occasionally hunting Cape fur seals. They are likely to be shot as soon as they leave the park. Resting lions will barely flick a tail or twitch a foot for hours at a time. Only if you come across playful young cubs or a mating pair are you likely to witness any activity. Lions are more active after dark and you may see them on a spotlighted night drive from a private lodge or at a floodlit water hole.
A serene lion in Etosha National Park.
Fotolia
The next largest African cat is the leopard (Panthera pardus), about 2 metres (6ft) from nose to tail, with a male weighing 60kg (130lb) or more. This muscular and solitary nocturnal hunter is one of the most secretive of cats.
Leopards creep up on their quarry in the darkness, only making a dash at the very last moment. In order to prevent lions or hyenas from stealing their prey, these powerful beasts will haul their food up into a tree and cache it there, sprawling over a nearby branch in the shade of the dense foliage during the day. Alternatively, they will crawl into impenetrable thickets or deep grass.
Only the very fortunate will spot a leopard in daylight in Etosha – although waterhole watchers may be rewarded by one coming to drink at night. Nevertheless, it is always worth checking any likely looking trees, where a luxuriant bell-rope of a tail is frequently a giveaway.
Leopard and cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) are both persecuted by Namibian farmers for stealing stock. They are snared, trapped and shot – and for cheetahs this is a significant problem. Namibia has around 2,500, the largest population in the world, but they live mainly on farmland where they constantly come into conflict with man.
The cheetah differs from true big cats in that it has semi-retractable (as opposed to fully retractable) claws. The fastest land mammal, this lithe cat, weighing around 50kg (115lb), can achieve speeds of 100kph (60mph) over short distances.
As with lions, coalitions of brothers hold territories but they do not consort with the females except to mate with them, and take no part in rearing the young. The female does this alone, defending and feeding her litter until the cubs are almost full-grown and have learned to hunt for themselves.
Cheetahs cover long distances and have extremely large territories, generally centred around a number of play trees which they scent-mark with both faeces and urine.
Namibia’s Smaller Cats
The lynx-like caracal (Felis caracal) is found throughout the country except for the Namib coastal strip. It is a robustly built cat, over a metre (3ft) in length and weighing around 16kg (35lb). It varies in colour from sandy brown to silvery grey, with very distinctive ear tufts and a fairly short tail.
The caracal is nocturnal, solitary and a very swift and adept hunter, even catching birds in the air as they take off. As well as mainly ground-living birds, it also eats mammalian prey up to the size of an impala.
The serval (Felis serval) is much the same size as the caracal but slighter, weighing only around 11kg (25lb). It has long legs, a small head, upstanding ears and a fine black-spotted coat on a gold background. Mostly found in the north of Namibia, it hunts at night, either by itself or in pairs, and feeds mainly on small mammals although it will also take birds and reptiles.
The African wild cat (Felis lybica) looks very much like a pale domestic tabby, but with distinctive reddish-brown ears. It lives throughout the country, except for the Namib coastal strip, and feeds on mammals up to the size of a spring hare, as well as on birds, reptiles and invertebrates. Although it is largely a nocturnal animal, you may see a wild cat during the daytime at quieter watering holes in Etosha, when it might try hunting doves coming down to drink.
Next on our list is the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta), the second largest carnivore in Africa. Standing 90cm (3ft) tall and weighing around 65kg (140lb), it is a formidable animal with powerful forequarters and a massive and heavily muscled head. It has a spotted coat and a comparatively short tail. Although often seen individually, in pairs and in threes, hyenas live in large clans, which defend a territory.
The spotted hyena, with the strongest jaws of any mammal, can eat large bones – a source of nutritious marrow. Its droppings are usually white because of all the calcium they contain.
Though they have a reputation for scavenging, hyenas are extremely competent cursorial hunters, employing their considerable reserves of stamina and often cooperating to run down prey, such as wildebeest, over long distances.
They will steal prey from other predators, including lone lions, and will eat all manner of carrion, making more efficient use of prey than any other carnivore. They are found mainly in Etosha and in the Caprivi Strip area.
The much smaller brown hyena (Hyaena brunnea) weighs about 40kg (90lb). It tends to be a specialist of arid areas and survives throughout the Namib Desert in western Namibia. It is much the same shape as the spotted hyena, but has long, coarse, light or dark brown hair. It spends its nights foraging individually, feeding mainly on small mammals, birds, insects, reptiles and wild fruits such as melons.
It is often possible to find the tracks of the brown hyena, showing where it has wandered hither and thither during the night in search of food. In spite of its solitary nature, the brown hyena also holds territories with others in its group of males and females.
The dog family
The African wild dog or painted dog (Lycaon pictus) is found in the northeast of Namibia. It is a rangy animal, similar in size to a domestic Alsatian, with a short coat randomly patched with black, white and gold. The wild dog lives in a close-knit pack of 10 to 15, which roams a very large territory up to 2,000 sq km (770 sq miles), living a nomadic lifestyle unless rearing puppies. The pack is a highly specialised and efficient hunting team, pursuing and attacking prey as large as buffalo.
Throughout Africa, the wild dog population is dwindling. It suffers from the same fatal diseases as domestic dogs (notably distemper and rabies), is often a road casualty, and is also heavily persecuted by farmers, being both shot and snared. Attempts to reintroduce the dogs to Etosha have unfortunately failed in the past, and with a wild population estimated at between 3,000 and 5,000, the animal is now IUCN-listed as an endangered species.
The black back and black bushy tail of the black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas), make it unmistakable. Its flanks and long legs are chestnut, it has pointy ears, stands about 38cm (15ins) at the shoulder and weighs about 8kg (18lb). It is capable of living throughout the country and may be seen anywhere from the Namib Desert to the Caprivi Strip.
A black-backed jackal in Etosha.
123RF
It is probably the most commonly seen carnivore and may be spotted trotting singly or in pairs through the national parks such as Etosha. It is frequently seen at floodlit waterholes, and large numbers gather around coastal seal colonies, where they are known to suffer from mange from time to time. An omnivore, the jackal eats insects, small mammals, fruits and nuts, and often scavenges around campsites. Its high-pitched screaming cries are one of the characteristic sounds of the African night.
The bat-eared fox has very acute directional hearing: it can pinpoint termites moving underground, and digs furiously to unearth them before they can burrow away.
The little bat-eared fox (Octocyon megalotis) has unmistakable huge rounded ears thick buff grey fur, and the legs, muzzle and the tip of its bushy tail are black. The long front claws are used to dig for insects, its primary prey. It will also take other invertebrates, small mammals, birds and reptiles. Nocturnal during the summer months, the bat-eared fox is mostly seen by day during winter, when the cold desert nights keep insects inactive.
The endearing bat-eared fox.
Bigstock
The silvery buff Cape fox (Vulpes chama) is a small fox (3kg/7lb) with a dark, bushy tail. Generally solitary and nocturnal, it lies up during the day in cool shade or in an underground den. It is an omnivore and takes a range of small prey and fruits.
Like some other foxes it caches food, and you may spot a hungry Cape fox out in daylight excavating a hidden larder. It lives throughout the drier parts of Namibia. Keep a look out for Cape foxes at dusk, when you may see one or even a pair emerge from a den.
Grant’s golden mole attacks a locust.
FLPA
Sand-Swimmer
Many Namibian mammals have developed unique adaptations for survival in their dry, hot environment. One of the most fascinating is Grant’s golden mole (Eremitalpa granti), a totally sightless yet ferocious predator only 8cm (3ins) long, endemic to the arid Namib Desert. Aided by its streamlined coat of silky pale yellow fur, this nocturnally active mole “swims” beneath the loose sand, covering up to 5km (3 miles) a night. This adaptation enables the mole to live without burrows in the sliding dune slipfaces, and also to sense through the sand the movements of its favourite prey – web-footed geckos, crickets and beetle larvae.
The weasel family
Namibia has two otters but very little permanent water, so both species are confined to the Caprivi Strip. The larger Cape clawless otter (Aonyx capensis) grows to 160cm (5ft) in length and weighs up to 18kg (40lb). It is a typical otter with a dense, dark brown coat, flat streamlined head and a broad tapering tail. Its white chin is characteristic. Each foot has five toes and those on the hind feet possess rudimentary claws and are also webbed. It is able to manipulate food with its feet and hold it while it feeds. Although most of its diet is aquatic creatures, the Cape clawless otter takes a range of prey including insects, reptiles and even birds.
The spotted-necked otter (Lutra maculicollis) is much smaller (1 metre/3ft long and 4.5kg/10lb in weight). It too is chocolate-brown but with a mottled creamy white throat and upper chest. Like the Cape clawless, its hind feet are webbed but in this species they have white claws. The diet of the spotted-necked otter contains a greater proportion of aquatic prey as this species is more tied to water than the Cape clawless. Look out for it swimming low in the water, tail emerging as it dives.
A honey badger in the Kalahari.
Dreamstime
The honey badger or ratel (Mellivora capensis) is slightly larger and heavier than the Eurasian badger – 1 metre (3ft) in length and weighing in at about 12kg (26lb). It is black with a broad silvery-grey saddle stretching from the top of its head to the tip of its tail. This gives it a rather ghostly appearance at night when the legs are almost invisible and the animal appears to float along.
It is powerfully built with long sharp claws on its front feet. It is a nocturnal animal, usually seen alone or in pairs foraging for small mammals, invertebrates, birds, reptiles, bee larvae and honey. Its tough, thick skin helps considerably in its defence and it is fearless and aggressive in its dealings with other creatures in the bush.
Like the honey badger, the striped polecat (Ictonyx striatus) is almost entirely nocturnal. It is a black and white striped animal weighing just under a kilogram (2lb) and is found throughout Namibia. It is a solitary insectivore and uses a highly distasteful secretion from its anal glands in self-defence. You may see this animal beside the road at night when it is out foraging.
The small-spotted genet (Genetta genetta) weighs in at just under 2kg (4lb). Its buff-coloured body is covered with small dark spots while its tail is ringed with black and has a white tip. It lives throughout almost all of Namibia, apart from the desert regions, and preys on rodents, small birds, invertebrates and reptiles, hunting and foraging for fruit alone at night. It prefers to live in areas of bush, so that it can climb a tree if disturbed.
Varieties of mongoose
Finally, there are a number of mongooses in Namibia of which the best known is the suricate (Suricata suricatta) or meerkat. This small mongoose weighs just less than a kilogram (2lb) and is characterised by a silvery coat with dark bands across the back, a dark burglar’s mask, and rounded ears on the sides of its head. It is a diurnal animal, living co-operatively in a family of up to 30 in dens with many entrances.
When they first emerge in the morning, suricates take some time to warm up, standing on their hind legs and facing the sun. The group tends to forage as a pack, feeding on invertebrates and small reptiles. Baby-sitters look after any young in the den and look-outs warn the rest of the group if danger threatens.
Sometimes yellow mongooses (Cynictus penicillata) live alongside suricates, their slightly larger cousins. This mongoose is yellow with a white-tipped tail in the southern part of the country, which is greyer in the north. It is a diurnal animal and though it lives in warrens with others of its species, it forages individually, hunting for small mammals, invertebrates and sometimes birds.
Yellow mongooses are often seen crossing roads, and may also be spotted at some of the waterholes in Etosha, where they sometimes share the holes of ground squirrels.
The slender mongoose (Galerella sanguinea) often appears black when it is glimpsed running for cover. In fact it is reddish-brown, with short legs, a long sinuous body and a tail with a black tip. Like the yellow mongoose, it is a solitary animal, hunting mainly insects during the day, and is often seen crossing roads.
Both the banded mongoose (Mungos mungo, weighing 1.4kg/3lb) and the dwarf mongoose (Helogale parvula, just 250g/8oz) live in the north of the country and both live in groups. The former is grey with dark bands on its back. It hunts during the day, foraging in open woodland under logs and bark in search of invertebrates and wild fruits. Dwarf mongooses are black or very dark brown and tend to live in old termite mounds scattered throughout the group range. Like many other mongoose species, it feeds on invertebrates, reptiles and small mammals.
An alert yellow mongoose in Etosha.
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