Okavango Delta

The Okavango River is born in the sandy highlands of Angola and fed by summer rainfall, and from there it surges southeastward towards the Kalahari desert. Prohibited from joining the sea by an ancient tectonic trough, the river instead reaches across parched sands, broadening into a vast inland delta system. The resulting seasonal wetlands attract wildlife from miles around, creating one of Africa’s greatest concentrations of wildlife, and one of its most diverse. The big five game animals—lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino, and elephant—are present, as well as 125 other recorded species of mammal, 482 species of birds, 64 reptiles, 89 fish, and more than 1000 plants (Source: UNESCO). Many of these (such as cheetah, rhino, wild dog, lion, and at least 24 species of birds) are globally threatened but thriving locally. All of the Delta’s inhabitants have synchronized their biological processes and migrations with the pulse of the seasonal, life -giving floods.

Many thanks to the gracious Jao Reserve for the invitation to experience this stunning landscape!