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Spekboom Tented Rest Camp

Fauna and Flora

The main game area of the Park is home to the Big Five as well as antelope such as red hartebeest, eland, kudu, common duiker and grysbok. Spotted hyena and Burchell’s zebra occur as well as warthog, vervet monkey, bushpig and small mammals. About 250 bird species occur in this area of the Park.

Vegetation

Spekboom Tented Camp is located within the Spekboom Hide which contains a pristine piece of Albany Thicket. Once known as Valley Bushveld, the Albany Thicket biome was not recognised as a biome on its own until relatively recent times. It has a unique vegetation structure dominated by thorny, semi-succulent shrubs, often in impenetrable stands, interspersed with some small trees. The distinctive clumps of vegetation thrive from the activity of animals. Termite mounds, earthworm activity, mole rat colonies and aardvark burrows – all help increase the organic content of the soil.

Albany Thicket is the predominant vegetation type in the Addo Elephant National Park, occurring in the Darlington and Kabouga sections, the Kuzuko Contractual Area, and along the coast. Rainfall can occur at any time of the year as this area in the park is a climactic transition zone between the all-year rainfall zone in the west and the summer rainfall zone in the northeast.

There are various types of Albany Thicket that occur in Addo and the type of thicket found here is Sundays Thicket:, the predominant type of thicket in the Park. It is tall, dense thicket with many shrubs sporting spines (thorns); a wide variety of lianas (climbing plants) occur. Spekboom (Portulacaria afra) becomes more dominant in the more arid areas; aloes, tree euphorbias and small trees such as boerboon (Schotia afra), cabbage tree (Cussonia spicata) and sneezewood (Ptaeroxylon obliquum) occur.

Nocturnal Animals

A night in the Spekboom Hide is an ideal time to spot nocturnal animals in the game area and at the waterhole.

Look out for:

  • aardvark,
  • aardwolf,
  • porcupine,
  • small-spotted genet,
  • striped polecat, scrub hare, s
  • pringhare and
  • small-spotted cat.

Animals such as elephant, black rhino and kudu are also active at night, feeding and drinking from waterholes. Predators such as lions, leopard and spotted hyena are active during the cooler night time when they hunt for prey. Small predators and scavengers such as black-backed jackal, caracal and bat-eared fox are also active. Common night birds include spotted eagle owl, fiery-necked nightjar and spotted thick-knee.

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  • Is also home to one of the densest African elephant populations on earth

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