| Status | Starts | Group size | Leader | Duration/price Inc. flights from/to UK | Duration/price Exc. international flights | Single supp. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Available | Max. 6 |
Helen Bryon
|
10 days: £3,895 pp. | 8 days: £3,295 pp. | £790 | |||
| Full | Max. 6 |
Helen Bryon
|
10 days: £3,895 pp. | 8 days: £3,295 pp. | £790 | |||
This exciting conservation holiday to South Africa's largest Big 5 reserve offers you the opportunity to assist guides with predator monitoring, anti-poaching efforts and game counts to help preserve the ecosystem and wildlife in the Kalahari Desert.
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Day 1 Depart UK
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- We transfer from the airport to Kalahari Private Reserve and our camp for the week. We have time to settle in and rest before our first activity the following morning.
- Accommodation: Kalahari Tented Camp, 7-nights
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- Over the next few days we follow a similar routine which sees us venturing out on an early morning activity; lunch; afternoon activities and a sunset drive or sundowner at the watering hole before returning to camp where we can freshen up before dinner.
- Our activities are likely to be focused around the following:
- Camera Traps: Placing and monitoring camera traps to conduct scientific research, nocturnal monitoring, and animal identification (e.g. a wild dog’s unique coat).
- Predator Monitoring: Based on the ecological needs of the reserve, we will participate in continuous monitoring of the population dynamics and predator/prey relations of wild dog and lion.
- Game Counts: Conduct regular game surveys to monitor the distribution and sex and age ratios in all the reserve’s wildlife populations.
- Vegetation Surveys: The reserve’s ecologist has set up a programme in motion to monitor changes in fauna and flora. These surveys are used to identify gradual and/or sudden changes in vegetation across the reserve, recognise changes in species composition, health of the grass layer, bush encroachment and whether the reserve is overstocked.
- Reserve Work: This may include managing bush encroachment, removing invasive plant species, and removal of old fencing wires left over from earlier farming days that may entangle animals.
- Anti-Poaching: We will assist experienced rangers with their daily efforts to identify signs of poaching and collect valuable data. Keeping eyes on a vulnerable animal offers it the best form of protection. Record activities of animals at water points and other key areas such as data is used to identify poaching “hotspots” and potential vulnerabilities.
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- We enjoy one final morning safari before we leave for the airport.
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Day 10 Arrive UK
All prices are per person and include:
- Services of the naturalist leader
- 7 nights accommodation
- Full board meal basis
- Transfers between Johannesburg and the Kalahari
- Safari and conservation activities
Accommodation
We stay in a tented camp, featuring only four en suite tents it provides a private base for our time in the Kalahari Desert.
Meals
All meals are included.
Birds
The reserve is home to almost 200 different bird species including endangered species such as lappet faced vulture. Other birds we can expect to see include:
- Bateleur
- Crimson-breasted shrike
- Red-billed oxpecker
- Secretary bird
Mammals
Kalahari Private Reserve is South Africa's largest Big 5 game reserve, so we can expect to see a range of mammals including:
- Brown hyena
- Black maned lion
- Black & white rhino
- African wild dog
Climate
Temperature-wise September is arguably the best time of the year to visit the Kalahari. A land of extremes, if ever there is a time when it isn't too cold in the late evening/early mornings or too hot in the middle of the day, it's probably September.
