African safari. More than just The Big Five
Article By: Alex Roldan
African Safari - More than just the Big Five
When you book your African Safari, your mind races, it’s full of excitement and the romantic notions that you’ve seen on TV, films and in the wonderful photos and articles published in magazines and newspapers.
Wistfully, you will imagine the African bush and the impressive wildlife it beholds. What it will be like to see your first giraffe walking gracefully through the savannah, the piercing stare of a lion as it looks almost right in to your soul or the humbling feeling of how small you are when you come close to an elephant. Yes, all these are magnificent and what you expect to see, but, safari is more than just this. It’s about taking your time, relaxing in to your surroundings and allowing yourself to become immersed in the natural world around you.
Your Field Guide or Ranger will be more than enthused to show you the little things which are just as an important part of the ecosystem as the larger animals. If you have questions about anything you see, smell or hear, then ask. Watch your Guide become more and more animated as they share their passion and knowledge of the bush with you; pointing out all manner of wonders that the African wilderness keeps hidden away until you spend the time to look closely enough.
As you observe and listen, you will begin to build a bigger picture of how everything fits together. How each plant and animal species has a relationship for survival with the other and why every single one of them is as important as the next.
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From the humble and hard-working Dung Beetle, to the squawky Red-billed Oxpeckers, the myriad of graceful antelope, the fierce and illusive leopards and even the vitally important, vilified vultures without whom the world would be a much smellier and bacteria filled place.
So, come to Africa with an open mind and open eyes to everything around you. As you relax, soak up the truly remarkable natural world which surrounds you. The Big Five are waiting for you to discover them. But also remember to pay attention the smaller species they too can have a big story to tell.
“If I have ever seen magic, it has been in Africa.”
* John Hemingway
Article By: ALEX ROLDAN
"Alex has a number of years' marketing and social media experience. He made the decision to leave the corporate world a few years ago to study and qualify as a Field Guide, to enable him to pursue a life-long ambition and change his career path to one where by he can be actively involved with eco-tourism and wildlife conservation and educating people about the importance of the natural world. He has experience of living, travelling and working in South Africa and enjoys getting back to Africa and the bush as much as possible. He has a huge passion for nature and wildlife photography and his camera is never far from his side."
