The annual Migration of East African animals attracts tourists from all over the world. Human beings began to evolve from Africa, went to the world, and now return to Africa from all over the world. For many people, the Great Migration of East African animals is a must-experience trip in a lifetime. When you are in the vast grassland and watch the mighty migratory animals whizzing past you, you will definitely have a different sense of life.
Traveling in Africa, how many species of animals you can see is usually related to luck. The animals that impress them the most when different people come back from Africa are usually different, and this is where the trip to Africa is fascinating, and even if you go once a year, the types and numbers of animals you see are not the same.
Although people who go to Africa are most likely to go to see animals, but many times, when you really go to Africa, you usually find that you don't know what the animals in front of you are, and the following migratory birds simply help you sort out how to identify the more common animals in Africa, which is convenient for everyone to refer to and compare.
The African Big Five
The so-called "African Five" includes five animals: lions, elephants, buffaloes, rhinos and leopards, which are either carnivores at the top of the food chain of the African savannah and can dominate the grasslands, or they are large and physically strong animals, and even carnivores have to retreat from them.
Lion
I believe that everyone is familiar with the Disney movie "The Lion King", and the lion is a veritable king of the African savannah. Lions can be seen all over the sub-Sahara Desert, so the chances of seeing it on your itinerary are still great.
A lion herd is generally composed of one or two male lions and multiple female lions, the male lion is larger, has a long mane, mainly responsible for protecting the territory and the lion group, while the hunting work is usually mainly done by the female lions. Lions hunt for many objects, almost any animal in front of them can become their delicacy, for tourists, it is very rare to witness a lion hunting during the trip.
African Elephant
African elephants are the largest mammals on land, larger than the Asian elephants seen in Southeast Asia, and African elephants are also social animals, migrating constantly on the grasslands for most of the year in order to survive. Their long fangs and large bodies can keep the carnivores from getting close, and when the baby elephants are threatened, the adult elephants will form a circle to protect the baby elephants inside. The african elephant's beautiful tusks make it a target for human poaching, and although it has been banned, poaching is still frequent, and african elephants are currently endangered and vulnerable. There is no killing without buying and selling, and we advocate a ban on the sale and purchase of ivory products.
African Buffalo
The African buffalo looks harmless to humans and animals, but is actually one of the most dangerous animals in Africa, with strong limbs, large and sharp horns on their heads, and their aggression is very strong, even lions and cheetahs have to avoid three points. Buffalo are social animals, led by the strongest bulls in the herd, usually living by water, and are widely distributed, so they are also easy to see during the trip.
Rhino
There are two kinds of rhinos that can be seen in Africa, namely black rhinos and white rhinos (white rhinos are divided into northern white rhinos and southern white rhinos), about this name comes from a oolong, the name of white rhino first came from the Dutch "Weit Rhino", meaning wide-billed rhino, indicating its wide-billed features, and later misrepresented as "White Rhino", it became the current white rhino, and in order to distinguish, another African rhino is called black rhino "Black Rhino", In fact, if you can't distinguish them in terms of color, because white rhinos are not white, black rhinos are not black, they are all almost gray. The best way to distinguish them is to look at the head, the white rhino head is relatively long, the mouth is square, the black rhino head is shorter, the mouth is rounder
Because of the rhino horn, the fate of the rhinoceros is the same as that of Africa, becoming one of the most poached targets in Africa, and its number has decreased dramatically. On March 19, 2018, the world's last male northern white rhino "Sudan" died in the Olpejeta Reserve in Kenya, although the last two female northern white rhinos remain in the world, but the death of "Sudan" has actually declared the complete extinction of the northern white rhinoceros, a rhino subspecies.
Leopard
Leopards and cheetahs are both large carnivores that are more common in the African savannah, and the "African Five" generally refer to leopards. Leopards and cheetahs are similar in size and shape, and are often confused, but it is still very easy to distinguish carefully. Leopard stripes are generally ring-shaped, so we often call "golden leopard", while the habits of leopards and cheetahs are not the same, leopards like trees, and even often drag prey to trees to enjoy a big meal, so the next time you go to Africa to see leopards in trees, there is a good chance that they are leopards. Leopards generally live alone and are usually active in night scenes, so if you see leopards in the wild, you're in luck.
Cheetah
The cheetah is one of the most beautiful animals in terms of size, and its streamlined size makes it the fastest killer in the grasslands, mainly killing a variety of antelopes. The cheetah is different from the leopard, it likes to work at sunrise, rest at sunset, and get up very early every day to forage for food, so the chance of encountering it during the trip is much greater than that of the leopard.
The Great Migration of the Two Horses
Due to the grassland climate, most of Africa's herbivores migrate according to the seasons, and if they do not migrate, they will starve to death. The largest migration is the annual migration of wildebeest and zebra. The Great Migration of East African animals is not just a matter of months, they are constantly migrating from the Serengeti Steppe to the Maasai Mara Steppe in a clockwise direction every year, and so on, from generation to generation.
Among them, from June to October every year, the migratory army dominated by wildebeest and zebra has to cross the Grumiti River and the Mara River, this section of the road is full of lions, jackals, crocodiles and other natural enemies, only in these few months, nearly half of the life will stop here, so this journey is also known as the "Crossing of Heaven", wildebeest and zebra have experienced many dangers, just for the survival of the water and grass, here you will see the hardship and cruelty of life.
Wildebeest
Wildebeests are large herbivores, and although the name bears the name "horse", wildebeests belong to the bovine family in classification and are more like cattle in appearance. Wildebeest is also known as "wildebeest", and wildebeest is the absolute main force of the Great Migration, and more than one million wildebeests travel great distances across the grasslands every year.
Zebra
Zebras are the vanguard of the Great Migration, migrating fewer than wildebeests, with about 300,000 heads per year. The Great Migration Procession can be roughly divided into zebras to open the way, followed by the main force of wildebeest, and the gazelle finale. One of the advantages of different animals migrating together in groups is that they can play their respective advantages, zebras have better vision and hearing than wildebeests, can detect dangers in time, and issue alarms, while wildebeests have a more sensitive sense of smell, they can know through their sense of smell where there is water, where the grass is more lush, so there is grass to eat with wildebeests.
Antelope brothers
The most common in the African savannah is the variety of antelope, which look very similar and make people silly and confused. Many members of the antelope family have no horns or smaller horns than males, so if you see an antelope without horns, it is mostly male and female.
Gazelle
Gazelles are the final force of the Great Migration, with nearly 500,000 animals participating each year. The gazelle is smaller, and it is called a gazelle because its two eyes are particularly large, and the eyeballs are raised outwards, looking like staring at the eyes. At present, the more common ones are Grant's Gazelle (also known as Grant's Gazelle) and Thomson's Gazelle (Thomson's Gazelle), the difference between the two, The Grisley Gazelle is slightly larger than the Tang's Gazelle, the Tang's Gazelle has a black stripe on the flank, and the Tail of the Tang's Gazelle is black.
Springbok
Springbok looks somewhat similar to gazelle, the main difference is that the face of Springbok is all white, and one of the biggest features of Springbok is that it has folds on its back, and when frightened to escape, the folds will reveal the white hair inside. Springbok is very good at jumping, when jumping up, the back of the spine arches, the limbs are extended and close together, and the jump can reach 3-3.5 meters.
Impala
Impala is also a master jumper, and when frightened, they can jump 3 meters high and 9 meters away, and they have an elegant posture. Impala is characterized by a vertical black stripe on each leg, a black tail, a "Chuan" character on the hips, a black hair on the hind hooves, and the tip of the impala's ears is also black.
Waterbuck
The water antelope lives in moist areas such as swamps, and is medium-sized, with brownish-red coat and white circles or white spots on its tail. Water antelopes have an unpleasant smell, and predators generally do not prey on them if they are not hungry.
Eland
The great antelope is the largest antelope in Africa, and its biggest feature is that it has a sagging skin on the throat, and some stripes can also be seen on the back of the big antelope. The big antelope is divided into ordinary big antelope and The Big Antelope, and the color of the Big Antelope is darker, and the stripes on the back are more obvious. The great antelope is also a relatively ancient creature, and its figure is painted on many ancient murals.
Oryx
The sword antelope also belongs to the large antelope, and its biggest feature is the long antelope horn, which is very beautiful, like two sharp swords. There are a total of four species of swordbeest, the Arabian swordbeest is mainly in the Arabian Peninsula and Egypt in North Africa; the curved swordbeest has become extinct in the African wild, and is currently only seen in farms in some countries; the South African swordbeest (Gemsbok), as the name suggests, mainly appears in southern Africa, the South African swordbeest has a very beautiful form, the face has black spots, like a Peking opera mask, the abdomen has black stripes, and the four legs also have black spots; the East African swordbeest and the South African swordbeest are very similar, the best difference is that the East African swordbeest only has black spots on the front legs. If you see a swordbeest in Kenya or Tanzania while watching the Great Migration, it's probably the East African swordbeest.
Kudu
Also commonly known as the twisted-horned forest antelope, it has a relatively narrow body, the fur is mainly brown, there are many white stripes on the body, the head is darker, and there is a white stripe between the eyes. Twisted horned forest antelopes are generally less active, hiding in the woodland during the day and coming out in the morning and dusk to forage for food.
Horned wildebeest (Topi)
Horned wildebeest, also known as the South African great antelope or black-faced wildebeest, is usually in groups of three or two, led by one or more males, and the group leader is formed by chasing and fighting. Wildebeest also migrates by water, but it does not travel as long distances as wildebeests, and the number is much inferior.
Bushbuck
The serval is a species of forest antelope, often referred to as a tree or bush antelope. The antelope is relatively small, somewhat resembling a sika deer, with red or yellow-brown fur, vertical white stripes on the dorsal abdomen, and transverse white spots on the hind thighs. The antelope is dangerous and will hide in the bushes to suddenly attack people.
Purple Antelope (Bongo)
The fur of the purple antelope is reddish brown with 12-14 thin white stripes on it, which is very recognizable. Both male and female purple antelope have horns, and they are alert by nature, and even a slight noise will stimulate it to escape.
Canine antelope (Dik-dik)
Inuyasha is a small antelope with a cute face and a beautiful woman with makeup. Males with two short horns are monogamous, usually living side by side. They are generally active at midnight, feeding before dawn and after dusk, and their name "Dik-dik" derives from their call.
Gerenuk
The long-necked antelope is also a very cute antelope, its limbs are slender, its running speed is very fast, and its movements are very graceful. Males have horns and prefer to stand on their hind legs to eat.
Bohor reedbuck
The reed antelope is relatively small, and the male reed antelope has short horns, bending backwards first, and suddenly turning forward at the end.
other
Giraffe (Giraffe)
When traveling in Africa, giraffes are very easy to see, giraffes can turn their eyes around, plus the long neck, is a natural lookout. Giraffes sleep standing up, and sleep time is very small, they need to cut their two front legs into large figures when they eat grass or drink water, and lie down, the posture is very peculiar.
There are several subspecies of giraffes, three common in Kenya in East Africa, namely the Rothschild giraffe (also known as the Rothschild giraffe or the Ugandan giraffe), which is an endangered species; there are also reticulated giraffes and Maasai giraffes, which are distinguished mainly by the reticulates on their bodies.
Warthog
The warthog is a species of wild boar, named after the warts on the face, which has fangs at the corner of its mouth, sparse hairs on its body, and a large head, accounting for about one-third of the body.
Hippo
Hippos have large and clumsy bodies, with particularly short limbs, a thick head and a particularly large mouth, and can be opened at a 90-degree angle. The teeth in the mouth are also large, and the incisors and canine teeth are fang-shaped, which are the main weapons of attack. Hippopotamus's skin is extra thick, and inside the skin is a layer of fat, which allows it to float effortlessly from the water. Hippos cannot stay outside the water for too long and must stay in the water or in moist habitats to prevent dehydration.
Nile Crocodile
Africa's largest crocodile, which inhabits mainly rivers and lakes, is the number one killer in the "Heavenly Crossing" of the great migration of animals.
Hyaena
One of the carnivores of the African steppe, it usually moves in groups, often feeding on large and medium-sized herbivores such as zebras, wildebeests and antelopes, and even grabbing food with lions and cheetahs. Spotted hyenas are extremely capable of eating and digesting, and can swallow 15 kg of prey with a belt bone at a time.
Baboon
Its natural habitats are tropical rainforests, savannas, semi-desert grasslands, highland montaneity, low hills, plains or canyon cliffs, mainly in Africa, and occasionally near tent areas.
Black-faced Vervet Monkey
As the name suggests, the monkeys have a black face and are often grouped, with each monkey group led by a strong male monkey. It is mainly active in the bushes, foraging in the morning and dusk, feeding on leaves and wild fruits, and occasionally eating small insects.
Hoofed rabbit (hyrax)
The face looks like a fox rat rather than a rabbit, so named because it has hoofed toenails; howling, also known as crying rabbit; hoofed rabbit is frightened or angry, the hairs on the plaque are erect, and the glands are exposed. The glands secrete odors that ward off predators and are sensitive to both vision and hearing. It prefers to live in groups, generally a population of 6 to 50 individuals, living in groups between rock piles and shrublands.
birds
Africa is a paradise for wildlife and birds, and when traveling in Africa, you will see a variety of birds along the way, whether you are on the road or in a hotel, they will appear in front of you from time to time. If you like to shoot birds, remember to bring a telephoto lens.
Ostrich
The African ostrich is the largest bird in the world and the only two-toed bird in the world, with adults up to 2.5 meters tall and males weighing up to 150 kg. Ostriches have underdeveloped keel processes, so they cannot fly, but their hind limbs are stout and powerful, suitable for running, and can reach a top speed of 70 kilometers per hour.
Secretarybird
The secretary bird, also known as the snake vulture, is a large terrestrial bird of prey. It has 20 black crown feathers on its head, like a paperwork with a downpour, hence the name "Secretary Bird", and is called the Snake Vulture because it is a natural enemy of many African venomous snakes, but its main food is large insects and small mammals.
Grey Crowned Crane
Also known as the Grey-crowned Crane, it is a small crane. Its natural habitats are the African marshlands and savannahs. It is also known as the Crown Crane because of its fluffy feathers, straight trachea, delicate crown feathers, and gorgeous facial markings.
Red-billed Hornbill
One of the small hornbills can be seen in hotels or resorts in the national park, and some bold ones will fly to the table to beg for food.
Sociable Weaver
Traveling in Africa is often seen in a tree with large composite nests, which are masterpieces of nest-weaving birds. They look very much like sparrows in size and appearance. It is often woven with grass stems, grass leaves, willow fibers, etc. to form an oval bird's nest hanging from the branches, and the bird's nest is constantly spliced together, which is very spectacular.
Superb Starling
The chestnut starling is a very common bird in Africa, and it is so brightly colored that it can often be seen next to your hotel.
Flamingo
Flamingos can be described as a new generation of Internet celebrity birds, and their pink color is particularly popular. Flamingos inhabit shallow waters of temperate saltwater lakes, swamps and lagoons, and Lake Nakuru in Kenya is home to nearly 2 million flamingos, accounting for one-third of the world's flamingos. The best time to visit Lake Nakuru is from November to January of the following year, when the flamingo population is at its highest concentration and reaches its peak in magnitude. In recent years, due to changes in water quality and other reasons, many flamingos have flown to the area of Lake Bogolia, and Lake Nakuru is no longer a paradise for flamingos.
African Vulture (Marabou Stork)
A large, bulky wading bird, hunched over like an elderly man, often inhabits rivers, lakes, swamps and other areas, and even close to human settlements; it feeds mainly on the carcasses of various animals, but also preys on live prey such as insects, fish, rats and birds.
Yellow-billed ibis (Mycteria ibis)
Usually in pairs or small groups forage in shallow waters at the water's edge, large flocks are formed during the rainy season when food is plentiful. It feeds mainly on fish, but also eats other animal foods such as frogs, reptiles, crustaceans, and insects, and occasionally a little plant-based food.
African Spoonbill
The African heron is very recognizable and has a large flat mouth in the shape of a lute
Cormorant
Cormorants can also be seen in some lake areas of Africa, such as Lake Naivasha.
Pink-backed Pelican
The pelican's lower mouth shell is connected to the skin to form a large skin sac, which can be freely retracted and suitable for fishing. When fishing, the fish bring water into the mouth, close the mouth, shrink the throat sac to squeeze out the water, and the fish can swallow it. Pelicans can soar and glide back and forth in the air like eagles using rising hot air currents.
Since there are so many African animals, I can only pick some of the more common ones to introduce for the time being, and if your trip to Africa can see all the animals mentioned above, you must be very lucky. Finally, welcome to leave a message below to impress you with the most impressive African animals.
Text_ Migratory Bird Travel
Figure_ Shura/Network
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