Experience Africa’s Wildlife On My Wild Africa

November 30th, 2020

WildlifeDirect continues to bring award – winning documentaries to Kenyans every Sunday at 5:30 PM EAT via Citizen TV. The films provide viewers with the opportunity to learn more about Africa’s majestic wildlife and nature.

In November, viewers had the pleasure of being taken on a journey through the wilderness of Southern Africa and the Indian and Atlantic Oceans discovering more about desert landscapes, lions interacting with elephants, how zebras and ostriches survive in the desert and the world of sharks. The documentaries showcased the tactics it takes to survive in the harsh deserts of Kalahari and Namib.

African Nostalgia

Narrated by a wildlife photographer, viewers get to explore the wild landscape of Africa and meet different animals in Southern Africa through his lens. The photographer encounters black  rhinos and zebras and giraffes who have formed a collaborative relationship where they rely on each other for protection against predation. Along a river, viewers get to learn about hippos which spend most of their time in groups with dominant males. We also learn why the elephants of Namibia are often smaller than other elephants found in Africa as they consume grass with significantly lower nutrients. They also often go for long distances in search of water ponds where they drink and relieve themselves of the strong Kalahari sun. The film took us through how the different wildlife and plant species thrive despite the circumstances found within the dry Kalahari Desert.

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Sharks; The Big Five

Sharks play an important role in the ecosystem, as apex predators, they maintain the species below them in the food chain and serve as an indicator for a healthy ocean. In this film, viewers dived into the oceans and met the big five of the underwater realm in all their majesty and might. First they meet the Great White shark who are often feared since they are believed to attack man. However, research shows that Great White Sharks may not be interested in humans. The film featured the largest fish in the world, the Whale Shark, which can measure up to 14 meters long and live up to 100 years. Whale Shark ecotourism is worth millions of dollars worldwide with many small communities benefit financially.  Next comes the  Basking Shark, the 2nd largest living fish which is slowly reducing in number despite being protected in British waters. Other sharks featured in the film include the Scalloped hammerhead sharks, Tiger Sharks and Bull Sharks.

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Lions and Giants on the Edge

Viewers were introduced to the  great pride of Savuti led by Induna the lion as they hunt the elephants in their pride of 40 lions in Botswana. When drought hits the Savuti plains, the Serondela herd of Elephants is forced to move to lion territory. Through Tandi, the matriarch, we observe how matriarchs influence elephants’ behavior and decisions which keeps them away from danger and teaches the herd how to care for their offspring. The lions follow the Serondela herd in close proximity as they head towards the Chobe river. Tandi follows a route she has not used in 20 years as they seek water. The film takes us through the lions which hunt elephants.

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Dust and Stripes

In this film, viewers followed the extraordinary lives of nearly 20 000 plains zebras as they try to survive in the arid saltpans of Botswana’s Makgadikgadi Pans only by the grace of isolated summer rains. The plain zebras at Makgadikgadi pans have a tight harem structure where a group of females is associated with one male. The females in the harem are not all related; they are all from different natal harems. The reason for these harems is mainly for protection. Viewers learnt about parenthood and survival in the harem where the zebras get pregnant while on the Makgadikgadi pans then travel for thousands of kilometers in search of food and water then coming back to the pans to give birth.

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Ostrich; A Life on the Run

In this film viewers follow a story about the gamble that ostriches at Kalahari and Namib desert make every year in order for their chicks to hatch in time for the rains in order to survive. This story of love and parenthood starts with a male ostrich who attracts female ostriches through his speed and dances into his harem. The film took us through the life of a chick from the egg. Ostrich egg shells are tough enough that they can withstand the ostrich weight and shiny white to reflect the sun away so that they don’t cook. Ostriches typically eat plants, roots, and seeds but will also eat insects, lizards, or other creatures available in their sometimes harsh habitat. The chicks forage around looking for dry leaves and any insect they could find. Sometimes ostriches have to leave behind their weak chicks in order to save the other chicks and if the rains don’t come, they lose all chicks.

We thank our donors for their generous contribution towards the series. We also look forward to a continued partnership with Citizen TV Kenya to bring My Wild Africa films to Kenyans. Tune in every Sunday at 5:30 PM EAT for more intriguing wildlife and nature films about African wildlife and landscapes. Let us know if you have watched any of the films and what you loved about the film.