Thanks to the diversity of habitats, you have an opportunity to view a large variety of game populations which move through the region and are present to a greater or lesser degree all year round, but with the advent of the summer rains (end of November to April) the desert truly comes to life.
Short grasses sprout in the pan systems and fossil riverbeds, attracting a plethora of plains game such as springbok and gemsbok which converge in their hundreds and thousands to graze. Wildebeest, steenbok and red hartebeest join in the feast, and all these are followed in turn by predators such as lion, cheetah, and jackal. This is complemented by lush green landscapes and floral displays.
Outside the wet season, the Kalahari is more typically a dry desert-type system, when game viewing moves into the vegetated dunal belt and pan systems surrounding the valleys. General game which you can still easily see includes gemsbok, springbok, red hartebeest and steenbok as well as their predators such as lion, one of the highest concentrations of cheetah in southern Africa, leopard, brown hyena and even caracal.
Small predators also found here are black-backed jackal, meerkat (suricates), Cape fox, honey badger and a myriad mongoose species.
About 220 bird species have been recorded to date.
Together with guided game drives in the local area, visits to Deception Valley or even longer excursions are well worthwhile as the wildlife moves to different parts of the Park.
Short grasses sprout in the pan systems and fossil riverbeds, attracting a plethora of plains game such as springbok and gemsbok which converge in their hundreds and thousands to graze. Wildebeest, steenbok and red hartebeest join in the feast, and all these are followed in turn by predators such as lion, cheetah, and jackal. This is complemented by lush green landscapes and floral displays.
Outside the wet season, the Kalahari is more typically a dry desert-type system, when game viewing moves into the vegetated dunal belt and pan systems surrounding the valleys. General game which you can still easily see includes gemsbok, springbok, red hartebeest and steenbok as well as their predators such as lion, one of the highest concentrations of cheetah in southern Africa, leopard, brown hyena and even caracal.
Small predators also found here are black-backed jackal, meerkat (suricates), Cape fox, honey badger and a myriad mongoose species.
About 220 bird species have been recorded to date.
Together with guided game drives in the local area, visits to Deception Valley or even longer excursions are well worthwhile as the wildlife moves to different parts of the Park.