15 Items Tagged

Destination Southern Africa

Elephants, such as these in South Africa's Kruger National Park, are highly social—and loud.

Can We Track Elephants With Earthquake Detectors?

Low-cost seismometers could give rural communities an alert system, or begin to decipher elephant communication.

Robin George Andrews February 8, 2021

<em>Circellium bacchus</em>, a rare subspecies of dung beetle, is a scarab like no other.

The Outsize Allure of South Africa's Flightless Dung Beetle

In Addo Elephant National Park, the smallest residents may be the biggest draw.

Sandra MacGregor March 4, 2020

It's an aye-aye surprise! Madagascar's battiest lemur is the only primate with four thumbs.

For the Madagascan Aye-Aye, the Rule of Thumb Comes in Two

The extra digits are yet another of the odd animal's oddities.

Isaac Schultz February 19, 2020

The rocky escarpments of Karoo, South Africa. Roughly 183 million years ago, this area was part of the supercontinent Gondwana.

When South Africa Was Home to the 'Firewalkers' of Karoo

The reptilian critters may not have survived, but they made sure to sign off feet first.

Isaac Schultz January 29, 2020

During wet periods, a thin sheen of water coats the salty expanse of the Etosha Pan.

The Transformation of Namibia's Etosha Pan, From Parched to Soaked

Satellite images track the shift from dry to wet at a vast, prehistoric lake bed in southern Africa.

Jessica Leigh Hester January 22, 2020

In gallery forests, sohisika may attain a height of around 60 feet and a diameter of about three feet.

How Four Madagascar Villages Battled a Blaze to Save Their Trees

Two hundred men and women fought to protect the last wild sohisika trees.

Erik Vance January 1, 2020

On December 10, 2019, the waterfall was a trickle, not a cascade.

World-Famous Waterfalls May Slow to a Trickle, But Tourism Doesn't Have To

When climate change comes for attractions like Victoria Falls, visitors can find new ways to appreciate them.

Jessica Leigh Hester December 13, 2019

A South African Couple Has Turned Elephant Dung Into Award-Winning Gin

Luke Fater November 21, 2019

One fossil depicts a near-perfect circle in the sand, with a point in the center.

Are These Markings in South Africa the World's Earliest Sand Sculptures?

It depends on whether a natural process could explain them.

Sabrina Imbler October 11, 2019

Baby loggerhead turtles, newly hatched in South Africa.

Found: Fossilized Tracks of Baby Sea Turtles in South Africa

Prehistoric squee!

Sabrina Imbler September 4, 2019

A serval, captured by a camera trap, stalks Secunda.

Why a South African Petrochemical Plant Is Like Catnip to Servals

The wildcats are an example of resilience and adaptation.

Sabrina Imbler August 2, 2019

Rova workers preparing to harvest Malagasy caviar.

Africa’s Only Caviar Comes From a Lake in the Highlands of Madagascar

Three French entrepreneurs want to put the island-nation on the luxury food map.

Sabrina Imbler July 8, 2019

So thirsty!

The Thirsty Beetles That Capture the Fog

In the Namib Desert, slaking thirst is a slow process.

Jessica Leigh Hester April 23, 2019

That's one groovy drumlin.

These Namibian Hills Are Holdovers From an Ice Age

They reveal that ice was once speeding through southern Africa.

Matthew Taub February 6, 2019

The river-based expedition team on the Cubango River.

In Angola, Conservationists Make the Case for a Massive New National Park

Newly stable countries are hotspots for wilderness protection.

Dan Nosowitz January 15, 2019