The waterways of the Okavango Delta teem with Africa’s iconic wildlife especially during the dry season.
Question: Where in the world is this watery paradise of islands and wildlife that’s in the middle of a desert?
Answer: The Okavango Delta, Botswana
The Okavango is one of Africa’s many extraordinary places. Here, the Earth’s most majestic wildlife call home and the most endangered species survive. And yes, you read that right—this wonderland of 150,000 islands, marshlands, and waterways is in the middle of the Kalahari Desert.
Want to Learn More About This Destination?
ReelEarth: God Lives in the Zambezi
Meet a traditional healer from Zimbabwe’s Mpisi Village, and learn how he uses tree roots and water from the Zambezi River to treat his patients.
How is possible for such a watery haven to be located inside of a desert? While the Kalahari Desert doesn’t receive much rain (its name in the local Tswana language means "great thirst"), lots of rain falls further north in the Angolan highlands. This drains south into the Okavango River and each year from March to August the river delta swells to three times its size. So much water flows that the dry desert ground cannot absorb it all, and the delta grows to more than 5,700 square miles of wetland.
Not only is it a rarity to find a wetland of this size in the middle of a desert, it is even more unique as its annual flooding occurs during the desert’s dry season. At this time, about 260,000 thirsty animals flock to it like a massive watering hole.
During all seasons, however, the Okavango teems with diverse flora and fauna. Large mammals including hippos, elephants, lions, giraffes, zebras, antelope, and leopards all roam. Endangered black and white rhinos and African wild dogs survive in populations as low as the single digits. There are also more than 400 species of birds including the rare Pel’s fishing owl—one of the only fish-eating owls in the world.
In order to preserve this magical region for generations to come, Botswana’s government puts limits on the number of camps and visitors here. Quiet and uncrowded, the Okavango is an ideal location to view Africa’s greatest animals undisturbed.
5 More Fun Facts about the Okavango Delta:
- The Okavango is the largest inland delta system in the world. Unlike most other deltas, it does not flow into the ocean or sea.
- In 2014, the Okavango Delta was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its unique climate and endangered species. It became the 1,000th UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- In 2013, it was announced as one of the one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa. Other natural wonders in Africa include the great wildebeest migration, Sahara Desert, the Red Sea coral reefs, and Mount Kilimanjaro.
- Animals aren’t the only inhabitants of the delta. There are five ethnic tribes who have fished, farmed, and hunted in the region for millennia.
- One of the traditional ways to get around is by mokoro canoe, which were conventionally carved out of tree trunks. Today they are made out of more environmentally-friendly fiberglass. Water-based safaris in these vessels are common in the delta.
Seek out wildlife in the Okavango Delta during our Ultimate Africa: Botswana, Zambia & Zimbabwe Safari adventure.
