Fauna & Flora

Wildlife

Etosha´s wildlife is absolutly stunning. Etosha is home to 114 mammalian species including the black-faced impala and the threatened black and white rhino. There are no buffalo, hippo, crocodile or monkeys. However, plains game such as zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, springbok, impala and eland abound in great numbers on the grasslands and congregate at waterholes in the dry season.

Herds of up to fifty elephants are not unusual and often walk right down the middle of the road giving people in cars an incredibly close and thrilling encounter. Lions and hyenas must be searched for, but silver-backed jackals trot around almost oblivious to you.

The period of concentration of game and migratory patterns vary from year to year. The better the grasslands around Okaukuejo after the rainy season, the longer the concentrations of game. At the beginning of the rainy season the animals disappear quickly from the tourist areas, but return gradually after the rains.

Birdlife

Etosha´s birdlife is absolutely wonderful with every kind of feathered friend. You will find a great a selection of stunning birds as The Ground Hornbill, Great Crested Grebe, Saddle-billed Stork, Grey-backed Sparrowlark, Kori Bustard, Rüppell’s Parrot, Hartlaub’s Spurfowl and many, many more!

Vegetation

The vegetation is primarily arid savannah, shrub and thorn scrub in the west, tending towards tree savannah and broadleaved woodland in the east. Acacia woodland is found throughout the region with Mopane woodland (central) and Combretum woodland (east) dominating patchily within the park’s broadleaved savannah belt. Mopane trees constitute about 90% of all trees, while several Acacia species, such as

• The Water Horn
• The Red Umbrella Thorn
• The Umbrella Thorn
• The Hairy Umbrella Thorn

and a number of Combretum species, varying from shrubs to trees, are also characteristic. The dominant grasses are:

• Anthephora
• Enneapogon
• Artisda
• Stipagrotis