Introduction
The Addo Elephant National Park is located 70km north of Port Elisabeth. It protects the remnants of the thousands of elephants that once roamed the Eastern Cape from originally 16 in the year 1931 to now to around 450. That does not sound much in a park of 180,000 hectares, but I have encountered here more than in the Kruger National Park later on, where there are supposed to be more than 12,000 elephants, but in area of more than 10 times larger.
However, this does not mean anything. We were already disappointed to see no elephants at first in the morning. The ranger attributed it to the rain the previous night so that there was no need for the elephants to come to the waterholes. But we saw a lot of dung beetles, so we wanted almost to name the park after them. Finally, at almost lunch time we saw them, the elephants.
But don't be mislead. Not only elephants are living in the park despite the name. Most of the animals you can also find here including the other four animals of the Big Five: Lion, Leopard, Rhino and Buffalo. Even more than that: The Dung Beetle can only be found here. They are very interesting. They roll their egg inside a ball of elephant dung and it is very funny when they cling to it while rolling down a small hill, for example. Look up the internet for more information. Ok, now accompany me on my safari. The photos are more or less self-explanatory.
Click the small picture to get it enlarged
| Entry of the Addo Elephant National Park
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| Where are the elephants?
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| Only a jacal
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| Only a wartshog
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| A kudu looks at me
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| The kudu is not interested in me
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| The kudu is not afraid of the car
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| This impala isn't either
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| Impalas can get aggressive
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| But only against a rival in love
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| Two Zebra Crossings: Double Stop
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| The monkey is watching you that you obey
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| A sleeping lion far away
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| A buffalo grasing not so far away
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| A turtle creeping in the grass
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| A big snail resting in the grass
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| Two dung beetles and one ball
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| Only the mother climbs her baby ball
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| At the waterhole no elephants
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| Then all of a sudden: Our first elephant
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| More and more coming out the bushes
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| Coming closer and closer
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| Big elephant mama
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| followed by her youngster
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| Walking down the street
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| and then back into the bushes
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| Our guide prepares our fantastic bush braii
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| The monkey is waiting for the leftover but no way
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| A warthog again
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| and a jackal again
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| Another encounter
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| with more elephants
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| These elephant kids
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| are taking some rest
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| More elephants coming out of the bush
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| Always walking
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| while eating
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| and being not afraid to cross the road
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| Then we met a kudu again
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| and an impala in between
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| And now we see a zebra again
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| and he sees us
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| A bird on a dead tree
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| and then we see the sea
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| Two elephants meeting each other at the waterhole
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| saying hello, how are you? Have a drink with me
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| Father elephant?
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| Mother and child
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| Children are playing trunk twisting
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| or already making love rehearsing?
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| To found a family is the greatest happiness
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| and to make babies like this one, too
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Ok, that was our visit to the Addo Elephant National Park. If you want to know more about it then look up
www.addopark.com.
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