Mambas in the Park: Connecting Africa’s Future Leaders with the Wild

An animal that brings a smile to everyone’s face: with their large heads in proportion to their bodies, bristly manes and truly unique flight behaviour, warthogs are the favourite of every safari guest.

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The eerie hoo-hoo of an owl is one of the typical sounds of the night. But some owls are also active during the day. Like the Barred Owlet, which is found in the north-east of South Africa.

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Kruger National Park in South Africa is one of the most beautiful places on our planet. Numerous tourists travel from other regions, other countries, even other continents to spend just a few days there. But many of the local people who live only a few kilometres from the nearest entrance have never been there. Why is that?

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It is the largest protected wildlife area in South Africa. It was established on 26 March 1898, at that time much smaller and under the name Sabie Game Reserve. Today, the Kruger National Park attracts 1.3 million visitors each year – for good reason.

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The smell of rain on dry earth hangs in the air. A light breeze provides cooling. The rainy season completely changes the appearance of the savannah: the sparse landscape of yellowish-golden grass and bare trees has become a dense jungle teeming with life. Toto was right: I bless the rains down in Africa!

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Over 150 years ago, millions of elephants roamed most of the African continent, as well as in Asia from China in the east to Iraq in the west. But due to hunting, poaching and habitat loss, both Asian and African elephants are now only found in highly fragmented habitats. In Southeast Asia, many elephants are used as domestic and working animals. But as for the wild, free-ranging giants, they are endangered. There are two different groups of elephants that live in Africa; the forest elephant (critically endangered) and the savannah elephant (endangered).After excessive trophy hunting in colonised Africa at the beginning of the 20th century, only a few populations of the savannah elephant were able to recover. Due to ongoing poaching, populations continue to decline drastically. About 20,000 elephants are killed in Africa every year.

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Jaguars have already lost about half of their natural habitat in the tropical rainforest of Central and Southern America. In addition, they are frequently shot by farmers, miners and loggers who want to protect their livestock or themselves. So it is not surprising that jaguars are classified as near threatened. This may soon worsen, however, because there is a new threat to the wild felines: the illegal trade in jaguars and their body parts, driven in particular by China.

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This parrot is up to 90 cm tall, lives in Central and South America and has a beautiful green and blue plumage. And it is because of this beautiful plumage that Great Green Macaws are hunted or illegally traded as pets. Their greatest threat, however, is the loss of their habitat: This macaw is associated with the mountain almond tree, an endangered plant that is nevertheless being cut down. There are now only about 500 to 1000 Great Green Macaws left in the wild.

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It looks like a pinecone, a walking pinecone with a tongue longer than its own body. This fascinating mammal is called a Pangolin, an animal fairly unknown to most people in the world – even though it’s the most trafficked animal in the world! In some Asian countries, their meat is considered a delicacy in noble restaurants. Their scales and claws, on the other hand, are used in traditional Chinese medicine. There are a total of eight species in the world, living in Asia and Africa. And all eight species are threatened with extinction.

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