South Africa - into the wild

Visiting South Africa was a pretty awesome part of my University course. I had to attend a 2-week field course for one of my modules, and I was lucky enough to get a place on the highly popular South Africa option. When I arrived in China I was a little disappointed the entire country didn’t look like a scene from Mulan. However, arriving in South Africa, I was delighted to feel as though I’d just walked into the Lion King. Nearly all the countryside is savannah and scrub, with small shanty villages here and there, roadside sellers trying to flog rugs and domestic cows and horses. The cows were different to British cows, mainly as they had large floppy ears, which somehow made them more fitting to the scenery than a couple of Friesians.

We were based at Mankwe Wildlife Reserve, a private reserve outside Pretoria, but we also had a couple of trips out to nearby Pilanesburg National Park. Pilanesburg was much larger than Mankwe, with larger animals that the Mankwe set-up was neither large enough nor safe for, including lions and elephants. On our first day at Mankwe, we were taken for a game drive, to get a feel for the reserve and its inhabitants. I quickly learnt two important facts about South African wildlife. Firstly, I never knew that there was such a diversity of antelope species! From the tiny, elusive steenbok to the huge, impressive gemsbok. Secondly, I have always wondered if it really is any different seeing animals in their natural environment, rather than in a zoo or wildlife park. Well, I can confirm it definitely is. On the one hand, there’s no guarantee of what you’ll see but on the other, there’s something about the backdrop of the unique savannah scenery and the freedom of animal movement that makes the experience special. It is a shame I didn’t get to see some species up close, like seeing only the tail of a monkey disappear, but it’s the fact that it can just run out of sight that is moving.

Throughout the trip there was one animal which never lost its charm, beauty or impressiveness, and this was the giraffe. Their size makes the very presence of a giraffe impressive, and its coat and figure are beautiful. I was constantly surprised at how friendly (or perhaps just lazy) giraffes were. Antelope were incredibly shy, wildebeest skulked off when they saw you but giraffes just acknowledged you with a glance and carried on chewing their leaves. Nevertheless, I believe they are at their most impressive when running. Their height and grace makes it almost seem as if you’re seeing them in slow motion.

The first night we went to dinner I had to stop myself giggling. Our first meal was spaghetti bolognaise. But with wildebeest mince instead of beef. Unfortunately, we were not presented with any traditional South African dishes, which I was hoping to try. Instead we were presented with European food… with a twist. On the reserve, our meat consisted almost entirely of wildebeest. As a barbequed steak it was rather tough, but as a mince it was delicious. It tasted a bit like beef but with a more gamey flavour. My fellow biologists introduced me to biltong – a snack of dried game meat with spices. Throughout my time I tried lots of meat as biltong, an impala carvery, but my favourite, as a stew and as biltong, was kudu. Kudu is a large antelope with magnificent curly antlers and a delicious taste!