Kings Pool – Hippo, Leopard tortoise, Monitor lizard, Red Lechwe, Warthog
Because of all the water hippos were more numerous than at the previous lodges and could often be heard. They spend the day practically submerged except for ears, eyes and nose but emerge at night to graze on the land if necessary at a considerable distance from the water. On two occasions I did see one by daylight and they could also be seen with the use of a spotlight when returning from the evening drive in the dark.
Besides the ‘big five’ (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino) there is also a little five being animals with partly the same name (ant lion, leopard tortoise, elephant shrew, etc.). We spotted one of these, the leopard tortoise, and also another reptile, a large monitor lizard in the reeds by the river. Red Lechwe could be seen in this habitat and warthogs enjoyed the opportunities for mud-baths as much as the elephants.