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The odd job of a pangolin carer

Have you heard of a pangolin? Would you recognize one? For many people, the pangolin is unfortunately known, only as a family of species, which have been poached for their scales (made of keratin, and with no medicinal basis) such that of the 8 species, half are endangered and the other half critically endangered. Click on any of the mentions of pangolin on this page to be taken to our pangolin family species page. This poaching is so extreme, that some estimate that this family of species are the most trafficked in the world.

Pangolin are very hard to take care of, which is why there are so few in zoos around the world. Indeed, the vast majority of even wildlife guides in somewhere like the Kruger have never seen a pangolin, even if they are known to exist in the park. A pangolin carers job, is to look after a pangolin, take it into the bush, and find places with many ants and termites, and generally get it ready to return to the wild.

An incredibly rare sighting of a pangolin within the Kruger national park
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Future places

This is a long-term project. Our hope is that with help the number of destinations will grow fast. For now, I have created this page. Generally, there is a future places section on all country pages, so these can also be accessed from there. The aim here, is for myself (and other people as the site grows) to be able to write pages about specific destinations, before we have any links to help you with your wild travel in that destination.

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Elephant

African Savannah elephant, Asiatic elephant and Africa forest elephant

Elephant family tree

African Savannah African forest, and Asian Elephant

There are 3 species of elephant in the world (these come from two closely related genera, Loxodonta (the African elephant genus, and Elephas the Asian elephant genus, both are dealt with on this page). They are a good indicator species, as if an area is capable of supporting elephants, it can probably support most other species as well (those above are in the same order, should you not recognize them). 

The African Savannah elephant (left) and African Forest Elephant elephant (right) are both part of the same genus – Loxodonta. The Asian elephant (only one species, though a 3 subspecies Sri Lankan elephant, Mainland Asian elephant and Sumatran Elephant) is the only  member of the genus Elephas. It is important to remember, that while the mammoth is a well known extinct species like the Elephant, it is estimated that there have been 180 different elephantine species in earths history.

Click on the one you are interested below, to find out more (along with seeing longer videos on each separate species), or scroll down to read all the articles we have written on elephants.

African Savannah Elephant
Asiatic Elephant
African forest elephant

We already have a number of places to view wild savannah elephants. Click on wild places or here, for all our savannah destinations in Africa. All the savannahs have elephants, Except the mountain gorilla reserve, which has forest elephants – often seen on a walk in this reserve.

Should you work in tourism or conservation, and would like to list another destination, either of this species of elephant, or indeed of African forest elephants or Asian elephants, you will find a link at the top of the main page “list your wild place” or alternatively click here.

Czech Carpathians

Czech Carpathian

Only a small portion of the Carpathians lie within Czech republic. Furthermore, Czech republic is part of a block of countries in Europe with small populations of the big predators, which combined with their fondness for hunting is one of the reason that wildlife has had such a problem repopulating western Europe. However they are slowly returning.

Wolves were first spotted after their return in 1990, however, it was not until around 2010 when they started making progress. and currently have a population of around 100 within the countries borders. 

There are not thought to be any bears living permanently in the country, but as there is a healthy population in Slovakia, they wonder across the border regularly – as such, it is entirely possible that eventually bears will settle full time.

Lynx are thought to have a population of around 80 Lynx within the borders of the country

As with other countries on the list, tourists visiting with the hope of seeing these animals can make a big difference to their future prospects.

Most of the Czech Republic is covered by low hills and plains, though much of the border of the country consists of mountains. Being part of this block of countries in Europe, the residents of the Czech republic have enjoyed hunting, as a result its only in recent years that they have been allowed to return. Whether these populations will be allowed to continue to exist we will wait to see, never-the-less if the population is allowed to return in central Europe, it will allow the Eastern and Western European populations of wolves bears and lynx to reconnect and allow a healthier genetic population.

Click here to return to the Carpathians page

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Alps (including Julian and Balkan extension)

The Alps as well as the Julian, and the Dinaric Alps

A vast mountain range in central Europe, covering almost 300,000 square km (115,000 square miles). This place would naturally have been a wildlife haven. However lying at the center of Europe, the wildlife populations have been extirpated (a word for local extinction) from different sections of this range over the centuries. Importantly, the Alps have also had human settlements dating back a very long way (indeed, there is traces of Neanderthals in the alps 40,000 years ago. As such it is essential that as the wildlife populations are allowed to recover, this happens in a way that benefit the local human population.

One of the best-known and largest range of mountains in Europe, the Alps are a large mountain range that is shared between France, Switzerland, Monaco, Italy, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, and Slovenia. Measuring around 1200 km wide and 250 from top to bottom, this mountain range is huge. It includes Mont Blanc the tallest mountain in Europe. The part of the range covering Italy and Slovenia are also sometimes called the Julian Alps. Beyond this, with almost no gap, the Dinaric Alps, which lie in the Balkans continue this chain, stretch from Southern Croatia through Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, and on into Kosovo and Albania in the Southeast. 

As with other mountain ranges in Europe, there are a number of mountain specialists such as alpine marmot and chamois, as well as ibex. Due to the relative isolation of mountain ranges, generally each has its own subspecies of animals such as ibex and therefore there are often not that many making them prone to local extinction. Below you will find links for each European Alpine country, this will go into more detail on each countries success at preserving the big 3 – bear, wolf and lynx; the smaller creatures can generally be seen throughout the alps, though many are altitude specific. 

French Alps in the summer

The Alps have a small but growing population of all of the 3 big predators of Europe wolf, bears and lynx. As in other parts of Europe there ride has been bumpy, however they appear to now be starting to do far better. Mountain ranges such as this, can often supply a last refuge of various wildlife due to the difficulty of hunters and Poachers from getting into the mountains often enough to eradicate them completely. A large mountain range like this which struggles so many countries can provide highways between different countries to allow the animals to recolonize.

There are currently about 100 wolves, split between the French and Italian Alps, with around 40 on the German side. It is thought that eight have crossed the border into Switzerland, though most of these are individuals so it is not thought there have been many successful raising of young. A Swiss wolf protection group estimates that there are now 300 wolf packs roaming the Alps. Now given the number of countries that it covers, this is not a high number, though it does suggest that recovery is well on its way.

There is a population of about 30-40 bears in the Italian Alps, though these are sparsely populated, and continue through the Apennine mountain range along the center of Italy (it is thought that there are around 60 of these bears in total). Lynx spread throughout parts of the Alps there are areas where they are not present. There is a good number in the west Alps where they are thought to be spreading nicely. Also exist in the east, in places like northern Croatia.

Obviously this is a large area, and therefore although the places you can go to increase your odds of seeing wildlife. I will attempt to build a network of pages to help in this search, though as with any wildlife watching nothing is guaranteed. 

Mountains are less used by humans so when wildlife returns it can thrive
Lynx are shy, and rarely seen, they are highly important for the ecosystem
Italian bear in the Alps Copyright VOLODYMYR BURDYAK

The Alps are spread across France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. These countries can be well split in two as far as their wildlife watching prospects. France Italy Germany and Slovenia all have populations of wolves bears and lynx, while these are usually small they are established either naturally or through reintroduction. 

Liechtenstein is too small to have a permanent population of any of these animals that is sustainable on its own in the long term, though from time to time animals are likely to wander across the border. Switzerland has no bears, though it does host about 80 wolves and about 100 lynx split into 2 populations (one of those is in the alps). Austria is thought to have two wolf packs , and also has a small number of bears that have returned from neighboring countries.

However, all countries in the Alps have healthy herbivore populations, including alpine marmots, chamois, ibex and even the Alpine Salamander is wide spread. This means that a hike in the Alps should lead to animal sightings, and children are likely to be fascinated if they are quiet enough to see any of the wildlife around you. While the predators are returning, there are still parts of the Alps where sightings are highly unlikely, and even in high density areas, expect to spend much time sitting quietly in order to get lucky. Having said that, the Alps are full of vantage points from which you can sit with binoculars or a telescope and keep watch over a large area – your best chance of seeing these charismatic but shy animals.

Below is a link to each of the countries, with more localized information and places to stay.

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Germany – Alps

The German Alps

The German alps, like many parts of Europe, exterminated all their predators by the middle of the twentieth century. Due to its position, and an increasing acceptance of the science of how the environment there has been a less agressive reaction to various predators returning.

It should be noted that despite it being more than 30 years since east and west Germany merged to once again form one country, in terms of wildlife they still feel like very different places. West Germany exterminated most of its big predators, where as western Germany did not. The majority of the wolves do still live in areas that were under eastern German control.

It is true that bears have not yet made Germany their home. A bear entered Germany back in 2006, and while the government and local population were initially pleased, after he killed a few livestock a few attempts were made to catch him so he could be moved elsewhere. When this failed the decision was made to kill him – it should be noted, that a significant part of the population was against this decision. The hunt took over a month, with a significant outlay spent on expert hunters bought in from Finland. In the end though this failed and he was shot by a local hunter (much against the locals wishes).

In October of 2019, another bear wandered over the border again. Bavaria authorities behaved in a far better way on this occasion, and while careful note was made of where he was and what he was doing, he was left largely alone. It is unsure what happened to him, but it is clear that while without human intervention, bears are likely to eventually return to the wild in Germany, they have not yet.

A view of the German Alps

Wolves are different. There is some debate over how many wolves live in Germany at this point. It is thought that they first returned in 1998, and have been doing relatively well since. There is thought to be a little over 100 wolf packs, but a significant dispute as to an accurate number of individual animals. The government claims numbers of 400 while hunting groups claim the real figure is as high as 1300 (hunting organisations almost always over estimate, as this gives them a higher quota to keep the population in check). It is also common for hunting organisations to be paid by farming organisations, in order to keep livestock predation under control, thus giving a further incentive to over estimate, allowing them to kill more animals.

It is probably more likely that the true number lies somewhere between the estimates, perhaps around 600 individual members. They have a permanent presence in Brandenburg, Saxony and lower Saxony.

Lynx are still found widely throughout Germany, though as an incredibly shy species a sighting should be considered very lucky.

European wild cats also still roam widely throughout germany.

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France – Alps

The French Alps

The French Alps cover an area of 38,000 square km, or just over 15,000 square miles. As with many other European countries, France has not been happy to share its space with predators, and so all were exterminated by the the second world war

The French Alps border the Alps from many other country and has a result wildlife from the rest of the alps has been able to spread. Back in the 1995 some of the Italian wolves started migrating across the border,  On this occasion the wolves set up a territory and became established. Over the next 25 years the wolves have increased dramatically so that now there are between 500 and 600 living in the french alps. While they have been expanding far into France the core consisting of 50% of their population is still in the French Alps.

A view of the French Alps

There are no bears in the french alps, they still exist further south in Italy, as well as in the Dinarac alps that run from northern Italy, east and south into the Balkans down to Albania in the South East. It is therefore possible that they will return on their own in time, and given a young dispersing bear can cover large distances, it is always possible for them to return. The important thing is to remember that this is prime bear habitat, and that it is therefore highly likely that one day they will be back.

However, apart from the returning wolves there are now a few lynx that live wild within parts of the French Alps.There are other mountain ranges that lie close by which host more lynx, however I have listed them separately. While lynx tourism is a fantastic boost to the country, it should be noted that lynx are incredibly shy and so are not seen often. This shouldn’t detract from the interest though as their impact on the ecosystem is very clear. When walking in areas with animals like lynx, looking for signs of their presence can be a rewarding pass time – particularly with young children who are unlikely to have the patience to see the animal assuming it will appear anyway. Tracks and droppings are often not to hard to find.

Different parts of the French alps have different levels of human presence. If you are looking for wilderness, the Southern french alps are one of the wildest regions of western europe.

Chamois mouflon and marmots are common here as well as roe deer.


 

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The French Alps cover a large area, and the wildlife is pretty wide spread.  Unfortunately often to see wild animals in their native habitat you need a mix of luck and patience with a little knowledge mixed in. As we make links these will appear below the news section below.

Back to the France page 

Austria – Alps

The Austrian Alps

The Austrian Alps cover an area of 52,000 square km, or just over 20,000 square miles. This is about 62% of Austria. You would have thought that this would have lead to a country teeming with wildlife, and indeed it would have been naturally, however as with other European countries the big predators were exterminated. 

However, with its proximity to other countries with big predators, they have returned. Currently there are areas with wolves, the second area only having only become established in 2019. Austria does have a keen hunting tradition, one of the reasons for the extinction of these animals in the first place, and as such it is important for locals to see there is money to be made by having them there.

A view of the Austrian Alps

The two Austrian wolf populations have established quite well separated areas of the country. Now it should be noted, that howling is a behavior most often undertaken to establish territory, and as such howling is likely to not be common (European wolves howl less, due to persecution by humans as well), however individual wolves also howl to establish contact with other members of their pack. One is far from the Austrian alps so is not of interest in this page. The other is dealt with below

Allensteig and surrounding area.

The first of these territories was established in 2016 and lies within the Allensteig millitary training area , an area of 157 square km, or 57 square miles. As a training area, it is off limits to the public. There are currently 2 wolf packs within this area, with a total of 20 wolves. They do roam outside the training area. As a result of the 2 packs living close together hearing howls is more likely here. Given the small number of people who can enter the area this is probably a particularly good habitat for wolves in Europe.

Click on the link below to see our page on accommodation in this area.

https://seeanimalswild.com/accommodation-near-allensteig-training-area/(opens in a new tab)

 

Wolves in an army training area, near Allensteig in Austria

Austria near the Czech border

A small pack of 4-5 animals have established a territory along the Austrian Czech border in the last few years. Genetic analysis shows that this new pack is not related to the Allensteig wolves and therefore must have migrated from the Polish or German wolf population.

https://seeanimalswild.com/austria-accommodation-near-the-austrian-czech-border/

Watching wolves anywhere is hard, with so few this area is particularly hard. However, tourists visiting because of the wolves is highly important. If local people realize that the wolves presence is good for Austria due to increased tourism numbers they are more likely to become accepted.

There is also claimed to have been a small population of about 22 bears. There have been a variety of studies over the years, and you can find estimate far higher,. This small bear population could does have some genetic flow with the Italian and Slovenian population. The study period (early millennium) counted 28 cubs over the period it looked at, suggesting an extremely high mortality rate. There is a strong hunting history in Austria, so it is possible that some have been illegally killed. However, as with the wolves above, there are sizable populations in countries close enough for dispersing young to reach Austria. Interest in the local bears can only encourage non-lethal use of their presence  (i.e. ecotourism). Unfortunately there are credible claims that the bears are fully extinct again in the Northern Limestone Alps with this formally declared in 2020. Having said that, the founding bear of this population migrated there of its own accord back in the early 1990s, before 3 others were translocated to the area. It is therefore clearly suitable, and visits asking about the bears and looking for them will always warm the locals views of these powerful animals.

There are a handful of lynx in Austria, but not in the Alpine region, as such they are beyond the scope of this page (though I hope to write a page on their home range in the near future).

Visits due to the presence of big predators, gives locals reason to protect and value the local wildlife they share their land with. Even a few visits can make an out-sized difference.

Beyond predators, there are healthy populations of chamois deer and marmots. A holiday in the Austrian Alps can give wildlife sightings, even if at the moment large predators are absent from much of the country.

Much of Austria is covered in the alps, so zoom in on the parts of the map that interest you.

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Camp Ndlovu

Camp Ndlovu

Camp Ndlovu lies within the Welgevonden Game Reserve, and sits alongside the Marakele National Park in South Africa.

These protected areas and some other reserves are collectively called the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve, which covers around 4,000 square km of bush.

Sitting just two and a half hours from Cape Town, this is a perfect place to drop into for a few days during a Cape holiday. One of the big advantages of going on safari here is that there is no Malaria, which is rare for a safari destination.

As a Big Five reserve you will have an action packed visit (cheetah are also present).

For those interested in birds there are also over 300 species that are present including blue cranes.

Camp Ndlovu is a luxurious way to do safari, and with only guests of one of the lodges allowed onto the reserve the number of cars is kept relatively low. With just five suites (one of which is suitable for families, though children under 12 by arrangement only) even when the lodge is full, it will not feel crowded.

With each suite being very generously sized and being air conditioned, they will be a welcome refuge from the heat of the bush. Each has its own plunge pool and outdoor shower and bath. They each have extra long king sized beds, and a sitting room with a fireplace. Also included is a minibar and a nespresso machine. There is also a sizeable deck around the plunge pool with comfortable pool loungers, allowing you to relax in comfort and watch the world pass by.

Despite the camps remoteness there is also WIFI within the camp. They also have extras such as bathrobes slippers and forgotten toiletries.

Each air-conditioned luxury unit suite comes complete with its own plunge pool, outdoor shower and outdoor bath, air-conditioning and fan, king size extra length bed, a lounge with fireplace, Nespresso coffee machine with complimentary coffee pods, a mini bar, outdoor shower and bath and  an extensive wooden deck with pool loungers and private dining areas. Extras include bathrobes, slippers and complimentary toiletries and Wifi.

This coupled with a history of wildlife never having been legally hunted here makes for far more relaxed animal encounters than you can experience elsewhere. Anti-poaching efforts continue behind the scenes to make sure that this remains the case as much as possible.

Apart from those animals listed so far the reserve hosts around 50 mammals in total. Night time safaries are usually the only way to see them and brown hyena, aardwolf, pangolin and aardvark are present to be looked for on night drives.

With a long history of human habitation within the area, there are also 2 san rock paintings within the reserve. There is a booking/questions form below the video, and below this is pricing information in south african Rand (at the time of writing £1 is about 20 rand

 

To ask questions or enquire about availability or book please fill in the form below

Fitzpatrick at Jock

Fitzpatrick at Jocks

Fitzpatrick at Jocks is a small lodge perfect for groups and hired exclusively to one group at a time. Consisting of 3 Luxurious suites each with its own viewing deck. This allows people to enjoy the luxury of a lodge, but with the intimacy of being just a small group.

Lying in the game dense south of the Kruger national park, this private concession covers around 23 miles which only your group and the main lodge will have access to. The lodge is built on the river bank, which means that often the wildlife will come to visit you so you can enjoy watching the world go by from the comfort of your suite.

Beautifully equipped and set up for a group of up to 6 to share, this is an incredible place for friends to go together or for family time away from everyone else.

With places to eat inside and out, and with its own staff, a visit can be fully molded around the group visiting- both in terms of food preference and activities.

Things to do include bush drives, bush walks (which will include learning the beginning of tracking) sun downer drinks in the bush, as well as time simply relaxing in the lodge.

Being in a game rich part of the park, it is also wonderful to lay back on a lounger and watch the animals move past.

The above video gives you a good introduction to the lodge and the area around it.

Below is a more detailed look at the lodge and the feel of the place.

Fully inclusive pricing starts at

If you are interested and would like to book or enquire about availability fill in the form below.

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