A Safari in Botswana: Discovering the Incredible African Wildlife
Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp
and we've found something very cool. Let me share it with you. This is an African bullfrog, also known as the pixie frog
due to its scientific name. These guys are carnivores. They feed on birds, insects,
rodents and even amphibians. These guys are preyed upon by jackals,
snakes, birds of prey, even leopards, and I once saw a ground hornbill
eating one of these. They are also cannibalistic,
meaning they eat their own species. The male bullfrog is also known
to eat his own tadpoles when guarding. Males can reach up to 24 centimetres. Females are half the size of males. They breed after the heavy rains
in a shallow pond. The female bullfrog lays 3,000
to 4,000 eggs. How amazing is that? Most of their lives they spend underground
aestivating to avoid dehydration. During their time underground most of their body shuts down
and they become dormant. This was quite a nice sighting.
I'll see you next time. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp,
and look what we've found today. A lion's roar can be heard
up to eight kilometres away, depending on the terrain.
[roaring] After the tiger, the lion is the second-largest
big cat species in the world. Lions live in big groups,
which are called prides. Lions rest for 18 to 20 hours a day.
Look how lazy these guys are. Male lions are a lot larger
than the females, and the males weigh more. A pride like this will eat, on average,
every five to six days. Out here in the Okavango Delta,
these lions specialise in hunting buffalo. Sometimes they'll even feed on each other. Once these males get a little bit older, they'll eventually leave the pride
and the females will stick together. Look at all the spots on the youngsters. Once they get older,
the spots will fade away. We are so lucky to see these lions
here in the Okavango Delta, because most of Africa
is losing their lions. There are only about
16 to 20,000 lions left in Africa and their numbers are still declining,
and that's why they need our protection. Out here, they're also known as swamp cats
and you can see why.
They also have to be
very wary of crocodiles. This is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I found
an armoured ground cricket. These guys are also known as
the armoured bush crickets or the corn crickets. Look how big he is. These guys are omnivores. They will eat anything
from plants to insects, and even baby birds. These guys are preyed upon by birds, baboons, spiders, lizards
and even mongoose. These guys might be fat and flightless, but they do know how to defend themselves. The first line of defence is their armour, which is full of spines. Did you know that these guys
have very strong jaws? They can even draw blood from a human.
Males make a loud and harsh noise
that is known as stridulation, which scares all their predators away. When attacked,
these guys squirt blood out of their body, which smells really bad
and tastes very bitter. The blood-like fluid
is yellow to orange in colour, and they can spray it
up to six centimetres away. If all else fails, they'll vomit all over their body
to scare away all the predators. These crickets are cannibalistic, which means when they need protein or salt,
they'll eat each other. Let's leave this little guy be. See you next time! Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I'm going to be talking
about something a little bit different, the baboon spider.
Baboon spiders
are a subfamily of tarantulas. There are more than 600
baboon spider species worldwide. This one here
is a Malalane golden-brown baboon spider. Phew, that was a mouthful! Baboon spiders live in burrows
which they line with silk. In the hot regions, their burrows are deep
to protect the spider from the heat. Besides their burrows,
we can find them under logs, rocks and even old skulls, like this one. Female baboon spiders
can live up to 30 years. Their bite is harmless to humans
but it can be very painful. All baboon spiders are covered in hair.
Look at this guy. These guys are mostly nocturnal. They are known
as the sit-and-wait hunter, they sit in their burrows
and wait for their prey to walk past.
Mating usually takes place in the spring. During the mating season, the males
will wander around looking for females. These guys eat beetles,
small frogs, lizards, crickets, millipedes
and even grasshoppers. The males are smaller than females. When threatened, they'll raise
their front legs and show their big fangs. These guys will moult
a couple of times throughout their lives, leaving their old skin behind.
Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp. We are out on a game drive and we've found
something very interesting. Look at this fresh snake track
we found going over the road. This snake track is super fresh.
Let's see if we can follow it. Oh, look! This is the puff adder! When threatened, it puffs itself up
and gives a hissing noise and that's where it gets its name from. As a warning, they'll give a hissing
and puffing noise before they strike.
[hissing] It's one of the fastest striking snakes. The puff adder is part
of the viper family, meaning that they have
very large front fangs. It's a very slow-moving snake
and it hunts by ambushing its prey. You can easily recognise this snake
by looking at its triangle-shaped head. These snakes grow
up to one metre in length, with the males being larger
than the females. An interesting fact about these snakes
is that they give birth to live young. How amazing is that? The venom of this snake is cytotoxic,
meaning it can destroy your cells.
The bite itself is extremely painful. At one stage, I saw a business
of banded mongoose killing one of these, so they also have to be careful. In this area, they will eat reptiles,
birds and rodents. Look how camouflaged he is! That's why you have to be careful
when walking through grass. I think it's time to leave this guy
and go for a sundowner. Hey, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I need my brother's help because
we are in search for some bark scorpions. Scorpions are fossorial, which means
they adapted to living underground. During the day, you'll often find
scorpions under bark, in the holes and under logs. And that's exactly
where my brother finds them.
Scorpions are closely related to spiders,
solifugaes, mites and ticks. Scorpions are invertebrates, which means
they don't have a bony skeleton. In southern Africa, we have
at least 130 species of scorpion. Scorpions can eat huge amounts
of food in one go. How do we know which scorpion's
dangerous and which is not? As a general rule, we find scorpions with
small pincers, thick tail are dangerous. Big pincers, small tail are harmless.
Depending on the species of scorpion,
some use their pincers and others use their tail
to kill their prey. Scorpions are mostly nocturnal. They do their feeding
and hunting during the night. It is estimated that scorpions
spend 95% of their time inactive. That's a lot of time doing nothing. Tonight, I'm going to show you
something super-interesting. We've been waiting for a couple of hours
now and it's finally night time.
Nobody actually knows why this happens, but if we shine an ultraviolet light on
a scorpion, it actually glows in the dark. Hi, guys, this is Nala
from Machaba Camp, and today we're going to talk
a little bit about termites. Did you know that there's more than 2,700
different species in the world? Termites generally feed on plant material, like grass, dead leaves and dead wood. Termites work on a caste system. Each colony will have a king and queen,
soldiers and workers, and then after the first rains,
there'll be an eruption of winged elites. I'm covered in termites right now. Look at all these termites. They come out in a frenzy
after the first rains. Once they have found a partner,
they will lose their wings.
This mound is home
to a colony of termites. This mound is made out of soil,
termite saliva and dung. The structure of the mound
can be very complex. They've got tunnels,
different rooms and fungus farms, and the termites can regulate
the temperature inside the mound. Soldiers and workers
can live up to two years, while the queen can live
up to 40 years or even longer. If you ever get stuck out here in the bush
and you are very hungry, a handful of these termites can give you
about 500 calories to survive. They're actually a good source of protein
to a lot of animals. These bullfrogs love to eat termites. Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp, and I want to talk about the place
that I call home – the Okavango Delta. This is the Okavango Delta. The Okavango Delta is
one of the world's largest inland deltas. NASA took this amazing picture from space. In 2014, this place became
a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The delta is
in the northern part of Botswana. The Okavango Delta consists of large
flood plains with islands in between. In summertime, the rain falls in Angola, and that water slowly makes its way down
into the Okavango Delta in wintertime.
The delta is voted as one
of the seven natural wonders of Africa. The flood reaches its peak
between June and August, which are Botswana's winter months. We have more than 150 mammal species. More than 150 reptile species. You can visit the delta any time of year –
it will never disappoint! Hi, guys, this is Nala, and today we're actually
not at Machaba Camp. We're a little bit up north
in an area called the Panhandle. The Panhandle's the main water course
supplying the Okavango Delta. So why do they call it the Panhandle? The answer is obvious, because it looks like a handle of a pan. Here we have lots of river channels,
thick papyrus and reed beds. So what is the Panhandle known for? Definitely fishing. So catfish and bream
are very common in this area, but the real prize is tigerfish. The annual Barbel Run is definitely
something you should experience. Every year in September and October, the water levels drop in the floodplains,
forcing the small fish into the river, and that's when it becomes
a feeding frenzy for barbel.
17 species of fish
can be caught in the Panhandle. So the Panhandle is home
to lots of hippos and crocodiles, and to the rare sitatunga. And if you want to see birds,
this is the place. Have a look at all this papyrus. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp,
and today I found this little beauty. This is a grey foam-nest tree frog. Look how well camouflaged he is. As you can see, this guy lives in trees,
which makes them arboreal. At the moment it's quite dry out here, so how does this frog deal with the heat? In order to control its temperature,
it changes colour. The hotter it gets, the whiter he turns. One way this frog keeps himself moist
is by tucking his legs underneath himself. So, this frog is able to secrete
a waterproof cocoon, which minimises its loss of water. This frog doesn't actually urinate. It produces a uric acid,
which saves a ton of water. One of the strangest things this frog does
is that it creates a foam nest.
These frogs will always mate
while hanging over water. Several males will join one female
to create a foam nest. It can take up to seven hours
before the nest is done. So, the female lays
about 1,000 eggs in a single nest. So, the eggs hatch in the nest,
and three to five days later the tadpoles drop out
and fall into the pond.
These guys mainly feed on insects. Females can grow much larger
than the males. Have a look at his feet. He has little discs at the end of his toes
which help him climb. These guys aestivate during winter. These guys need to be careful. They are often preyed upon by birds,
snakes and mongoose. This is Nala from Machaba Camp, and one of the animals that we
always see around the camp are squirrels, so let's see if we can find one. This is a tree squirrel and they spend
most of the time in the trees, but they also go to the ground
to look for food. Squirrels are part of the rodent family, which means their teeth
keep on growing throughout their lives. There are more than 200 species
of squirrels in the world. A group of squirrels are called
a scurry of squirrels. They live between
three to seven years in the wild, but a lot of them get killed
by birds of prey, snakes and even leopards. When jumping,
squirrels use their tail as balance. [squawking] Squirrels don't hibernate, they rely on their food
they buried earlier in the year. These little guys
love to feed on termites.
Squirrel babies are born completely blind, and they depend on their mothers
for eight weeks. Squirrel families nest in the trees
and they sleep together in a hole. Squirrels feed on seeds,
fruits, insects and nuts. When squirrels are in danger,
they make a clicking noise and they flip their tail. [clicking] Female squirrels
are a little heavier than the males. Squirrels are territorial and it's mostly
the males that defend the territory. Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp, and look what we found
sleeping in our garden. The warthog gets its name
from the big growths on its head. They look like warts, but they're not. Did you know that a warthog can run
up to 55 kilometres per hour? These warthogs are diurnal, whereas
their cousin, the bushpig, is nocturnal. A male warthog is called a boar
and the female is called a sow, and then we also have the little piglets.
They sleep in burrows at night. The mummy will let the piglets go in first. Then she'll back up into the burrow,
ready to shoot out if there's any danger. You often see warthogs taking mud baths. That helps them control
their body temperature and helps them
getting rid of ticks and parasites. You see this mud on this tree, here? This is a rubbing post for warthogs. Once they've come out of their mud bath, they find a post like this
and rub themselves, and then they get rid of ticks,
mud and parasites. You often find them feeding
on their front knees because their necks are very short. We can only imagine how big this warthog
was – look at the size of the tusks! You'll notice a white tuft of hair
on the side of the piglet's face. If you look at it from a distance
it resembles a tusk, and that's what confuses the predator. They'll use their tusks
to dig up bulbs and roots.
They will use these tusks as a form
of defence against lion and leopard and even each other. Out here, warthogs are mainly
preyed upon by lions and leopards. Out here in the Okavango Delta,
warthogs will even cross water. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp,
and come look what we found today. Look at that snake basking in the sun. [♪ soundtrack plays] This is a yellow-bellied sand snake.
They grow up to one metre in length. They lay between
four to ten eggs in summer. [♪ soundtrack plays] This guy is so relaxed. [♪ soundtrack plays] The snake is active during the day
and it's one of the fastest-moving snakes. Look at this, he's really
enjoying the sun at the moment. The venom of the snake is mild
and it has no effect on humans. [♪ soundtrack plays] Oh, look, he's moving away. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I'm going to be talking about
one of my favourite animals, the banded mongoose.
The banded mongoose gets its name
from the dark bands on their backs. They are highly sociable
and live in groups. A group of banded mongoose
are called a business. [squeaking, chirping] There are nomadic little creatures,
which means they move from place to place. Their ideal home is an old termite mound because it has lots of holes that
they can easily escape if there's danger. What do banded mongoose eat? Banded mongoose eat a lot of things. I've seen them eat insects, frogs,
eggs and birds. They're so relaxed
because I spend so much time with them. If you think that banded mongoose
are quiet, think again! They chitter-chatter all day long. [chattering, squeaking] Banded mongoose
actually have a lot of predators. They've got lions, leopards, hyena,
wild dogs, birds of prey and even snakes. The litter size ranges
from two to six pups, with the group caring for the little ones.
After four weeks underground,
the pups finally come out. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today my brother, Khan,
found us something quite remarkable. So, he was moving some logs
and he found us a blind snake. Blind snakes are often
mistaken for earthworms. They look like earthworms
and are pink or grey in colour. They have smooth scales around their body,
which allows them to travel through soil. Their main food supply
are ants and termites, and that's where you basically find them. They also feed on eggs
and larvae of ants and termites. To find their food,
they taste and smell where the trail is, and then they
follow the trail to the nest. They use their top jaw as a rake, and then rake all the ants
and termites into their mouth and then swallow them whole. Out here, blind snakes get fed on by owls,
other snakes and mongoose. Above the ground,
they move in a side-to-side motion, and underground, they use insect tunnels. In order to defend themselves,
they release an unpleasant smell. Blind snakes lay one to 20 round eggs
and the youngs look after themselves. So, why are they called blind snakes? So, their eyes are reduced to small
black dots under the scale of their heads.
Blind snakes
are non-venomous and harmless. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp,
and come check what I found today. You see this little guy?
This is a bubbling kassina. It's also known as a running frog because it walks or runs,
rather than hopping. They're only about
three to four centimetres. They are terrestrial,
which means they live on the ground. They mainly live in grasslands
but they mate in shallow water. When the rainy season starts,
the males begin calling. [frogs call] A female lays her eggs one at a time
underwater on plant material. They lay up to 500 eggs. That's a lot! They mainly feed on insects. These frogs are completely
harmless to humans.
As the rains are about to start, I'm gonna head inside
and let this little guy be. Hi, guys. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp and today we're going to chat a little bit
about Buffalo. Look at this herd of cape buffalo. These guys get so big, they weigh up to a ton. A group of buffalo is also known as a gang of buffalo. Look they’re stampeding. Breeding herds like this one can be quite curious
look at them watching us. … Buffalo cows get their first calves
between the ages of four and five. Look at this guy he's covered in mud. They cover themselves in mud
to get rid of ticks and parasites. These guys can be very unpredictable and dangerous. That's
why they're also known as the Black Death. The older bulls have been kicked
out of the herd, are called Dugger Boys. Dugger is another name for mud. In the Okavango Delta these guys will often cross deep water
to get to grazing ground. The most experienced cows are known as Pathfinders. They lead the herd to the best grazing grounds and water.
Buffalos mainly eat grass. It's the bulk of their diet. These guys live from about 11 to 22 years. With the big horns, their horns join in the middle, and that's what's called the boss. They use their horns for defence. Look how alert these guys are, they’ve got to be because there are lions in the area. Lions are specialized in hunting buffalo. Do you hear all the Oxpeckers ? If you're walking in the bush
and you hear them it's a good sign
that there are buffaloes around. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I'm going to talk
about a centipede. Centipede comes from the Latin word
meaning a hundred feet. Centipedes have a pair of venomous fangs, which they use to kill their prey.
Centipedes are carnivores, they mainly feed on small mice,
insects, frogs and even snakes. They live for two to three years, with larger species
living up to five years. A centipede has
one pair of legs per segment, where the millipede has two. Worldwide, they estimate
8,000 species of centipede exist. They live on every continent,
with 10% living in southern Africa. Some species of centipede
can be harmful to humans. When bitten, it causes huge swelling
and is very, very painful. They live in moist areas. You might find them under wood,
under logs and under bark, and even under leaves. Look! Chameleon! That is cool! So, she's called a flap-necked chameleon. Chameleons don't change into any colour. They change into shades
of greens and browns. [music over speech] So, have a look at her feet. So, if you look at the chameleon's
front foot, you can see that the two nails
are on the outside, then the three nails are on the inside. But if you look at the back foot
it's completely the opposite. The two nails are on the inside,
then the three nails are on the outside.
Oh, my goodness!
I can't believe she just did that. Look how fast that tongue was! Her tongue is about
the length of her body. Ooh! Wow! She just caught a grasshopper! That was… This chameleon's eyes can move
independently, which means… So, she can see in different directions
at the same time. She'll lay between ten and 50 eggs,
which she'll also bury underground. It'll take about a year
before the eggs will hatch. Hi, guys, this is Nala and today we are at Ngoma Safari Lodge Ngoma Safari Lodge is in the north of Botswana
near a small town called Kasane. Kasane is near
the borders of Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia. Let's not forget that Kasane is the gateway to Chobe.
Did you know the Chobe National Park was Botswana's first national park? Up to today, it has one of the largest concentrations
of game in Africa. Chobe National Park is also known
as the land of the Giants. There's a reason for that. Chobe is home to Africa's largest population of elephants. Chobe is the land of the giants. The Chobe river is what it's all about. Lots of hippos, giant crocodiles, elephants and big herds of buffaloes. Chobe River is the boundary between Botswana and Namibia. After the Chobe river enters Botswana,
it changes its name 4 times it enters Botswana as the Kwando then the Linyanti and the Ytengi and finally the Chobe.
The Chobe river
finally meets the Zambezi, and off they go into Victoria Falls. And now it's your turn to come visit
and go on Safari Lodge see you in Chobe! Oh and did I mention that Chobe is
one of the best sunset views Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today we found something
quite rare. A dead giraffe. So let's go and have a closer look
to see what happened. You can see this guy
came for a drink of water then passed away due to natural causes. You can see the lines in the sand
that this guy tried to get up.
You can see how he moved his head
up and down as he was trying to get up. Look at the stick still in his mouth. He must have been feeding
before passing away. He must have died suddenly,
maybe from a heart attack. Look at the size of my hand
compared to the hooves. You can see that this is an old male
because his horns are thick and there's no hair on top. We'll come back later tonight and see
if anything has been feeding on him. It's one o'clock in the morning,
and only one hyena has come in so far. I think we're gonna let this be
for tonight and come back in the morning because this hyena is a little bit shy. So what we're getting this morning are
lots of white-backed vultures coming in. Look who else came by for a quick meal.
This is a good example
of the circle of life. So when one thing dies
it gives new life to other animals. Hey, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp. Today I'm going to be talking about
the different uses of elephant dung. We all know elephants eat a lot.
What goes in must come out. So, what do we use elephant dung for? We can actually use elephant dung
as a mosquito repellent.
All you have to do is light this dung and the smoke will keep the mosquitoes
away for the whole night. And do you know what?
It doesn't smell bad at all. An elephant only digests
about 49% of its food. Elephant dung is mostly fibre
and it can easily be made into paper. They reckon the dung of one elephant
can produce 115 sheets of paper per day. Just imagine if you're lost in the bush
and there's no water in the area. If you find fresh, fresh elephant dung,
all you have to do is squeeze it. And that might save your life. You might think
this water will make you sick, but there's very little bacteria
in the elephant dung.
Here's another great survival technique.
You open up the dung. All you have to do is pick up
the nice piece of hot coal from your fire and put it in the dung. And then you close it up and you go off. Look at how hot that coal is. The whole purpose of leaving the hot coal
inside the elephant dung is so that you can start a fire later on. Farmers have been using elephant dung
as a fertiliser for generations. At Machaba Camp, we actually use elephant
dung to fill up the holes in the road. Did you know that elephant dung
is also used in art? There's an elephant dung painting out there
that was sold for millions of dollars.
Maybe I should start painting. And then there's always my favourite
sport – elephant dung bowling! -Yeah!
-Yay! Hey, guys, my name is Nala, and today we were walking around
Machaba Camp and look what we came across. This is an Okavango hinged terrapin and she's also known
as the Okavango mud turtle. These terrapins
have a hinge for protection. The hinge closes and protects their heads. She's a very large terrapin and you can recognise her
from the yellow blotches on her face. This terrapin likes wet areas
like marshes and rivers. In October, she'll lay between
20 to 40 eggs in a hole in the ground, and then she'll gently cover it
with mud and flatten it.
She's a carnivore. She'll eat fish, frogs, tadpoles
and even birds, which she'll grab and drown in the water. Look what we found on our walk. The eggs hatch in late summer and once the hatchlings hatch,
they immediately go look for water. When they have to defend themselves, they give off a very strong, bad smell. Terrapins are semi-aquatic, which means
they live on land and in water. Just after the rains,
we see a lot of small terrapins. That's why we have to be careful
when driving through puddles. There's scars in her shell.
That could be from lion or hyena. Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I want to talk about
the hippopotamus. The hippopotamus gets its name from
the old Greek word meaning "river horse".
It's often shortened to hippo. The hippo is
the third largest land animal. Their legs may look short,
but they can run very fast – up the 30 kilometres an hour. Hippos weigh between one to two tonnes, with the males being heavier
than the females. Hippos are herbivores, and at night they go and graze on grasses. Out of the water they secrete reddish
oily droplets, also known as blood sweat. Blood sweat acts as sunscreen, controls the body temperature
and prevents infection. A male hippo's called a bull,
a female hippo's called a cow and the baby hippo's called a calf. Hippos typically live for around 45 years. Hippos can be very aggressive,
especially when they feel threatened. This is a hippo's skull.
Look at the size of it! The shape of the skull
is adapted to living in water.
Vital organs like the eyes, ears, nostrils
are all situated on the top of the skull. So, when this animal's underwater,
the vital organs are above the water. When hippos go underwater, their ears and nostrils seal shut,
stopping water from entering. The skull is massive,
but the brain case is extremely small. Incisors and the canine teeth,
they are shaped like tusks. Some can grow
more than 30 centimetres long. Hippos can open their mouths up
to 150 degrees, showing their sharp teeth. A group of hippos is known
as a pod, raft or a bloat.
When a hippo's defecating,
it flicks its tail and spreads its dung all over the place. Why do they do that?
It's to mark their territory. Within this raft of hippos
there'll only be one dominant male. Quite often when hippos fight,
one will end up being killed. When a hippo's been killed
it's often preyed upon by lions, vultures, hyena, crocodiles
and even leopards. Hey, guys, it's Nala from Machaba Camp and we're out on a game drive,
so let's see what we can find.
Wow! Look at those clouds!
We might get some rain a bit later. Oh, look! There's a leopard tortoise! Leopard tortoise shells are fused to the body,
which means they cannot live without it. As a form of defence,
they release their urine, which means that we can't pick them up
or else they might get dehydrated. Leopard tortoises nest
between May and October. Leopard tortoises live up to 80 years. A leopard tortoise is a herbivore, which means that it eats a lot of greens. Well, I guess he's going to be walking in. And… he is! That is actually really awesome! [music over speech] Leopard tortoises are solitary animals. Leopard tortoises store water
in their bursa sac. Leopard tortoises lay five to twenty eggs
in a hole in the ground. Sometimes times, leopard tortoises
eat hyena poo for calcium, which keeps their shells strong. Did you know that leopard tortoises
can swim? Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today something amazing has happened. Look up in the sky. These are African migratory locusts.
Locusts are highly mobile. They usually fly with the wind. They're pretty fast. They can reach a speed of
about 15 to 20 kilometres per hour. Locusts have two phases. One, solitary, where they live alone, and one gregarious,
where they flock together. Locusts feed on grasses,
leaves and farmers crops. So, imagine this. A million of these
equals one tonne of food. Look at this! These guys lay eggs
in nice, wet, soft soil, so I guess the Okavango Delta
is their ideal breeding ground.
The eggs take about 10
to 100 days to hatch, depending on environmental conditions. [rustling, fluttering] Swarms can travel 5 to 130 kilometres
or more in a day. This is the biggest migration of locusts
I've ever seen in my life! At the moment, there's lots of birds
and mammals feeding on these guys. This is going to provide
a world of protein to a lot of animals. This is where we'll be seeing
lots of marabous and baboons feeding on these locusts. It's a massive feeding frenzy. This is incredible to witness! There are so many of them,
they are basically blocking out the sun. This is definitely
a once-in-a-lifetime sighting. Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I'm going to talk
about millipedes. We see a lot of millipedes
after the first rains.
"Millipede" comes from Latin,
meaning "a thousand feet". In Africa, millipedes are
also known as shongololos. Shongololos come from the Xhosa and Zulu
word "ukushonga", meaning "to roll up". Shongololos protect themselves by curling
up in a spiral when feeling threatened. So, why do they curl up into a spiral? That's to protect their soft underside,
and they also do this when they die. Shongololos are some of
the oldest known land animals. Another form of defence
is to move in a snakelike motion. They're slow-moving
and feed on rotten plant material. Some of them are predatory
and will feed on insects. Shongololos are born with
only three pairs of legs, so six legs, but as they grow longer,
they add more and more legs. Shongololos are harmless to humans, but they do produce cyanide
as a chemical defence. Shongololos are dark in colour, but then you also get some
that are bright in colour. Shongololos are preyed upon
by a lot of animals – mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.
Hi, guys. This is Nala from Machaba Camp. One of our favourite activities we do
around the camp is mokoro, and that's exactly what
we're going to be doing today. This is Opie,
he's our best poler in the delta and he's going to be taking us on mokoro. Hello, everyone. A mokoro is a dugout canoe. One of the trees they used to make
mokoros from is from the machaba tree. Now we use fibreglass mokoros
to save all the trees. In the Okavango Delta, the mokoro
is still the main form of transport. Bayei tribe is the first tribe
to introduce the mokoro as transport here in the Okavango Delta. This is what we call an Angolan reed frog. Look how beautiful this reed frog looks. They do their calls during the night. Look at the leech! Let me show you
how to make a bush necklace.
Opie taught me how to do this. How beautiful is this? And it also smells good. -This was so amazing! Thanks, Opie!
-[Opie] Thank you very much… Hi, guys, this is Nala, and today we are at Ngoma Safari Lodge. Ngoma Safari Lodge
is in the north of Botswana, near a small town called Kasane. Kasane is near the borders
of Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia. Let's not forget
that Kasane is the gateway to Chobe. Did you know that Chobe National Park
was Botswana's first national park? Up to today, it has one of the largest
concentrations of game in Africa. Chobe National Park is also known
as the "Land of the Giants". There's a reason for that. Chobe is home to Africa's
largest population of elephants. Told you it's the Land of the Giants! The Chobe River is what it's all about. Lots of hippos, giant crocodiles,
elephants and big herds of buffaloes.
The Chobe River is the boundary
between Botswana and Namibia. After the Chobe River enters Botswana,
it changes its name four times. It enters Botswana as the Kwando, then the Linyanti, then the Ntengi,
and finally the Chobe. The Chobe River finally meets the Zambezi
and off they go into Victoria Falls. And now it's your turn
to come visit Ngoma Safari Lodge. See you in Chobe! Oh, and did I mention that Chobe
has one of the best sunset views? Hi, guys, this is Nala from Machaba Camp, and today I found a praying mantis. It is called a praying mantis because, at times,
it almost looks like somebody praying. Have a look at its head,
it's a perfect triangle. Did you know that they can
turn their heads almost 180 degrees on either direction? Did you know that a praying mantis
only has one ear and it's underneath its belly? Praying mantises can detect ultrasound, which helps them
when they're being hunted by bats.
To avoid being eaten by bats, they'll jump off their branch
and fall onto the floor. Other predators include birds, snakes,
frogs, spiders and even monkeys. They are masters of camouflage. Some resemble flowers,
sticks, leaves and branches. They hunt by ambushing their prey, so they must be
very patient little creatures. Do you see those little spines
on the front of her legs? Those are used to skewer their victims. These guys feed on insects,
small birds and lizards. They live around one year in the wild. Trying to act like a leaf. These guys mate only once, and the females lay
a large amount of eggs in a little case which resembles a cocoon.
When mating, the females are known
to bite off the male's head – ouch! Did you know that these guys
were once believed to have special powers? The mantis part of the name came from the ancient Greek
meaning prophet..
