The term "Big Five" actually doesn't have the best roots. It was coined by hunters to collectively refer to the five animals in Africa that were supposedly the most difficult to hunt on foot. Thankfully, it is now used by safari tour operators to refer to a set of animals that they would like to people to see during game drives. The Big Five: elephant, lion, rhino, buffalo, and leopard.
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| The Big Five: Elephant, Lion, Rhino, Buffalo, and Leopard |
The first of the big five animals we saw was the African elephant. On our very first game drive in Samburu, our guide/driver heard on the radio that there was an elephant sighting. We made our way to where they supposedly were and while the herd of elephants was on the move, we got there in time to see them and take several photos!
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| African Elephant |
The second animal we saw is one of the more difficult ones to see: the rhino. Actually, the rhino was the only animal we didn't get to see in a game reserve. Apparently, rhinos don't particularly like the noise generated by wildebeests during the Great Wildebeest Migration which means rhino sightings in Maasai Mara are quite rare during this time. Our guide knew that we might not actually get to see them in Maasai Mara so on our way from Samburu to Lake Nakuru, he decided to pass by Solio Ranch, which is a sanctuary for rhinos. We got to see several of them as we passed by. Thankfully for us, there weren't a lot of cars on the road so we were able to stop on the side of a road briefly but long enough to take a few photos.
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| White Rhinoceros |
The next big five member we saw was the African cape buffalo. We saw this creature for the first time in Lake Nakuru, then we get to see it again in Maasai Mara.
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| African Cape Buffalo |
Before we left Lake Nakuru, we got to see some lions! Initially, dozens of jeeps were parked around the area of this lion sighting in Lake Nakuru and we couldn't get in. We decided to leave that area and look for other animals. However, on our way out of Lake Nakuru National Park, we passed by that same area again and most of the jeeps were leaving. We managed to get in a good position to see the lions better and to take several photos of them.
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| Lion |
The last of the big five we saw is also known to be the most difficult to see: the leopard. By nature, leopards are solitary, nocturnal, and they rest in trees making it very difficult to spot them (pun intended). It was on our 5th day and our final game drive in Maasai Mara that we finally got to see one! Our guide Zachary got word of a leopard sighting and drove there. When we arrived, there were several other jeeps parked in the area. The telltale sign that there was a leopard in the area was a dead and bloody wildebeest hanging from a tree branch. Since the leopard was pretty much the only animal we still wanted to see but hadn't seen yet at that point, we decided to wait it out. After an hour, we finally caught glimpses of it just as it was leaving the tree where it hung its kill. Our guide told us that the leopard was most likely going to poop somewhere else and it would be heading back after several minutes. He said we should stay, even as most of the other jeeps had already left, and I'm thankful we did because the leopard did actually come back and we finally got to see it and take decent photos of it. It was beautiful!
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| Leopard |
Deciding to go on safari for 6 days and 5 nights turned out to be a really good choice for us because it allowed us to see all the Big Five animals.
Next post: Samburu
