Photographing Africa’s ‘Big Five’

Wazzup Pilipinas!?


Surrounded by a sea of wildlife, we eye the horizon for giants.

Our open-topped Land Rover stops by the banks of Lake Magadi inside Tanzania’s famed Ngorongoro Crater. Pronounced ‘en-goro-engoro’, the 12-mile wide caldera is a solid contender for the greatest wildlife destination on Earth.

With our motley array of cameras, we have vowed to photograph – blurry or not – Africa’s Big Five. Coined by trophy hunters during the Victorian era, the Big Five are supposedly the deadliest animals in Africa – the lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros and Cape buffalo (no question about the last one). Though hunting is still allowed in parts of the continent, most visitors will only ever shoot with shutters, not triggers.

Soon after descending down the crater, we encountered prowling lions, stately elephants and inscrutable, mud-encrusted Cape buffalo.

As our Rover lurches to a halt, I clutch my lucky scarf to ward off dust and the late afternoon chill. Ngorongoro stands at an altitude of 6000 feet – as tall as many Philippine mountains. Its foreboding crater walls rise another 2000 feet in all directions, hemming in almost 30,000 large animals – from crafty packs of hyena to skittish herds of antelope.

Unlike the sprawling Serengeti Park where animals move back and forth to chase the rain, Ngorongoro’s wildlife have lived contentedly inside the caldera for millions of years. “The animals can actually climb up those slopes, but with ample supplies of grass and water, why would they leave?” explains Ray Shirima of Top Climbers Expeditions, an outfitter which also guided us to the summit of Africa’s highest mountain, snowcapped Kilimanjaro.

 

This afternoon’s quarry is the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), rarest of the Big Five. A potent blend of outdated beliefs and human greed caused the global population of these horned giants to plummet by 98% from 1960 to 1995. Almost 9000 African rhinos were killed for their horns from 2006 to 2015 alone, with Vietnam as the world’s top consumer.

Their horns – which can grow three feet or longer – are coveted as trophies and medicine. A 16th century Chinese pharmacist named Li Shizhen claimed that the horns, when ground as a tea, “Can cure hallucinations, carbuncles, headaches and possession by ogres and devils.”

In reality, rhinoceros horns are mostly made of keratin, so if you want all the benefits claimed by Li Shizhen, then just chew your fingernails.

Fortunately, anti-poaching drives and rigorous conservation have allowed black rhinoceros populations to recover from an all-time low of 2500 animals to almost 6000 heads today. The conservation organization where I started out, WWF, jumpstarted the global conservation movement by protecting black rhinos in 1961. My own organization, Best Alternatives, works to dent the rhino trade by pushing for environmentally-sound alternatives to wildlife products, such as keratin pills.

“Over there, beside the elands,” says Ray, pointing at a cluster of either very still buffalo or big rocks.

After a few moments, I finally discern two giants grazing alongside a herd of motionless buffalo. Black rhinos. Two of them, one with its tail up. Slowly, I raise my battered camera and snap blurry photos of the magnificent animals. The pictures – definitely not magazine-quality – are merely for proof, the moment forever seared into my memory.

The day’s mission accomplished, our Land Rover climbs the caldera rim en route to our campsite. The Savannah Gods have blessed us with four of the Big Five in one afternoon. Enough adventure for one day.

“Responsible tourism is the key to keeping our animals alive. If people keep visiting our national parks, then there will always be strong incentives to keep poachers away,” explains African wildlife guide Joseph Laiza.

That evening, the forest ringing our camp erupts with the symphony of life. Baritone elephant growls, haunting baboon barks and defiant lion roars meld seamlessly with human laughter. Wildlife pilgrims come to Africa’s Garden of Eden to see the uncensored spectacle of nature, to see how life was long before we started transforming our planet. A last glance at the crater miles below and I retire for the night, praying that Ngorongoro and many of the planet’s wild places stay this way, forever.

Stealthiest of the Big Five is the leopard (Panthera pardus), a camouflaged ambush predator which waits for hours to sneak up to spring-heeled antelope like gazelle and impala. To protect its kills from roaming hyenas, lions and jackals, it hauls kills up trees, where it spends most of its time. This one was spotted by our expert guide, Ray Shirima in the adjoining Serengeti National Park. It was lazily basking on a tree, curiously watching our every move.

Known as Black Death, Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) are considered the most unpredictable and dangerous of the Big Five, said to pretty much be unstoppable when enraged. Nothing short of a direct heart shot will drop them as their thick skulls and horns are rock-hard. By moving slowly and mindfully, I was able to approach and photograph quite a few of the giant grazers at close range.

Stealthiest of the Big Five is the leopard (Panthera pardus), a camouflaged ambush predator which waits for hours to sneak up to spring-heeled antelope like gazelle and impala. To protect its kills from roaming hyenas, lions and jackals, it hauls kills up trees, where it spends most of its time. This one was spotted by our expert guide, Ray Shirima in the adjoining Serengeti National Park. It was lazily basking on a tree, curiously watching our every move.

I saw this southern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum simum) grazing beside Lake Nakuru in neighboring Kenya. Next to the African elephant, it is the world's largest land mammal. Largely due to conservation efforts, populations of the southern white rhino are hanging on. Sadly, populations of the northern white rhino have been completely decimated due to poaching. Northern white rhino are now extinct in the wild, prime examples of why we need to protect the world’s endangered species. 

The King of Beasts and Africa's most famous animal, lions (Panthera leo) hunt alone, in pairs or as a pride. Simba, the name of our hero from The Lion King, is the Swahili word for lion. In olden times, man-eaters were rightfully feared: in a nine-month period in 1898, two male lions killed as many as 135 people in the Tsavo region of Kenya. Lion attacks are now exceptionally rare, with less than 50 recorded attacks in the past century.

Typical open-topped Land Rover trundles slowly along a well-maintained dirt track inside Ngorongoro Crater. The crater rim, which rises 2000 feet, can clearly be seen at the back. Africa’s wildlife safaris are usually highly-organized, with well-tended roads, campsites and lodges. For those interested in going on an African safari, contact Ndurumo Safaris and Top Climbers Expeditions to get started. September through November are fine months to go, especially since two million migrating wildebeest shall brave the deadly Mara River, crossing from Kenya to Tanzania. 

Filipino explorer and environmentalist Gregg Yan spent several weeks on the African continent, visiting numerous national parks and communities to document wildlife, scapes and indigenous cultural practices. Read more of his adventures online. 

Cover Photo:

African bush elephants (Loxodonta africana) are the world's largest land animals, reaching nearly 12 feet at the shoulder. Though many herds have been decimated by poachers for their ivory tusks, over 400,000 of these gentle giants are still hanging on in the National Parks and Game Reserves of Africa. Readers can help save them by getting in touch with nonprofits like WWF.

written by Gregg Yan