The Etosha National Park In Namibia

Etosha Pan & It’s National Park

The Etosha National Park is known as Namibia’s greatest wildlife sanctuary, and for many good reasons. This beautiful, yet often arid, landscape protects numerous wildlife species, including rarities like the Black Rhino, Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra, Black-faced Impala and Damara Dik-dik to name just a few. Etosha means the “Great White Place”, in reference to the Etosha salt pan, which makes up nearly 25% of this magnificent wildlife reserve.

There are 114 species of mammals in the Etosha National Park, and over 370 species of birds.

The Etosha Pan is an attraction in itself at 130 kilometers in length and up to 50 kilometers in width. It is very bear and arid, and only a few species of hardy vegetation can grow on this unforgiving part of the Etosha National Park. During the rainy season is when the pan comes into it’s own, often hosting up to 1 million Flamingoes and playing host to numerous other wading bird species. It really comes to life. In the dry season, the animals often use this ginormous area as a really big salt lick.

Why Is Etosha National Park A Bucket List Destination?

The Etosha Pan is something that I personally want to see, and I want to see how the animals survive in this environment. There are many man made waterholes that keep the wildlife happy, and during the nocturnal hours, you can watch floodlit waterholes at the rest camps, with the chance of seeing some amazing sightings. I fell in love with arid landscapes the first time I visited the Kgalagadi National Park, and I would like to see more of these arid areas, especially a huge salt pan that used to have a river flowing straight through it, making it a naturally lake – which is how it formed.

I have also really wanted to see the Damara Dik-dik and the Black-faced Impala. When I got my first mammal’s book at a young age, these 2 creatures fascinated me. What is better than visiting a bucket list destination and seeing 2 animal species you have never seen before?

I can just imagine watching Owls hunting and Lions drinking at a floodlit waterhole with the nighttime chorus in full sing. What a special place it would be to visit, and similar to the Maasai Mara, hopefully I will be able to see this, Namibia’s greatest wildlife sanctuary, one day…

* Featured image from https://www.africanoverlandtours.com/overland-africa-blog/why-i-love-etosha-national-park/