Safari vocab­u­lary - Travel­ling means discov­ering

Some words you’ll encounter, especially in southern Africa, are not easy because the local languages (mostly Afrikaans) tend to sneak in. But with this overview, you’ll be well-prepared:

Game Drives

On a safari, there are various ways to observe wildlife in their natural habitat. Some experiences are more impressive than others, but all create lasting memories. Most lodges or tour organizers offer game drives. During game drives, you spend two to four hours twice a day in the African wilderness. Usually, you head out at dawn and dusk to search for various animals and observe them in their natural environment. These times also offer the best lighting for photos, weather permitting.

Bush Walk

More and more lodges or safari providers also offer wilderness walks. These can be bush walks, where you spend two to three hours walking through the landscape in the morning and evening, focusing on small things like insects, the medicinal uses of plants, and tracks. Bush walks allow you to encounter an elephant on foot, with some luck and a well-trained guide.

Trail

For those seeking more adventure, there are multi-day hikes, known as trails. You walk through the wilderness for several days, sleeping either in a tent you brought with you or in a sleeping bag under the Milky Way, enjoying a sleep-out. Another way to explore the African landscape and its wildlife is by a small wooden canoe called a mokoro. Mokoros are popular in the Okavango Delta, but there are also beautiful places in Namibia, Zambia, and South Africa that you can explore by boat safari.

Distinguishing day and night

The most important times on a safari are morning and evening during sunrise and sunset. The reason for this is the impressive diversity of wildlife. Most species have found their niche and are either diurnal or nocturnal. To increase your chances of seeing these animals, you get up early and head out with your group before the first rays of sunlight. During the midday heat, you can rest, then head out again in the afternoon, returning only when the Southern Cross appears in the night sky.

Tracks/Tracker

During a game drive, an experienced guide leads you through the reserves and shares his extensive knowledge and exciting stories about the inhabitants of the African bush with you and your group. The driver-guide is usually accompanied by a second guide, known as a "tracker". His job is to read and interpret the tracks from the previous night or the fresh tracks from midday.

Tracks and signs in the bush

As you marvel at the green hills of Africa, known as "koppies" in safari parlance, or drive through dry riverbeds, you and your group look for tracks and signs of which animals have passed before you. The interpretation of droppings is also crucial: rhino bulls and impala bucks, for example, mark their territory with so-called dung heaps ("midden").

Trailing

Once the tracker finds a fresh track, they and the driver-guide try to follow it – this is called trailing. You and the other guests might suddenly be asked to grab your binoculars (or colloquially binos) to spot a sleeping leopard or its leftover kill high in the trees. If you encounter a carcass that clearly indicates that it was hunted, on your safari, it's called a kill. If you’re incredibly lucky and get to witness a hunt, the hunted animal is called prey, while the hunter is called a predator. Predator is the term for all carnivorous animals. Birds of prey fall under the category of raptors.

A hunt, like those seen in National Geographic documentaries, is a matter of being in the right place at the right time. Just as fascinating can be the explanations of the medicinal uses of the leadwood tree or the reasons for the feather colors of an African hoopoe. A safari is not just about seeing as many animals as possible or having wildlife encounters. It’s more about using and enhancing all your senses.

Connecting with nature

So, take it all in when your guide asks you to hug the trunk of a baobab tree for good luck or to sniff a bunch of wild sage. The memories of this safari will be more deeply embedded if you connect your experiences with smells or tactile sensations. Be careful with the word “trunk,” as it’s also used for an elephant’s nose. Pay attention to the context in which your guide uses the word.

Here are some more useful terms for your safari adventure:

Equipment

• Backpack

• Camelbak

• Flask, thermal mug or bottle

• Reusable Waterbottle

• Sunscreen

• Flipflops, Plakkies, chappies, slippers

• Hiking boots

• Sundowner (drink while watching the sunset)

All about tracks and general droppings

• Tracks

• Gait

• Hooves

• Paw

• Toes

• Pads

• Circumference

• Print

• Droppings

• Scat

• Middens

• Latrines

• Dung

• Urine

Environment and landscape

• Hills / Koppie

• Ridge

• Termite mound

• Substrate

• Ground

• Soil

• Clay

• Drainage line

• Leaves

• Flowers

• Pods

• Roots

• Shrub

• Bark

• Pollinator

Basic anatomy

• Body

• Skin

• Coat

• Scales

• Feathers

• Bones

• Skull

• Collarbone

• Vertebrae

• Breast / chest

• Tail

• Whiskers

• Nostrils

• Trunk

• Claws (mammals)

• Talons (claws of birds)

• Blood vessels

• Uterus

• Mammary gland

With these terms, you can ask your guide many questions and, thanks to your newly acquired knowledge, better understand the answers.