On the spoor of buffalo and elephant in the Zambezi region of Namibia

This sentiment is to be understood against the background of a number of important factors. 

Namibia is not only the youngest and arguably the most peaceful country in Africa, but with a population of only 2,3 million, it is home to the lowest density of people per square kilometer on the continent.

The country’s 13 regions extend from the Namib and Kalahari deserts in the south and vast savannah landscapes in the centre to the lush areas bordering on the Okavango and Zambezi rivers in the north. Its flora and fauna amongst others include 14 vegetation zones and 200 endemic plant species, the Big Five and 200 mammal and 676 bird species – a combination that creates an almost irresistible attraction to tourists, photographers and hunters…

The protection of this splendid natural environment is enshrined in Article 95 (1) of the Namibian Constitution and is reflected in respectively 46% and 17% of the country’s 824 268 square kilometer surface area being dedicated to some form of conservation management and to National Parks that include the country’s 1 570 km coastline. 

Within this context, hunting in Namibia is strictly regulated and largely free of corruption and the abuse of wildlife. No hunting is allowed on land smaller than 1 000 hectares and in practice occurs on much larger and often vast areas of unfenced land. Furthermore, hunters generally regard Namibia as a ‘rifle friendly’ country with only the importation of pistols, revolvers, and automatic or semi-automatic weapons that are prohibited. Also of great importance is the fact that hunting in Namibia is firmly connected to the country’s very successful Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) initiative through which an important link between conservation and the development of rural communities has been established. 

It is through this initiative that rural communities annually derive direct income from selling hunting opportunities to hunters and that my brother, Rian, and I recently again had the opportunity of going on the spoor of buffalo and elephant in the Zambezi region of Namibia. This time, our permits allowed for two buffalo bulls and a bull elephant that apart from making a substantial contribution to the Namibian Game Products Trust Fund, would provide us with a truly African experience!

Approaching the Katima Mulilo airport, it was clear that also this normally lush region has been severely affected by the drought that has been devastating most of the African continent for some time. While amongst others majestic Baobab, African mahogany, Jackal berry and Knob-thorn trees still graced the flat and seemingly endless landscape, the undergrowth and grass now appeared scorched with only the main channels of the big rivers retaining some water. With the temperature well before noon already approaching the high thirties, we upon stepping down from the plane intuitively knew that for the next week we wouldn’t only be up against two of the most dangerous members of the Big Five, but also against the harsh and unforgiving realities of the African continent.

As always, we were welcomed by hundreds of Yellow-billed Kites hovering over the town of Katima Mulilo and by our laidback PH, Dawid Muller, who on the way to his hunting concession bordering on the Nkasa Rupara National Park, also pointed out the severe effects of the lingering drought on the local communities. However, these sad impressions soon gave way to the welcoming smiles of Dawid’s staff, the familiar calls of Arrow-marked babblers around the lapa and the scents of lunch drifting towards us from the kitchen as we arrived at his hunting lodge nestled among riverine vegetation and overlooking a slowly whirling side channel of the Kwando river.

A brief indaba with Dawid and his game scouts and trackers revealed that the extremely dry conditions also had an impact on the movement of buffalo and elephant in the area and that hard work lay ahead in the coming week. Not only the boundaries of the vast and completely unfenced concession area would have to be scanned daily at dawn and at dusk to detect any movement of individual or herds of buffalo and elephant, but also all the long known hideaways and crossing channels of buffalo and elephant on and between the various islands. Upon retiring to our reed bungalow for a siesta after lunch in the sweltering early November heat, it was clear that the next few days would be no mean feat.

While our daily patrols through the concession area revealed no buffalo and only small breeding herds of elephant, we amid occasional veld fires encountered an amazing variety of predators and plains game – lion, leopard, hyena, black-backed jackal, roan, Chapman’s zebra, kudu, blue wildebeest, waterbuck, lechwe, impala, bushbuck, duiker and steenbok

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In addition, the regular sightings of Fish and Tawny eagles, Verreaux’s eagle-owl, Lanner falcons, Saddle-billed storks, Spur-winged, Egyptian and Pigmy geese, Knob-billed, Fulvous and White-faced duck, Red-billed and Swainson’s spurfowl and Coqui and Crested francolin provided a welcome variation to our otherwise monotonous patrolling of the concession area. These sightings provided wonderful food for thought and conversation as we towards the evenings gathered around the campfire to relax and enjoy the marvellous sunsets of the region.

On only one occasion in the course of the week our hopes for a bull elephant flared up. Tracks of a breeding herd of elephant crossed our own in the loose white sandy soil of the Mopani forest to the north and among the tracks of cows and calves were those of a much bigger elephant – a bull? With the sun mercilessly beaming down and amidst the tremendous silence of the African bush in mid-morning, we started following the tracks in the hope of locating the herd somewhere in the dense thornveld. However, upon catching up with them, the big tracks turned out to be those of a huge tusk less cow, towering above the rest of the herd and almost contemptuously glaring down at us.

After another sweaty and restless night, we were on our last day once again awaken by the far away throbbing of the generator and had coffee and rusks in the lapa at the crack of dawn while listening to the flute-like calls of White-browed Robin-chats piercing the morning air. Whereas our early morning patrol yet again yielded no fresh signs of buffalo or elephant movement and we on top of that ran out of fuel while on our way back to the lodge for brunch, it was while waiting for assistance to arrive that Dawid’s chief game scout called. He had just located three duggaboys along one of the side channels of the Kwando river and requested us to come immediately.

With the brunch forgotten, adrenalin rushing through our veins and sweat freely streaming from our bodies, we set off over the now mostly dry flood plains scattered with deep elephant, buffalo and hippo tracks and through some of the smaller side channels of the Kwando river along the way.

Rian and my eyes met for a moment in exhilaration as Dawid’s command to chamber a solid and to put our rifles on safe, upon wading through one of these channels, coincided with the exuberant and ringing call of a Fish eagle.

It wasn’t long before we caught up with Dawid’s game scout, Hendrik, who enthusiastically urged us to crouch as we started following his lead.

Hendrik stealthily guided us through increasingly dense vegetation and up to a Knob-thorn tree from where Dawid and Rian commenced their final stalk towards the duggaboys, restlessly moving around behind a clump of Bird plums towering over a termite mound a mere hundred meters ahead of us.

Almost unaware of the swizzling calls of Golden weavers in the reeds along the side channel and a number of White-backed vultures noiselessly circling in the pale blue skies above, the rest of us watched in awe while trying to fend off some aggressive ants pouring from the bark of the tree against which we were sitting. 

A full hour ticked away before we almost unexpectedly heard the crack of Rian’s .375 H&H, followed by the deeper report of Dawid’s .470 NE.

With warblers, weavers and little white egrets exploding from the reeds, the duggaboys took off along the side channel. They soon scattered, but it was evident that one of them were hit, as it soon dropped behind and took refuge in a clump of dense undergrowth. Its death bellow amid the deafening sounds of cicadas and the alarm calls of a number of Go-away birds brought some relief and confirmation, but still required an extremely cautious follow up into the thicket. However, with nothing more than an insurance shot required, we could join in the exuberance of Dawid’s guides and trackers as we with a feeling of reverence, kneeled next to the fallen duggaboy.

Commencing our retreat to the lodge, Rian and I, amid swirling flocks of weavers returning to the reeds along the channel, experienced a quiet gratitude for a truly African experience through which we could also make a contribution to the Namibian Game Products Trust Fund and to the livelihood of the local community. 

We would only much later that evening realise how hungry we were as the cook announced our dinner of braised buffalo tail, white rice, potatoes and baked vegetables.

On our departure the next morning, a herd of around 700 buffalo lazily grazed into Dawid’s concession area.

Dr. Willem Moore – Windhoek, Namibia

Representative Adviser for Holland & Holland in Southern Africa

Main Image from Tweed Media