Magnificent Migrations

Botswana boasts the largest extant elephant population in the world, and it includes one-third of all the elephant in Africa. The Chobe River is part of a much longer ancient elephant migration route that stretched into Angola and Namibia, and the elephant still see Chobe as a dry season refuge: they know there will always be water in this part of Botswana.

The best time to see large elephant herds in Chobe is between August and November. Sail along the river aboard the Chobe Princess, or stay at Sanctuary Chobe Chilwero, which is right next to a favourite elephant waterhole.

After the December and January rains, some 30,000 of Botswana’s zebra make the journey from the Okavango Delta to the now fertile grasslands of the Makgadikgadi. This migration has taken place since time immemorial, but was only recently discovered when scientists put radio collars on a group of zebra and saw quite how far they travelled.

Stay at Jack’s Camp in the Makgadikgadi Pans and you’ll be in exactly the right location to watch the zebra herds arrive. You can see them on game drives, but by far the best experience is to saddle up and ride among them on a three night horseback safari.

More than 400 species of bird thrive in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa. Many of them are seasonal visitors, migrating here in the northern hemisphere’s winter.

Bird watchers can expect to add species including African fish eagle, lilac-breasted roller, hammerkop, ostrich, sacred ibis, and crested crane to their life list. A safari by mokoro canoe is ideal for getting close to the waterbirds as they fish.

From June to November, schools of southern right whales swim through the waters of South Africa’s Cape, up to one hundred at a time. They are heading to Walker Bay to mate and calve in August and September, so you might well see them with their young.

You can get up close to the whale on an ocean safari, sailing out from Hermanus by boat. But if you don’t have your sea legs, it doesn’t matter: the whale come so near to shore it is often possible to see them from the cliffs along the Garden Route, or even from the comfort of your sumptuous guest suite.

We have told you about the birds and the beasts, but don’t overlook the bats! 10 million straw-coloured fruit bats converge on Zambia’s Kasanka National Park in November and December, drawn by the scent of ripening fruit.

Watching from a treetop hide at dusk, you will see the entire sky turn dark with bats, an increasingly rare but arresting sight. These fascinating flying mammals flock like birds. They are hugely social — which accounts for the size of the colonies — and are most active after dark, though you might occasionally see them out during the day.

The Great Migration. One of the Seven New Wonders of the World. Winner of the Wildlife World Cup. However you describe it, the movement of a million wildebeest and uncountable zebra across the plains of the Serengeti and Masai Mara is arguably the most impressive wildlife spectacle on Earth.

In the wake of the herds seeking fresh grassland and water come their predators, including lion, leopard, and cheetah. The circle of life is brutal, but if you have the opportunity to bear witness to it, moving with the herds in a mobile camp, you will treasure the memories for a lifetime.