More Than The Big Five Game Animals in South Africa’s Reserves

Days 76-77, 2025 Grand World Voyage

Friday and Saturday, March 21-22, 2025; Richards Bay and Durban, South Africa.

South Africa isn’t just all about the wildlife, but that’s a big part of the draw. And it never disappoints.

While dozens of groups were leaving the ship yesterday and today on overland safaris, I sought out hippos, crocodiles and monkeys during day tours from each of our first two South African ports.

Final count (estimated): 4 dozen hippo ears, about 18 noses; 1 crocodile; 7 species of monkeys, lemurs and other primates, mostly high in leafy trees. But it’s not all about the numbers. I enjoyed an hour or so floating through the iSimangaliso Wetlands and a trek along dirt paths through the Hidden Forest.

Yesterday morning I heard the whirl of a helicopter, signaling the arrival of our port pilot. Almost all ports require local pilots, who traditionally board from a boat, bringing their local harbor knowledge. Recently the practice of boarding pilots by helicopter has grown. Last year our pilot departed by helicopter in Durban, South Africa, and this year she arrived from the air in Richards Bay. Yes, she. Richards Bay reports 50 percent of their pilots are women. The deck area was closed to passengers so I didn’t get a photo.

Once we docked, our ship’s excursion group headed north from Richards Bay along the coast for about an hour to the quaint village of St. Lucia. The nearby iSimangaliso Wetland Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site known its hippopotamuses (hippopotami?). The tour also advertised crocodile sightings, but we just saw one briefly as our boat moved slowly through the wetlands.

Hippos are more closely related to aquatic mammals than to pigs, despite the resemblance to the latter. They spend their days cooling off in water or mud, going ashore at night to eat grass. We mainly saw the backs of small groups, as they can stay underwater for as long as six minutes.

But they rewarded our patience by slowly lifting their heads, showing ears, eyes and occasionally noses.

One suddenly swished its tail….

… and I was fortunate to catch another one yawning – as least that’s what I call it.

Today we awoke in Durban, also in the South African province of KwaZulu Natal, the home of the Zulu.

Having previously spent a few days overland on a safari, I passed on visits to see the typical South African elephants, lions, giraffes and zebras. My goal was monkeys, which we found at Monkeyland-KZN, the largest free-roaming multi-species primate sanctuary in Africa. Also known as the Hidden Forest Wildlife Sanctuary, it is a home for previously captive primates who once lived in zoos or even as pets.

As we set off on a dirt path through the forest, the Capuchin monkeys were the first to appear. They were slightly curious, but obviously used to visitors.

Farther up in the trees, two ring tail lemurs were waking up.

As we trekked a mile or so, we came across a small antelope called a duiker, black and white ruffed lemurs and vervet monkeys.

Finally, our guide spotted two black howler monkeys sleeping high in a tree. And suddenly the forest exploded with sound, as some vervet monkeys sounded an alarm – perhaps spotting an eagle, our guide said. All of the others added to the racket, but it was the deep and loud groan of the howler monkeys that continued for several minutes.

When I later perused the photographs I took on my Panasonic Lumix FZ80, I was disappointed. It has served me well on earlier safaris, offering a 60x optical zoom, while not the fastest lens or best sensor. Today in the dark forest, many of my photos were grainy and out of focus, as the camera chose to focus on the leaves and not the monkeys. My iPhone generally is my only camera, but I bring along my Lumix for its zoom. I’ll have to think about whether I want to invest in something better for the few times I want more zoom than the measly 5x my iPhone offers.