South-West Africa

When first visited by Europeans, South-West Africa was swarmed with game in unusual number and variety, and the land was a veritable hunter’s paradise. Lions were a constant source of trouble to travellers even long after the middle of the last century. Elephants roamed the country in big herds, and for some years, in the ’seventies and ’eighties, the trade in ivory from Damaraland was considerable, many thousands of pounds worth being brought to the coast for export each year. The black rhinoceros was common. The rare animal known as the white rhinoceros, R. simus, was also found. As stated in a previous chapter, the first giraffe’s skin ever sent to Europe from South Africa came from Great Namaqualand in 1763. The buffalo, the quagga, and the zebra abounded, and the ungainly hippopotamus could often be seen plunging and splashing in the lower reaches of the Orange River. But the larger game has been steadily driven to the north and the north-east, where the elephant, the rhinoceros, and the hippopotamus may still be found among the nobler South African fauna, partly as a result of protective measures adopted by the Government authorities. The Caprivi territory may be regarded as the big game reserve of the country.

Among the beasts of prey the lion is still found, but only on the lonely Kalahari border, in the Kaokoveld, and in the far north. The leopard, felis pardus, commonly called the “tiger,” exists in many parts of the country, and is not by any means a pleasant beast to encounter. The beautifully-marked cheetah, Cynoelurus jubatus, is sometimes found on the eastern slopes. The red lynx, felis caracal, the Dutch “rooikat,” with the typical tufted ears and short tail, is fairly numerous. Among the enemies of the stock farmer are several species of jackals; the powerful spotted hyena, H. crocuta, the Dutch tiger-wolf; and the destructive African wild dog. The wild dogs hunt in packs, and, as they will pull down anything from a lamb to an eland, they do a great deal of damage.

The antelopes are well represented. The eland, the largest of all antelopes, roams the eastern border districts, with the noble koodoo, strepsicerous kudu; the sable antelope, hippotragus niger; the roan antelope, hippotragus equinus; the fierce blue wildebeest or brindled gnu, connochoetes taurinus; the handsome oryx, or gemsbok, oryx gazella; and occasionally the giraffe. The giraffe and the oryx have also been observed on the western plains, and the zebra exists in the Kaokoveld, north of the Namib.

Large herds of springbuck, gazella euchore, roam the inner plains of the Namib and the open, treeless country to the east. The Waterbuck, kobus ellipsiprimnus, is found in the vicinity of the northern rivers, while the little Damaraland antelope, nanotragus damarensis, may be seen at rare intervals in the mountain fastnesses near Omaruru. Among the smaller animals are the fecund steenbuck; the charming little klipspringer, oreotragus saltator, the “chamois of South Africa”; and the solitude-loving duiker, cephalolopus grimmi.

In the order Rodentia there are several hares. The Cape hare, lepus capensis, an animal a little smaller than the English hare, is found both in open and forest country; the rock hare, lepus saxatalis, is a little larger, and keeps to the hilly country; the spring hare, Pedetes capensis, is really a rodent, and this peculiar creature, which lives in burrows, has a queer kangaroo-like method of progression, using its long bushy tail with great skill. The flesh of all these hares makes good eating.

That strange creature, the ant-bear, or Dutch aard vark, orycteropus afer, which lives entirely on ants and termites, is responsible for a good deal of damage caused by its burrowing habits. This animal is confined entirely to Africa. Among other typical African animals are the porcupine; the dassie, or rock rabbit, hyrax capensis, which very much resembles the guinea-pig in shape; and one or two species of meercats.

The Birds

Game birds are fairly numerous. The largest bird is of course the ostrich, which runs wild in many parts of the country. A considerable trade was done in ostrich feathers from Damaraland for many years; shooting of the birds has been wisely prohibited under the German administration. Ostrich-farming has been attempted on a small scale.

There are several species of bustard, notable among them being the big kori bustard, or Dutch pauuw, Otis kori, which sometimes stands as high as 5 feet and weighs 40 pounds; and one of the lesser bustards known as knorhaan, Otis afra, whose irritating, harsh craak is all too familiar to the South African sportsman when stalking his game. The guinea-fowl represents the pheasant tribe, and these fine sporting birds are very numerous in North Damaraland and parts of Ovamboland. The so-called Namaqua pheasant is really a francolin partridge, while the well-known Namaqua partridge is a sand grouse, Pteroclurus namaquus. Soon after sunrise the sand grouse are seen high in the air in immense flocks, coming from all parts of the compass to gather around the vlies or pans where they drink. When hunted in the veld they rise well to the dog and provide excellent sport. It is a much more difficult matter, however, to flush the bustard or the guinea-fowl. Several species of snipe and quail are found, but they are not numerous.

The wild goose, or Egyptian goose, Chenalopex aegyptiacus, one of the most edible of the South African game birds, with several species of wild duck, frequent the watercourses. Herons, storks, ibises, flamingos, and spoonbills are among the wading birds; the flamingos are often in large numbers in North Damaraland and Ovamboland.

Eagles and vultures are among the birds of prey, with owls and several species of the hawk family. The Secretary bird, Serpentarius secretarius, with its curious quill-like crest of feathers, may sometimes be seen stalking in characteristic solemn fashion among the low bush in search of a little animal or a young snake. Those queer birds, the penguins, with their black coats and white waistcoats, thickly inhabit the islands off the coast. The gannet, the smaller cormorant, with the penguin, have been protected by the Cape Government on account of their importance as yielders of guano, and immense flocks exist to-day.

Among the smaller birds are the wattled starling, Dilophus carunculatus, two pratincoles, Glareola melanoptera and G. pratincola, all locust birds, which pursue their prey high in the air, wheeling and darting and turning in wonderfully attractive fashion; hoopoes, honey-guides, swifts, woodpeckers, hornbills, and weavers. The honey-guide (Indicatoridæ) is a most interesting bird. Its intelligence is as remarkable as its pertinacity, and it will give the sportsman no rest until he has followed the twittering creature to the bees’ nest. The remarkable-looking hornbills, with their huge bills, very soon attract the attention of the traveller. The social weaver, Philetaerus socius, is famous for its peculiar nest-building habits. The birds are sociable little creatures and live together in colonies of several hundreds. The nest, really a bird city, is generally a huge mass of grass and sticks, cunningly arranged in a camelthorn tree, and is often as big as a small haystack. A colony of 500 birds may sometimes be found in the nest. The entrance is from beneath as a protection against tree snakes, and there are generally several “doors.” Inside there are a number of “streets” and “compartments,” with individual nests in rows like little homes on each side of a street. The nests are added to year by year, and sometimes they become too heavy for the branches, with the result that the branches give way and the “city” falls to pieces.

The Snakes

The reptile world is represented by a number of exceedingly venomous snakes, but fortunately they are not numerous, and deaths from snake-bite are of rare occurrence. There is the ferocious cobra, one of the most deadly snakes in South Africa, of which there are several species. Anchietas cobra, Naia Anchietæ, attains to an average length of 5 feet, and the well-known Cape cobra, Naia Flava, is about the same length. These reptiles are as active as they are venomous.

With the characteristic hood raised and eyes glittering with fierce anger, an enraged cobra is a fearsome sight. A couple of drops of its venom are quite sufficient to kill a giant. The Ringhals cobra or Spitting snake, Sepedon haemachates, is not quite so long as its cousin, but is highly venomous and very ferocious when roused. The name “ringhals” means “ring-neck,” and has reference to the whitish band or bands across the throat.

Not only has this reptile the power to inflict a deadly bite with its poison fangs—it is able to spit a stream of venom into the eyes of a person standing some feet away. Dogs and calves are often blinded in this way.

The puff-adder, Bitis arietans, is an important member of the viper family. This flat-headed, repulsive-looking creature, with its thick, dark-brown body, is highly venomous and exceedingly dangerous, as it coils up and lies quite still in the open until touched or roused. Although extremely sluggish in nature, it lunges with amazing rapidity. When its warning hiss is heard a hasty retirement is expedient. Among the other dangerous adders are the Night adder, Causus rhombeatus, which lays eggs; the small Peringuey’s adder, Bitis Peringueyi; the queer Hornsman or Horned adder, Bitis cornuta, which has two or more erect horn-like scales over each eye, like little horns; the West African adder, Bitis gabonica, which will bury itself in the sand for hours, with only the head visible; the Berg adder, Bitis atropos, which keeps to the mountain regions; and the Oviparous adder, Atractaspis bibronii, which is rarely found, since it burrows in the sand after the manner of the blind burrowing reptiles.

All the snakes mentioned above belong to the front-fanged variety, which are all poisonous. The back-fanged snakes are more or less poisonous. These include in South-West Africa the Herald or Red-lipped snake, Leptodira hotambaeia, with a speckled body, glossy head, and red upper lip; the Whip snake, Psammophis jurcatus, a thin brown reptile with a brittle tail; the Spotted Schaapsteker, Trimerorhinus rhombeatus, well-known, too, on the Karroo; the small Damaraland many-spotted snake, Rhamphiophis multimaculatus; the Dapple-backed sand-snake, Psammophis notostictus; and the Namaqualand sand-snake, Psammophis trigrammus.

None of these back-fanged reptiles are to be greatly dreaded; they will rarely attack a person; but it is not wise to take liberties with them. Even a snake will turn.

All the solid-toothed snakes are as harmless as worms, and may be freely handled. Quite a number of these are found in the country. The remarkable egg-eating snake, Dasypeltis scabra, has a highly-specialised egg-breaking mechanism. A sawing apparatus in the backbone serves the purpose of teeth. The egg-shell is cast up after the contents have been sucked down. There are several species of the small Coppery snake; one or two of the House snake, of the genus Boodon, often found near dwelling-houses. House snakes can easily be tamed, and they may become more useful than cats, and much less harmful.

The non-venomous python is found occasionally in the rocky valleys. Anchieta’s python, P. anchietæ, is the only species. This reptile has an average length of about 16 feet, and kills all its victims by constriction. The female python lays her eggs and then hatches them like a broody hen.

The dreaded scorpion is also a habitat of the country. Tortoises are found. Swarms of the migratory locust cause much damage when they descend upon the vegetation. Among the smaller but not less troublesome creatures are the many beetles, spiders, ticks, and mites.

In the coast waters the ungainly seals have their home, and off Cape Cross they are found in very large numbers. Whales are not so numerous as in former years, but several whaling stations are in existence along the shore. Altogether, South-West Africa has an uncommon variety of individuals in the animal world.