| Along
with the Big Five, Malilangwe like to show you
their Little Six; six species of small beautiful
antelope - klipspringer, Sharpe's grysbok, grey
duiker, steenbok, rare Livingstone's suni and
oribi who reappeared after almost dying out
in the great drought of 1992-3. Some rarely
seen shy animals that you may be lucky enough
to observe here are aardvark, painted hunting
dogs (wild dogs) and caracal (lynx cat) with
long tufted ears.
Malilangwe is a
haven for birds with over 400 species and one
of the highest concentrations of large breeding
eagles in the world. There are 14 species of
eagle, 11 hawks and 9 different owls. Unlike
the large mammals who reside here all year,
birds come and go. February sees huge colonies
of tiny quelea who come to nest here in their
thousands. In June purple rollers arrive from
Mozambique and in November woodland kingfishers
pull in from West Africa. From the Asian steppes
migratory eagles and falcons come to join the
resident raptors. Amongst the team of Malilangwe
guides are some highly respected and passionate
bird experts.
The lakes contain
some true trophy-sized bass and keen anglers
may try their hand to catch them.
SEASONS
Dry
Season: The cool dry season is from
April to August. This six month period of almost
completely dry, sunny weather gives average
temperatures in the mid 70's°F to the low
80's°F (23-28°C). By late June the leaves
begin to fall from the trees and the tall grasses
have been trampled by game, making it prime
game-viewing time. The hot dry spell is from
September to November and game viewing is at
its peak especially in the cool of early morning
and early evening. Midday temperatures are a
sizzling 90°F+ (34°C+), but humidity
is low.
Rainy Season: From November
to March it rains about one out of every five
days. The sun emerges again after every thunderstorm
and humidity and heat are high. The greenery
is lush and wild flowers emerge in profusion.
Thousands of migratory birds arrive to take
advantage of this of plenty, when nature puts
on her fullest displays.
MALILANGWE
SPECIALITIES
• Big Five and Little Six
• Black and white rhino
• Relaxed game viewing
• Two top class safari lodges
• Community involvement
FACTS
Malilangwe
Reserve has 100,000 acres of pristine bushland.
Just two private lodges have game viewing access
to this land.
The reserve is in the south-eastern corner of
Zimbabwe at 21 degrees latitude. |
