If there’s one thing that is for sure with Leopard hunts, it is there are no guarantees that you are even going to even see a Leopard even though your PH may try every trick in the book to get a suitable animal on bait. Leopard hunting is like chess, a mind game where you are always trying to out manoeuvre your opponent, in this case “Mr Spots”.
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The English naturalist, George French Angas first described the Nyala (Tragelaphus angasii) in 1849, on the shores of Lake St Lucia in Zululand (South Africa), calling it the “Angas Bushbuck”. Hence the origin of its scientific name while its common name came from the Zulu (African tribe) word “Inyala”. That is why today you most commonly hear professional hunters pronounce the word Inyala instead of Nyala as spelt. The name Inyala when translated from Zulu means the “shifty one”, a fitting description for such an elusive species.
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The Gemsbok are nomadic animals, and spend most of their time following the rains wandering around looking for food. Being a water independent species they graze at night and early morning when plants hold the most moisture, and this is enough to sustain them until they can enjoy a good thirst quenching drink.
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This impressive animal with massive and very distinctive corkscrew-like horns derives its name from Khoikhoi, an indigenous ethnic group closely related to the San (Bushman) people of Africa. Like elk hunting in the United States, Kudu attracts trophy and meat hunters alike, and is topping every first time African hunter’s wish list.
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Is the Kudu you just hunted really an Eastern Cape Kudu because of its location or was it a transplanted genetically engineered animal? When will DNA sampling become a prerequisite for anyone wishing to enter a trophy into the record book?
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The choice of Outfitter can really make or break your African hunt. After you have made a shortlist of suitable candidates you need to see who fits your profile and offers the closest experience in satisfying your expectations.
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How do you prepare for your first African hunt? In part 2 of the series of posts dedicated to this issue, Peter Ruddle speaks about travel.
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Planning your first African safari? You’re probably have 1001 questions about what animals to hunt, in what country, what outfitter to select, and what price is good. This post will cover the essentials in making the right choice.
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The skin of the zebra is one of the most popular trophies that hunters bring home from African safaris. Whether you use it as a carpet on the wall or a rug on the floor, or make a more original taxidermy out of it, the striking black-and-white skin can’t help but stir your curiosity. The old question “Is zebra white with black stripes or black with white stripes?” has been positively answered. Zebra embryos start out black (or brown), and the white color appears later, so zebra is black with white stripes. But why do they need the stripes in the first place?
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According to a 2016 survey, Impala is the most popular trophy with international hunters in South Africa. This blog post tries to identify the secret of the species’ success.
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Felines are perhaps the most successful predators among mammals. This post covers small felines of Africa: Caracal, Serval, and African Wild Cat.
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Wildebeest, or Gnu, is one of the most recognizeable African antelopes. Nicknamed “a poor man’s buffalo” for similar appearance and tougness, various subspecies of the animal attract hunters to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Namibia and Botswana
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