Along the Linyanti fault line, there are varied woodland habitats and ancient floodplains, making the Linyanti an essential complement to a Botswana itinerary. These landscapes host abundant wildlife including the world’s highest densities of elephant in the dry winter months.
There are no fences here, so the animals move freely between the reserves and the national parks. During the dry season, when concentrations of elephant and buffalo are very high, the permanent water of the Kwando-Linyanti riverfront is a big attraction. Near the water you’ll also find plenty of red lechwe, impala and sometimes sable antelope. Meanwhile, in the riverine forest and on the plains, wildebeest, kudu, zebra, baboon, warthog, giraffe and tsessebe are common. Further from water, the highlights of the drier forests are herds of eland and roan antelope.
The predators are numerous: lion are everywhere, whilst leopard favour the wooded areas in more broken country and cheetah prefer open plains. Wild dogs range throughout these reserves, and in the last few years there have been several dens in these areas. The dogs are relatively easy to follow when hunting across the open plains.