OWSDT

Duma Tau Camp Specials

 

DumaTau means 'roar of the lion', yet it is its high concentrations of elephant and outstanding wildlife in general for which it is renowned. Located close to the source of the Savute Channel, in the vast Linyanti Concession in northern Botswana, waterways around DumaTau Camp lure a plethora of wildlife - particularly in the dry winter months.

 

 

The rooms are spacious, raised off the ground and under thatch with canvas walls - allowing guests to enjoy the night sounds of Africa from the comfort of their rooms. The bathroom facilities are en-suite, with hot and cold running water. Each room has an additional outside shower. There is a dining room, pub, lounge, plunge pool and a special guest toilet with a fantastic view.

 

 

The region has all the habitat diversity to make it a haven for wildlife. Activities are diverse and allow guests time on the water, on land and occasionally on foot. Day and night game drives are conducted in open 4x4 vehicles along the Savuti Channel and the banks of the Linyanti River. There are many hides in the area where guests can enjoy wildlife viewing close up and away from a vehicle. One of the best hides is right at the source of the Savuti and many species of game and birdlife can usually be seen from this hide.

 

The area is famous for its elephant concentrations in our winter months and for the great game viewing all year. Huge herds of elephant congregate in winter along the waterways and lagoons - and at the waterholes that are located along the Savuti Channel. Towards the end of these dry months sable and roan antelope can be seen in the Mopane woodland. All the predators - lion, leopard, cheetah and wild dog - feast on the prey species in the area, including impala, zebra, giraffe, wildebeest, lechwe, tsessebe and other game.

• 90% game drives, 10% water activities.
• Land game drives in open 4x4 Land Rovers - the camp has 4 x 10-seater Land Rovers, maximum of seven guests per vehicle.
• Night drives
• Game walks and hides
• Motorboat, 1x6-seater (no mokoro)
• Fishing

NG 15 - The Linyanti Wildlife Reserve

The 125 000-hectare (308 000-acre) private Linyanti Concession bordering Chobe National Park's western boundary is an enormous, wildlife-rich area, shared between just three small camps (DumaTau, Kings Pool and Savuti Camp), which creates an unrivalled atmosphere of remoteness and space.

There are three main features of the Linyanti Concession: the Linyanti River, the woodlands of the interior and the well-known Savute Channel, famous as a sporadic and unusual watercourse. The Savute Channel last flowed in 1980; today it is an open grassland and home to a wide variety of animals. With two-thirds of the Savute Channel located in the concession, Wilderness Safaris guests have private and exclusive access to its abundant game.

These three features together with the floodplains, woodlands, grasslands, palm islands and scrub vegetation of the area harbour one of the densest dry season concentrations of elephant in Botswana - at times the Linyanti must have several thousand elephants roaming around. This phenomenon is one of the main attractions for travellers to northern Botswana, but the area is also important in holding good numbers of predators, providing an integral stronghold for species like the critically endangered wild dog, as well as lion, cheetah and spotted hyaena. The roan antelope found in the area can provide an equal thrill however, as can the high concentration of birds of prey, seasonal zebra congregations and the cathedral-like woodland of mature mopane trees.

Aside from roan, other plains game includes red lechwe, Burchell's zebra, blue wildebeest, impala, common waterbuck, sable, eland, southern giraffe, chacma baboon, vervet monkey, warthog, hippo and Cape buffalo. Nocturnal species often seen are lesser bushbaby, spring hare, aardwolf, serval, large spotted genet and if you are extremely lucky the elusive pangolin!

Birding is outstanding here ranging from the Okavango specials, such as Slaty Egret, Hartlaub's Babbler, African Skimmer, Allen's Gallinule and Wattled Crane, to the drier mopane woodland species like Racket-tailed Roller, Bradfield's Hornbill, White-breasted Cuckoo-shrike, Bennett's Woodpecker, Swallow-tailed Bee-eater and Arnott's Chat. This area is also excellent for Kori Bustard, Ostrich, Secretarybird, and Ground Hornbill with Southern Carmine Bee-eaters in summer. The Savute Channel is famous as an area with a high concentration of eagles and raptors and this area is internationally recognised as an IBA (Important Bird Area), particularly for birds of prey like Dickinson's Kestrel and waterbirds. There are also various owl species to be seen here such as Verreaux's (Giant) Eagle-Owl and African Scops-Owl.

The many varied habitats within these areas - marshes, waterways, riverine forests, dry woodlands and grasslands - and the prolific and diverse wildlife and spectacular scenery together form a wonderful contrast to the Okavango. Adding this area to a Botswana itinerary makes for a varied and balanced experience of the country and in many ways it is an essential complement to a visit to the Okavango.

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