WILDLIFE FACTS

Kenya Big 5: Named by hunters as the 5 most difficult animals to Hunt. Some needed to tell them “Pictures only Boss”

Lion – Simbo on Safari Kichwa
African elephant- Ndovu
Cape Buffalo – Nyati on Safari Mbogo
African leopard – Chui On Safari Ya Juu ( roughly translates as can in the trees )

White/Black rhinoceros – Kifaru On Safari Pembe

The wildebeests, also called gnus or wildebai, are a genus of antelopes, Connochaetes. They belong to the family Bovidae, which includes antelopes, cattle, goats, sheep, and other even-toed horned ungulates. Connochaetes includes two species, both native to Africa: the black wildebeest, or white-tailed gnu, and the blue wildebeest, or brindled gnu. Fossil records suggest these two species diverged about one million years ago, resulting in a northern and a southern species. The blue wildebeest remained in its original range and changed very little from the ancestral species, while the black wildebeest changed more in order to adapt to its open grassland habitat in the south. The most obvious way of telling the two species apart are the differences in their coloring and in the way their horns are oriented. In East Africa, the blue wildebeest is the most abundant big game species and some populations perform an annual migration to new grazing grounds 

but the black wildebeest is merely nomadic. Breeding in both takes place over a short period of time at the end of the rainy season and the calves are soon active and are able to move with the herd. Nevertheless, some fall prey to large carnivores. Wildebeest often graze in mixed herds with zebra which gives heightened awareness of potential predators. They are also alert to the warning signals emitted by other animals such as baboons.

  • Elephants are the largest land animals in the world.
  • The largest elephant on record was an adult male African elephant. It weighed about 24,000 pounds and was 13 feet tall at the shoulder!
  • Elephants can live to be over 70 years old.
  • Only one mammal can’t jump — the elephant.
  • The average weight for an elephant heart is about 27 to 46 pounds!
  • Elephants have highly developed brains and are the largest of all land mammals. The brain is 3 or 4 times larger than that of humans although smaller as a proportion of body weight.
  • Elephants have a slow pulse rate of 27. For a canary, it is 1000!
  • An elephant’s skin is an inch thick.
  • Elephants have poor eyesight but an amazing sense of smell.
  • At the age of 16, an elephant can reproduce but rarely has more than four children throughout her lifetime. At birth, an elephant calf weighs about 230 lbs
  • Elephants have the longest pregnancy of all the animals. It takes a female 22 months from conception to give birth.
  • Elephants purr can you order Ambien online like cats do, as a means of communication?
  • Elephants prefer one tusk over the other, just as people are either left or right-handed.
  • Tusks are an elephant’s incisor teeth. They are used for defense, digging for water, and lifting things.
  • Elephants have four molars, one on the top and one on the bottom on both sides of the mouth. One molar can weigh about five pounds and is the size of a brick!
  • The elephant trunk has more than 40,000 muscles in it.
  • Elephants waive their trunks up in the air and from side to side to smell better.
  • The elephant’s trunk can sense the size, shape, and temperature of an object. An elephant uses its trunk to lift food and suck up water then pour it into its mouth.
  • Elephants cry, play, have incredible memories, and laugh.
  • Elephants can swim – they use their trunk to breathe like a snorkel in deep water.
  • Elephant feet are covered in a soft padding that helps uphold their weight, prevent them from slipping, and dull any sound. Therefore elephants can walk almost silently!
  • Elephants use their feet to listen, they can pick up sub-sonic rumblings made by other elephants, through vibrations in the ground. Elephants are observed listening by putting trunks on the ground and carefully positioning their feet.
  • Elephants are highly sensitive and caring animals. if a baby elephant complains, the entire family will rumble and go over to touch and caress it. Elephants express grief, compassion, self-awareness, altruism, and play.
  • Elephants have greeting ceremonies when a friend that has been away for some time returns to the group.
  • Elephants have large, thin ears. Their ears are made up of a complex network of blood vessels that regulate an elephant’s temperature. Blood is circulated through their ears to cool them down in hot climates.
  • An elephant is capable of hearing sound waves well below our human hearing limitation. The far-reaching use of high-pressure infrasound opens the elephant’s spatial experience far beyond our limited capabilities.
  • Elephants are social creatures. They sometimes “hug” by wrapping their trunks together in displays of greeting and affection.
  • Elephants pay homage to the bones of their dead, gently touching the skulls and tusks with their trunks and feet. when an elephant walks past a place where a loved one has died, he/she will stop dead still; a silent and empty pause that can last several minutes.
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Check Our Reviews

Tripadvisor

Voyage794821
Voyage794821
2023-09-13
Helpful and considerate arrangements by Best Camping. Imraan and his staff were helpful and considerate with all the arrangements for our large group that had travelled from India. This includes any last minute changes that sometime happens when you are a large group. We all sincerely thank you Best Camping for making our safaris in Masai Mara memorable and enjoyable.
sharad bhalekar
sharad bhalekar
2023-09-13
Mesmerizing Tour I am a wildlife enthusiast and i keep on traveling. It was one of the best experiences I had with BEST CAMPING TOURS & SAFARIS. The staff especially Micheal ,Mohammed & Perer were fantastic in taking care of us in an unknown territory. We appreciate their personalized care and efforts to show best possible wildlife experiences. The camp site was in the middle of the forest which gave us unique experience and saved traveling time to reach to happening areas. As far as food is concerned, Chef Tony never let us feel that we are outside India. I was overall a mesmerizing experience which we will definitely would like to repeat in future. Special thanks to Micheal for his efforts to find out names of different birds and responding to our all sorts of stupid questions during the safari.
Shana N
Shana N
2023-09-04
Tout était parfait Un voyage incroyable, un séjour fait sur mesure. Notre guide Rafael a été encore plus haut que nos attentes, un guide hors pair qui nous a permis de voir absolument tous les animaux que l'on pouvait voir dans la savane. Sa gentillesse et son expertise ont rendu notre séjour inoubliable. Je recommande Best camping les yeux fermés
Adventure631023
Adventure631023
2023-09-03
Maasai Mara safari A year later from our last trip and Imraan and his drivers have once again delivered a first rate experience. We stayed at Fig Tree camp and as usual the staff there are exceptional. All the big 5 seen and our driver was very receptive to our needs as a family. With Best camping you have the addition of Imraan’s personal touches. He will accommodate your needs for the journey. Read up on the area before you go and Best Camping will ensure you explore lesser visited areas of the park and discover some hidden gems.
Farrah
Farrah
2023-08-30
Amazing!! Amazing experience at Masai Mara! Best Camping efficiently catered to our needs so we were able to combine staying at the campsite with one night at a luxury tented camp. The whole team was friendly and welcoming. Staff at the campsite made fresh delicious meals for us each day. Our jeep driver was knowledgeable and made sure we were able to see lots of animals during our game drives. They even sorted our accommodation in Nairobi as well as airport transfers. Exceptional service indeed!
Marco C
Marco C
2023-08-27
Safari 5 days of Masai Mara, Amboseli and Tsavo Safari absolutely perfect! Nothing to say more, I strongly suggest. Marco
parapia
parapia
2023-08-21
Safaris Excellent Safaris.Well done Imran.Great drivers.Very knowledgable. Imran always available to help. Good accomodation and food.
liakat ali p
liakat ali p
2023-08-20
Safaris Amazing trip to Masai Mara and the ark.Imran is always there to help.Good acomodation and food.Knowledgable driver.
Harm H
Harm H
2023-08-14
Best Camp really IS the best 7th trip with best camp. Fantastic all over again. They are strongly recommended.imraan is always there in the background.
@BBarbara
@BBarbara
2023-07-23
recommendation It was excellent. Everything went smoothly thanks to their organization. They made sure we saw as much as possible.

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Nabs Damji
Nabs Damji
2023-09-07
We had a wonderful experience on our safari! The booking experience was seamless, and the safari itself was amazing! Lucas was an excellent driver & guide! Highly recommend!
Shibu Cyriac
Shibu Cyriac
2023-09-01
Extremely overwhelmed by the experience we had with Best Camping tours .we were well taken care of during our stay . Really appreciate Imran’s prompt responses to address our queries and concerns not only during our stay there but right from the time we decided to plan for this trip . He was always in touch with us and we were assisted at every step whenever required which made us feel ‘ a home away from home’ . Friendly and well experienced guide who was with us throughout our stay at Masai Mara camp, made us feel comfortable through his friendly and understanding behavior. All over great experience and I strongly recommend Best Camping tours to all those who are looking forward for a visit to Kenya .. Thank you Best Camps for your remarkable services !!!
Kai O'Donobhan
Kai O'Donobhan
2023-03-12
I did a 8 day safari, and could not reinstate how happy I am that I chose Best Camping Tours and Safari. I wanted to do a trip around Kenya that provided me with the most local experience, alongside being able to witness as much of the country as we could throughout our holiday. Imran was always available over call, and listened to what we wanted out of our trip and organised a personalised experience that exceeded our expectations – Imran helped us on a scale beyond the scope that we would have expected from him, including preparation for the trip. We went across Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Lake Elementaita and Amboseli (before ending the safari and exploring Mombasa, which Imran also kindly helped with). Mo accompanied us on the trip across the 4 reserves – I was very impressed by his knowledge of each national reserve, which was clear as we drove through. His expertise in the national reserves provided us with the opportunity to see the big 5 (which is very rare), alongside breath-taking views of 5+ cheetahs. Mo’s expertise enriched our overall experience significantly. Each accommodation (including the unique experience provided at the local Masai Mara site) was fantastic, and truly made this one of the best trips of my life. I could not recommend Best Camping Tours and Safari further, if you would like a safe, reliable experience of Kenya with local coverage to make the most out of each natural reserve.
Mike Guest
Mike Guest
2022-12-03
5 stars isn't enough for the level of service that Imraan provides. Right from booking he was there for any questions, making sure we had everything worked out and even making suggestions we hadn't thought of. The tour he arranged for Masai Mara was amazing and our driver Ben was equally great! He always seemed to know where to stop for the best view and it didn't matter how long we did or didn't want to watch or take pictures. Sometimes you meet someone for business and when you're done, that's the end of it and then sometimes you're lucky enough to do business with someone you consider a friend...and that's Imraan and the rest of his crew!
baptiste pilloix
baptiste pilloix
2022-10-30
Super accueil, Imrann est attentionné, nous a beaucoup aidé pour nos premiers jours à Nairobi. Le safari s'est déroulé à merveille, avec un guide passionné, le tout pour un prix correct. Je recommande vivement !
Punita Agarwal
Punita Agarwal
2022-08-31
Just finished a 9 day tour with Best Camping tours....our experience was phenomenal. Everything was well taken care of. Our driver knew a lot about the Amborsili and Masai Mara parks and the jungle and that was a great help in spotting the animals. The owner Imraan takes personal care of all your needs and that reflects in his staff too. All in all, an unforgettable experience .
Laura Langlois
Laura Langlois
2022-07-05
I am so glad that my daughter and I chose Best Camping. We have had the most fantastic time. Everything went smoothly every step of the way. Imraan is a wonderful, kind and professional organiser who truly went out of his way to give us an outstanding experience and unforgettable memories. He arranged 7 days of safaris for us from Tsavo West to Amboseli to Lake Naivasha and on to the Masai Mara, as well as numerous transfers, both in Mombasa and Nairobi. The accommodation he recommended (with options to upgrade if we wanted) was perfect: Kilaguni Serena (Tsavo), Sentrim (Amboseli), Sopa (Naivasha) and finally, my favourite, Olgatuni Camp (Masai Mara). Our driver, Marco, was truly excellent and looked after us so well. He was very knowledgeable about the wildlife and environment and I really enjoyed talking with him about Kenyan culture. Pricewise, I was delighted by what Imraan offered us. Our budget was relatively limited, but everything was of a very high standard and I could not have wished for more. I had done a lot of research before booking and seen the huge variety of prices, services and accommodation proposed. Imraan's suggestions suited us perfectly, and what really convinced me was his quick communication, his friendly, helpful attitude, his extensive knowledge and his understanding of our needs. I recommend Best Camping wholeheartedly,  whether you are first time visitors to Africa or have already travelled around this wonderful continent. Finally, I want to thank Imraan and his wife, and Marco, for making our visit so marvellous.
Konstantinos Utmost
Konstantinos Utmost
2022-06-27
Imraan was very organizes with us and helpful!! Thank you for all!!

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