{"id":948,"date":"2025-04-02T17:34:37","date_gmt":"2025-04-02T17:34:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/guruapproved.com\/?p=948"},"modified":"2025-04-08T13:24:02","modified_gmt":"2025-04-08T13:24:02","slug":"16-fun-and-fascinating-facts-about-botswanas-wildlife-wonders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/guruapproved.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/02\/16-fun-and-fascinating-facts-about-botswanas-wildlife-wonders\/","title":{"rendered":"16 Fun\u2014and Fascinating\u2014Facts about Botswana\u2019s Wildlife & Wonders"},"content":{"rendered":"

Imagine watching a herd of elephants\u2014all different ages and sizes\u2014wade across the Chobe River at sunset. It\u2019s one of the things that surprised me most during my too-brief stay in Botswana\u2026I didn\u2019t expect to see elephants happily hanging out submerged in deep water, trunks holding greenery up over their heads out of the water.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t the only surprise in Botswana, though. From the shimmering Makgadikgadi Salt Pans to the lush Okavango Delta, Botswana\u2019s diverse ecosystems are a haven for both wildlife and people.<\/p>\n

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Before that first visit, I didn\u2019t know much about Botswana\u2014its history or how it came to be one of Africa\u2019s premier safari destinations, known for breathtaking landscapes and abundant wildlife that thrive on protected lands in reserves, wildlife management areas and national parks.<\/p>\n

Here are 16 fascinating facts about Botswana\u2014from its ancient cultures and landscapes to the unique policies that make it a year-round African safari destination. Whether you\u2019re drawn to the wildlife or the wide-open spaces, Botswana offers something unforgettable for the whole family.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Botswana\u2019s Wildlife from Antelope to Zebra<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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  1. Well over 800 animal species live in Botswana<\/strong>, including the Big Five\u2014lion, leopard, elephant, black rhino and buffalo\u2014as well as an array of other wildlife, from giraffes, zebras, and hippo to no fewer than 22 species of antelope (think herds of graceful impala, solitary bushbuck and large groups of wildebeest).<\/li>\n
  2. Botswana is home to the largest elephant population on the planet.<\/strong> The best place to see them is on a boat in the\u00a0Chobe National Park<\/strong>, where they cross the Chobe River every afternoon to drink and swim.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Known as \u201cThe Land of The Giants,\u201d Botswana\u2019s Chobe National Park is home to Africa\u2019s largest population of elephants (Loxodonta africana<\/em>). There are an estimated 120,000 Kalahari elephants in Chobe<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    \"elephants,<\/p>\n

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    1. On its website, Birdlife Botswana provides a downloadable list of nearly 600 avian species that have been spotted in Botswana. <\/strong>Botswana\u2019s bird species come from 92 families. Particularly well represented are diurnal and nocturnal raptors, cuckoos, francolins and spurfowls, larks, cisticolas, and, perhaps surprisingly for a semiarid country, ducks, geese, herons and egrets. There is no better place in the world to see the slaty egret or wattled crane than the Okavango Delta.<\/li>\n
    2. The national bird of Botswana is the kori bustard<\/strong>; it roams the Kalahari grasslands and is the largest flying bird native to Africa.<\/li>\n
    3. The annual zebra migration across northern Botswana is\u00a0the longest and one of the most stunning migrations on the continent<\/strong> \u2014and very few people know about it! Thousands of plains zebras make an annual 300+ mile migration from Namibia to Botswana and back again, moving with the seasons and rainfall, in search of fresh grazing land.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      It starts with the rains in late November or December when they leave the wetlands of northern Botswana and head deeper into the Kalahari Desert and Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, bursting with life from the rains, and repeats at the end of the season, around April and May, as the land dries up again.<\/p>\n

      \"African<\/p>\n

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      1. Botswana\u2019s Linyanti Game Reserve is a great place to see\u00a0<\/strong>leopards and\u00a0<\/strong>African wild dogs<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong>The northwestern corner of Chobe meets the Linyanti River\u2014this is a fragment of almost 350 square miles (900 square kilometers) of the secluded Linyanti Reserve. It\u2019s quiet, and wildlife viewing in the Linyati region is excellent. Large concentrations of elephant, lion, sable, roan antelope, hippos and wild dogs<\/span>\u00a0peak in the dry winter months.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        The Linyati area offers spectacular birding year-round and is best known for its enormous herds of elephants, which move down to the Linyanti River at the start of the winter months and only move back inland once the main rains arrive.<\/p>\n

        Our new Epic Botswana & Namibia Safari<\/a> includes witnessing the huge game and predator populations of the Linyanti. Limited to just 7 travelers, this ultimate African safari adventure also includes coasting the emerald waterways of the Okavango Delta and June through October.<\/em><\/p>\n

        \"Leopard<\/p>\n

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        Botswana\u2019s Diverse Landscapes: Desert to Delta<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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        1. For a sense of scale, Botswana is approximately the size of France but has only 2.5 million people. <\/strong>France has a population of over 68 million!<\/li>\n
        2. About 84% of Botswana\u2019s land mass is covered by the Kalahari Desert.<\/strong> But desert does not mean desolate! On the contrary, the driest areas receive 4.3\u20137.9 inches (110\u2013200 millimeters) of rainfall per year; the wettest can receive more than 20 inches (500 millimeters) in very wet years.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Even where the Kalahari Desert is dry enough to qualify as a desert due to low precipitation, it is not technically a desert because it has dense ground cover that supports wildlife. Key flora include:<\/p>\n