Game Reserve Teeming with Baby Animals
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We have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of baby impalas at Kariega. Impalas are one of the few antelope that give birth around the same time every year. Interestingly, about 90% of all impala lambs are born within a short three to four week period. Female impala can delay giving birth for up to a month to ensure that their babies are born after the rains, when the weather is warmer and grazing conditions are most favourable. The lambing season in the Eastern Cape is usually in early December.
Most impala are born in the middle of the day
Most impala are born around midday when their predators are resting. Another of natures amazing adaptations to try to increase the chance of survival.
Animal babies: fantastic game park experience
To add to the excitement our guests are currently enjoying an array of new babies including elephant, zebra and giraffe. It is not easy to predict when these animal species will give birth as their gestation periods are significantly longer and they do not have a lambing season like impala.
Zebra gestate for over a year (361-390 days). Once born, the foals can stand within minutes and start eating grass within a week. Female zebras stay with their mothers for their whole lives while male zebras leave to join the bachelor group at about three years old.
The gestation period of a giraffe is also more than a year, averaging between 420 and 450 days. Amazingly the mother giraffe gives birth standing up and the calf falls to the ground. It comes out with its head and front legs first. What a start to life!
One of the longest gestation periods of all African wildlife is the elephant. Elephants are pregnant for approximately 645 days or nearly two years! We have a number of recent additions to our elephant herds and they are just so fabulous to spend time while on safari.
It is so thrilling to experience baby animals in the wild. Email lindy@kariega.co.za and share your experiences and photos. We love hearing from you.
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