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Wildlife Books: What to take with on a Safari Holiday

Even after years of working in the bush, experienced safari guides (field guides) will often take books out with them and this is why even if you have been on safari many times and know your African wildlife, I would suggest taking some wildlife books with you.

What books that you take will depend on what you already know, your interests what you want to know. There is no point in having a guide to the behaviour of African mammals if this is your first visit to Africa and may struggle with antelope identification let alone their behaviour and what it means!

Your safari guide will point out what what you are looking at and be able to answer any questions that you may have, but even so I feel that having it in front of you in writing always helps it to sink in. You can then also look back in the evening as to what exactly you spotted that day and it also helps with naming your photos when you get back home!

In a nutshell, safari and African wildlife books will make your holiday much more interesting and rewarding. And so for this article I will take a look at what books you should take on safari holiday, based on your experience and interests.

First Time Safari, New to African Wildlife:

Ok, so this is your first time on safari and in the bush in Africa. Pretty much everything you see and hear will be for the first time, that not only includes the animals, but the birds, trees, flowers, grasses and even the tracks (spoor) made by the animals. It can and probably will seem overwhelming at first and that is why, unless you are an expert in a certain field, I would go for basic identification books, just so that you can place a name and image to what you are looking at.

Rather than getting separate mammals and bird books and possibly a tree book, for the beginner I would suggest getting a more general book about all the common things you may encounter on your safari. This will help cut down on your luggage and it may actually be easier to identify "that bird on that tree" in your book if you are only looking through the most common species, that is unless you happen to be looking at a rare bird!

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African Wildlife Safari Books

The books below make excellent quick reference books for the identification of African wildlife and so are great books to take on your first safari or if you want a quick reference to information of the wildlife that you are viewing. They often include all the mammals you are likely to see as well as the most common birds, reptiles, flowers, trees and even insects.

Field Guide to Larger Mammals of Africa	The Wildlife of Southern Africa: A Field Guide to the Animal and Plants of the Region	East African Wildlife (Wildlife Guides)
Highly Recommended The book concentrates on the more visible and easily distinguished larger mammal species, plus some of the more frequently seen smaller mammals. In all, over 400 color photographs, combined with concise, pertinent information highlighting the diagnostic features of each species, provide a comprehensive source of information on each mammal. To aid the reader, color-coding and symbols indicating the habitat and activity period serve as a quick reference to the various mammal groups.	Southern Africa: Illustrated field guide to the birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, insects, fish and plants of Southern Africa all in one compact volume. While necessarily condensed, it features 2,000 illustrations and short descriptions of each species including habitat and range. With contributions by experts and good color plates. A nice overview for even the keen naturalist. For example, it covers over 600 of the 900 species of birds found in the Southern Africa region. Perfect if traveling to South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia.	East Africa: The wildlife of East Africa and the legendary game reserves of Serengeti and the Maasai Mara. This new guide provides a colourful overview of the region's variety of large animals together with information on their habits and habitats. The book also provides an excellent introduction to the region's less heralded variety of smaller creatures including 1,500 bird species and butterflies. It features over 240 photographs illustrating all major animal groups, and country-by-country summary of key wildlife sites. It covers the wildlife of Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.
Buy on Amazon.co.uk	Buy on Amazon.co.uk	Buy on Amazon.co.uk
Buy on Amazon.com	Buy on Amazon.com	Buy on Amazon.com

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You Know your African Wildlife:

If you know a little more and possibly have been in the bush many times, there is always more to learn and you will find that the more you learn the more interesting everything becomes. Even if you are a wildlife expert, the learning will never stop. What books to get will depend on your level of knowledge and your interests, so I have broken the best ones into categories below:

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African Mammals Books

Great books on African Mammals, perfect if you are looking for more than just an identification guide.

The Behavior Guide to African Mammals Including Hoofed Mammals, Carnivores, Primates	The Safari Companion: Guide to Watching African Mammals	Field Guide to the Mammals of Southern Africa
Highly Recommended The Behavior Guide to African Mammals is as different from a conventional field guide as motion pictures are from a snapshot. Whether we are able to look at them face to face, on television, or in the hundreds of illustrations provided here by Daniel Otte, this guide allows us to understand what animals do and what their behavior means. Drawing on his own extensive fieldwork and on the research of many other scientists, Richard Estes describes and explains the behavior of four major groups of mammals. Estes's remarkably informative guide is as up-to-date for the zoologist as it is accessible for the interested onlooker.	Highly Recommended Possibly the best field guide to observing and understanding the behavior of African mammals and an indispensable tool for anyone traveling to Africa. The Safari Companion enables you to recognise and interpret visible behavioral activities, such as courtship rituals, territorial marking, aggression, and care of young. Each account includes a behavioral table in which the unique actions of the hoofed mammals, carnivores, and primates are described for easy reference. In addition, useful maps show the major national boundaries, vegetation zones, and game parks as well as tips on wildlife photography, a list of organizations working to protect African wildlife, and advice on where and when to see the animals.	More than just a field guide, this is the definitive photographic guide to the mammals of southern Africa. Standing in contrast to guides that emphasize only Africa s larger mammals, it covers the diversity of small mammals: golden moles, sengis, hedgehogs and shrews, bats, hares and rabbits, and rodents. Including major biotic zones, mammal identification, conservation and management in Africa. Mammal families and subfamilies, color-coded to facilitate their location within the text. Identification is based on 470 excellent photographs emphasizing distinguishing features, along with 275 distribution maps. The 350 species accounts cover description, distribution, habitat, behavior, food, and reproduction.
Buy on Amazon.co.uk	Buy on Amazon.co.uk	Buy on Amazon.co.uk
Buy on Amazon.com	Buy on Amazon.com	Buy on Amazon.com

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African Bird Books

I have used many of the best known bird books, any of the ones below are the ones I highly recommend:

Sasol Birds of Southern Africa	Newman's Birds of Southern Africa	Collins Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa
Highly Recommended Features an advanced technique for improved field identification, and an extensive taxonomy featuring corrected misidentifications and recorded species splits that have occured since the previous edition. Uupdated names based on recommendations of the International Ornithological Committee and name hyphenations. The guide features distribution maps that feature dual shading to show relative abundance of a species in the region, as well as crosses to indicate occurances of vagrants.	Highly Recommended The eighth edition of this popular Southern African birding book has been updated to incorporate the information obtained since the previous edition relating to the birds of the region. The user-friendly design makes it ideal for use in the field, with aids such as colour-coding of major bird groups, running heads at the top of each page to indicate which family of birds is being described, large page numbers for easy reference and large accurate paintings which reflect the bird as it is seen in the field.	The Collins Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa, is an excellent book if you are visiting any of the countries in this this spectacular birding region, including Kenya and Tanzania. Review: 'This is by far the best available guide to the birds in this region, but has one major drawback - virtually no migrants from Eurasia are illustrated.'
Buy on Amazon.co.uk	Buy on Amazon.co.uk	Buy on Amazon.co.uk
Buy on Amazon.com	Buy on Amazon.com	Buy on Amazon.com

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Beat About The Bush

Below are the books in the excellent series of Beat About the Bush books by Trevor Carnaby. They sit in between identification and academic texts, by answering the general everyday questions that safari guides (field guides) often get asked out in the bush. they are perfect for anyone who wants to take their wildlife viewing just that one step further than just identification. Answering questions like 'What is the fastest bird?', 'How does the trunk of an african elephant work?', 'Why do some bird sit on animals?' and 'Why do Cattle egrets follow large mammals like elephants?'

Book Review

For more, read my book review on the Beat About The Bush Birds Book.

Beat About The Bush: Birds	Beat About The Bush: Mammals	Beat About The Bush
Highly Recommended The Beat about the Bush Birds Book delves into the fascinating lives of birds - discussing in detail their myriad forms, survival strategies, breeding and feeding behaviours, movements, migrations and vocalisations. The result is a comprehensive reference work in a style that appeals to novices, birders, twitchers, tourists, bush enthusiast and field guides alike	Highly Recommended Sitting between basic mammal guides and extensive academic texts, this resource answers everyday questions about mammals in the African bush in an understandable fashion that will appeal to safari tourists, bush enthusiasts, and professional safari guides. With verything from how an elephant's trunk works to why the blue whale is not a fish, it is a must-have for anyone wanting to know about the mammals of Africa.	More comprehensive than a field guide yet more accessible than an academic text, this authoritative reference answers fundamental questions about mammals and birds in the African bush such as How does an elephant's trunk work? Is the cheetah really the fastest animal? and Why do some bird species sit on animals? Photographs, charts, and tables accompany the question-and-answer format, making this all-in-one guide user-friendly for both wildlife enthusiasts and professionals.
Buy from Amazon.co.uk
Buy from Amazon.com

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General Wildlife Book Tips:

Area Specific
It is important if you can, find books that are as specific to the area of Africa that you are traveling to. So for example if your safari holiday is in Kenya, the Mammals of Kenya and Tanzania or even the Mammals of East Africa will be much better then African Mammals. This is probably even more important for bird books.

Bird Pictures in Bird Books
Most of the best birding books tends to have illustrations of the birds rather than photos. This may seem strange, but the illustrations can accentuate the small differences in similar species that a poor quality photo of birds that you often find in birding books that contain photos rather than illustrations.

Where to Buy African Wildlife and Safari Books
I have found that Amazon to be the best place to get most books, unfortunately they do not always stock all the African wildlife books. Other alternatives include buying them in the country when you arrive, this helps with having to carry them on the outward flight and you often see good wildlife books for sale in the Airports, they can however be a little pricey. Another alternative is many of the upper market lodges have a small shop that will sell relevant books, but again these will be much more expensive than buying them on-line from Amazon and you can't count on your lodge having a shop (unless you ask). A good place to look for cheaper versions of books is on ebay, I have found books that people obviously used on safari and now no longer need (how can that be!), just try and make sure that they are not too out of date.

So in summary I would first try Amazon or other on-line book shops first before you travel, then the Airports or towns that you may visit before going on safari and only as a last resort, buy from the lodge itself.

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Country and Area Specific Books (Travel Books)

Apart from the bush and it's wildlife, I feel that it is really important to get a feel for a country and it's people. You will, even if you stay at your lodge be meeting the people from that country who work at the lodge and so wouldn't it be nice to know a little more about them and their customs. Another bonus is that may of these books will contain a section on the most common species of wildlife you may encounter on your trip. I would stress though that these should not be your only wildlife book as this section really covers more than the very common species and usually on takes up a few pages of the book.

..coming soon!

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What to Take on Safari

This page is part of a series of posts on what to take on safari, for further reading try:

• Safari Binoculars
• Best Digital Cameras for Safari Holidays
• African Safari, Travel & Wildlife Books
• Safari Clothing Advice
• Safari packing list of what to take on safari

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