ree pashley, Author at ree loves tanzania

If you’re looking to go on a safari in East Africa, you have probably seen ‘The Big Five’ advertised. Safari operators will promise they can take you to see The Big Five, or guarantee this or that National Park will deliver sightings. But sometimes, they don’t tell you what The Big Five are, or how they got this name.

The Big Five Are Not:

the largest animals in Africa
the most endangered animals in Africa
the biggest predators in Africa
the most difficult to spot animals in Africa

The Big Five are the top five most dangerous animals in Africa to hunt on foot. Yep, the term comes from trophy hunting — which Ree Loves Tanzania is NOT a big fan of.
Photography safaris – yes! Hunting safaris – big NO.

The Big Five are the
elephant, rhinoceros, lion, leopard and cape buffalo.

Elephant

Often referred to as “gentle giants”, elephants are not the first animal that comes to mind when I think “dangerous”. But, then I remember how they are in real-life, when I’ve viewed them on safari.

African Elephants are MASSIVE. You cannot overestimate their size, or over-describe these enormous animals. They are the largest land mammal, with legs as thick as tree trunks, and bodies larger than safari cars. If threatened, they may be one of the most terrifying things to behold. They are fiercely protective of their young. They do not need sharp teeth to defend themselves, they have body weight, big feet and dangerous tusks.

However, an unthreatened elephant? An elephant who is relaxed, enjoying lunch in the shade of trees in Manyara National Park? Or leisurely wading in the watering holes of Tarangire National Park? That is a beautiful, powerful animal that can take your breath away.

photo of one elephant in Manyara National Park, walking in grass with trees behind — Elephant in Manyara National Park, Tanzania.
Photo by Ree Pashley

elephant facts

they are matriarchal – meaning the herds are female-led
an adult male can weigh as much as 6 tons!
there are two species of elephants: African and Asian. Other sub-species include forest elephants and savannah elephants.
African elephants are easily distinguished by their ears – which are, interestingly, in the shape of the African continent
according to WWF, almost 90% of all African elephants have been wiped out, due mostly to poaching and climate change.

Learn about a local program that is actively working to save elephants in Tanzania.

Rhinoceros

Rhinos have a distinct prehistoric look about them; their thick skin, oddly-placed horns and wide nostrils always remind me of dinosaurs. Rhinos are not my favorite of all the animals, but the first time I went on safari I was ecstatic to see a rhino – I rode that high all day, thrilled to see such a rare creature in the wild. Because they are fewer, more elusive, and difficult to spot, its especially exciting when you do see one in the wild.

black and white photo of an African black Rhino, side view featuring both horns — Photo by Photos By Beks on Unsplash

rhinoceros facts

there are 2 types of African rhinos and 3 types of Asian ones.
African rhinos are Black rhinos and White rhinos, but the names are a result of confused English settlers – both types are actually grey in color.
you’ll probably see then alone, but they tent to meet up with other rhinos around watering holes at night.
unicorns do exist! 2 species of Asian rhinos are one-horned, and absolutely ** magical **.
rhinos have bad eyesight. There are countless children’s stories in Tanzania about the rhino who needs glasses, or put his horns on wrong because he couldn’t see well, but the basis for these fictional tales is accurate, these guys DO have poor vision.

Lion

It doesn’t require much imagination to see why lions are in The Big Five, these guys are big, majestic and even a little scary – even if you are safely inside a safari car. In Tanzania, there are unique Tree Climbing Lions in Manyara National Park, and a pride that permanently resides in Ngorongoro Crater. Years ago, the prides in Serengeti National Park got so big that they became worrisome, and some members were moved to other parks to help control the lion population.

lion facts

female lions are the hunters. While they are out, the male lions supervise the young.
lions are the only big cats that reside in groups in the wild
you can tell the age of an adult male by his mane; the longer and darker the hair of the mane, the older he is.
lions are binge eaters – they feast on prey one day, and then may go two days without food entirely
in Ngorongoro Crater, the resident herds of wildebeest and zebra mean easy pickings for the lions. It is common to see lions sleeping in the grass with herds leisurely grazing all around. Since lions don’t eat every day, even the prey can relax sometimes.

Leopard

Leopards are one of the more difficult animals to spot while on safari. An expert predator, they nimbly climb trees and camouflage perfectly with their surroundings. I think they are the most beautiful of all the big cats, but I wouldn’t one to meet one while on the prowl. I can certainly understand why they would be dangerous to hunt.

leopard facts

leopards prefer to spend most of their time in trees – including when eating their prey. They carry carcasses up into trees to keep other predators from stealing their meal
leopards can purr to show they are happy or satisfied
like most cats, leopards are nocturnal and do most of their hunting at night
leopards are often confused with cheetahs. There are two easy ways to tell the two apart: spots and eyes. Spots- cheetahs have dots, while leopards have markings called rosettes. Eyes – cheetahs have distinct black tear marks around and down from their eyes, leopards do not.
they are not picky eaters, and have been known to eat just about anything – from porcupines, to monkeys – even snakes!

Cape Buffalo

Please don’t confuse Cape Buffalo with Asia’s Water Buffalo, they may be cousins, but these guys are bigger and more fierce. They have some resemblance to cows, and indeed are part o the bovine family, but don’t even think about milking one of these guys! Of all the animals listed in The Big Five, Cape Buffalo have a reputation for remembering and tracking down and charging any hunters who have threatened them.

These guys are big. They don’t go down with one, or even two bullets, and they do not forget the ones who tried to kill them and they will seek revenge. Which is why they have been given the nickname, “The Mafia” – they don’t forget and they do not forgive.

Photo of a Cape Buffalo staring straight ahead

cape buffalo facts

they are great swimmers
you’ll probably see them with an oxpecker bird on their back. The birds eat ticks and insects off the buffalo (thus ridding them of parasites), and the buffalo happily obliges to feed the oxpecker. This is a classic ‘symbiotic relationship’ between animals.
older bulls ‘retire’ and spend time on their own, away from a herd just relaxing and wading in mud. They are called “Dagga Boys”
a group of buffalo have several names: herd, gang or even an obstinacy.
they are one of the most dangerous of all The Big Five, because they seek revenge and they give no warning signal before attacking. Hunters who have used traps to ensnare Cape Buffalo have reported the buffalo feigned death, only to leap up and tramped the hunters when they started to open the trap.
These guys are intelligent! so, watch them from afar and take photos, no gunshots.

While trophy hunting has greatly declined across the continent, the name ‘The Big Five’ has stuck. No matter where the term originated, these five are some of the most impressive animals in the world.
I have yet to meet someone who doesn’t tremble a little when they see an adult elephant up close, or catch their breath when they spy a leopard with their own eyes. Even Cape Buffalo have a certain elegance to them, especially if you take a walking safari in Arusha National Park with them grazing just a few hundred meters away.

The Big Five of Africa are an impressive bunch and definitely worth getting a shot of – with your camera, of course.

I recently shared about the informative and inspirational visit I had at Altezza Travel’s Kilimanjaro Center for Rescue, Education and Wildlife (C.R.E.W.). However, I only briefly mentioned about the program to protect and care for orphaned baby elephants. My daughter and I both agreed, this was one of the highlights of our visit so I wanted to give the elephant program its own post.

The number of elephants across Africa has significantly declined over the past few decades. Poaching of elephants for the international ivory trade was the main cause of their rapid decline several years ago. However, other factors also influence the population of the largest land mammal – such as their long gestational period (22 months! and that usually, they carry a single elephant throughout their pregnancy – twin elephants are incredibly rare), and the destruction of their habitat (especially for African forest elephants).

There are many ways to help protect the vulnerable elephants of Africa, and the way in which C.R.E.W. is working to rescue elephants is through caring for orphaned elephant babies.

I personally learned so much about the behavior, communication and intelligence of elephants because of our visit to C.R.E.W. Also, as a champion for adoption of humans, some of the information that the elephant caregivers shared with me touched my heart and brought tears to my eyes! We really have so much to learn from nature, and our ‘humanity’ might be more humane if we copied some of the behaviors of the mighty, but gentle elephant.

What I learned about elephants at C.R.E.W.:

Here are some tidbits I learned about elephants from the caregivers at C.R.E.W.:

Elephant herds in the wild always accept other elephant children, they incorporate them as members of the family. Therefore, whenever possible, an elephant who is orphaned will remain with their herd, where they will be protected and well-bonded.
The main concern that requires a young elephant to be cared for at C.R.E.W would be that it is still nursing and the herd has no lactating mother to care for it.

Elephant herds are matriarchal, meaning that they are female-led.
Elephants have been known to mourn the deaths of a member of their herd, in a manner that is described as a “funeral” and even has aspects of burying the deceased animal.

Watch this National Geographic Video about an elephant funeral.

One of the caregivers pointed out a young elephant to our group and explained that when it first arrived, it would not sleep alone. I imagine much like a human baby, taken from its familiar surroundings and having recently lost its mother, the fear of being left alone seemed understandable. So, the caregiver would sleep with it at night to provide comfort, and the baby elephant would reach out its trunk and cuddle the caregiver, as a comfort throughout the night and to ensure that it wasn’t abandoned in this new place. Hence, there was a special bond between that human and the elephant. And the elephant knew the caregiver by both his scent and his voice (elephants have notoriously poor eyesight).
The elephants who grow up together at the center are released into the wild together. This is because removing one of the young elephants from the new group at the center would cause stress to the entire group, so they create a ‘mini herd’ there at C.R.E.W. and release them into a national park, under the guidance of park rangers who monitor the elephant populations of their areas, to incorporate with a wild herd.

Elephants are fiercely protective of one another, especially their young. The caregivers had never heard of mother elephants abandoning or neglecting their young in the wild. Rather, adult elephants have been known to be aggressive only when they feel that someone is threatening a member of their herd.
I will never forget that huge, adult elephant communicating to us that we needed to back-up our safari car at Tarangire National Park!
I can attest to the gentle-giants becoming protective of their young.

Perhaps the phrase should be “Mama Elephant” instead of “Mama Bear”?

Check out my account of a baby elephant crossing the road in front of our safari car in Tarangire National Park.

Just as they accept infant elephants into herds, larger herds accept adult elephants, as well. They do not exclude any member of their species, and work together as a large family, under the authority of their matriarch. Now, wouldn’t the world be a wonderful place if we could all do that?

How C.R.E.W. helps orphaned elephants

As I mentioned above, C.R.E.W. first and foremost would prefer elephants remain in the wild, and know that the larger elephant herd would protect the orphaned little one. However, some circumstances require that they bring a young elephant into the center. If the elephant were injured, for example, or if the herd had no female able to nurse it, then C.R.E.W. would bring the orphaned elephant to the Center.

Currently, Kilimanjaro C.R.E.W. is the only infant elephant care center in Tanzania.

At the Center, young elephants are cared for by an expert crew of caregivers who devote themselves to preparing these young elephants for return to the wild – so much they even sleep with the baby elephants to comfort them!

They prepare enormous bottles of milk for the young elephants, sing them songs, take them for walks, and communicate with them. However, human interaction is limited to these caregivers: visitors to C.R.E.W. are not permitted to touch, make contact or even speak around the elephants in order to promote the best possible return to the wild, once the elephants are old enough to have a good chance of survival.

Now, it was pretty hard to restrain myself from squealing with delight when I saw these adorable young elephants. In the end, I managed to not speak and just make silent, ridiculous faces in order to do my small part in helping their rehabilitation to the wild.

Sungura, as well, said she thought her heart was going to burst from joy and ‘too much cuteness’. She also sees a future career for herself as an elephant caregiver (and she’d excel at it!).

Are you looing for an amazing safari and chance to see elephants in the wild?

Check out my posts:
Family safari to Manyara National Park
Girls’ safari to Tarangire National Park

But, if you’re looking for a more in-depth understanding of elephant behavior and how to make a real difference protecting orphaned elephants in Tanzania, then book a trip to Kilimanjaro C.R.E.W. and see their work in action!

I can help you plan your safari and set-up your tour with Kilimanjaro C.R.E.W. – contact me here to start!

Author: ree pashley

What are The Big Five?