Impala
The impala is one of the most numerous species of plains game in all of Africa. They are found all over the continent, most notably Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. In fact, it’s not uncommon to see hundreds of them in a single day of hunting in certain areas.
Approximately the size of a whitetail deer, impala don’t require an extremely large or powerful rifle cartridge either. Because of all this, they are extremely affordable and impala are often the first species many hunters take in Africa.
Warthog
The warthog is an ugly-yet-charming animal that is another popular addition to almost any African safari hunt. Like the impala, the warthog is also relatively widespread and is another good animal for the first time hunter to pursue.
Warthog also aren’t especially large or tough critters and just about any popular deer or hog hunting cartridge will work on them.
Kudu
The kudu is one of the most magnificent and sought after animals in all of Africa. With their long, spiral horns, it’s not difficult to understand why a good kudu is near the top of almost every hunter’s “wish list” when hunting Africa.
While they’re also pretty widely distributed, they aren’t quite as common as impala or warthog. Kudu most inhabit thickly wooded areas of Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe (among other places).
Zebra
Due to their distinctive appearance, the zebra is perhaps the animal most commonly identified with Africa. In particular, plains Zebra are extremely common and are found in hunting areas and national parks across virtually all of eastern and southern Africa.
Their hides are highly sought after on trophy hunting safaris because of their beautiful color pattern of black and white stripes (which are better camouflage than you would think).
Blue Wildebeest
Blue Wildebeest are a large and extremely tough species of antelope. Blue wildebeest are sometimes referred to as the “Poor Man’s Cape Buffalo” due to their ability to soak up bullets with little effect.
Inhabiting a wide swath of Africa that encompasses Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe, blue wildebeest are grazing animals that live in herds that are sometimes as large as thousands of animals.
Eland
With big bulls weighing in at over 2,200 pounds, the eland is the largest antelope in the world. They are even bigger than a Cape buffalo (though much less dangerous). Even though they are so massive, the eland is surprisingly elusive and a big bull eland can be a very difficult specimen for a trophy hunter to obtain.
Cape Buffalo
The Cape buffalo has a well-deserved reputation for being a tough, aggressive, and dangerous adversary. Of all the members of the big five (cape buffalo, elephant, rhino, lion, and leopard), cape buffalo are by far the most commonly hunted. Indeed, cape buffalo are perhaps the most satisfying animal on the entire continent to hunt, and that’s really saying something.
Since they can be so dangerous, and since a buffalo normally costs so much more than most other game animals, I don’t recommend them for a first-time hunter to Africa. However, they should still be on your wish list for that return trip. Just make sure you’re appropriately armed for that hunt because they’re called dangerous game for a reason!
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