Places to See Africa’s ‘Small Five’—Bet You Haven’t Heard of These!
While tourists fight for Big Five photos, I’ve spent many years tracking Africa’s most fascinating tiny creatures – the Small Five. Ever seen an ant take down its prey? Trust me, it’s more dramatic than any lion hunt you’ll watch on Netflix!
Here’s where I explain next what the small five are and where you can find them!
1. Elephant Shrew – to be seen at Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa –
Forget about their bigger namesakes for a minute. These tiny creatures, with their elephant-like trunks, can sprint at speeds equivalent to 150 mph if they were human-sized.
At Sabi Sands, they’ve got their fan club among guides who know exactly where these speed demons hang out. Head to the rocky outcrops near Singita Boulders Lodge at sunrise – that’s when these fascinating creatures do their morning sprints between rocks, hunting insects with ninja-like precision.
Best Viewing Tips:
Book a specialized walking safari
Look for them during the cooler morning hours
Listen for their distinctive high-pitched squeaks
Scan areas with scattered rocks and leaf litter
Focus on areas with dense ground cover near water sources
Watch for their distinctive bouncing movement pattern
Seasonal Tips:
Best viewed during winter months when vegetation is sparse
More active after brief summer rains
Most visible during breeding season (October-December)
2. The Ant Lion – found at Namib Desert, Namibia
Ever seen a real-life sand trap predator? Antlions are nature’s original trappers, creating perfect cone-shaped pits in the sand to catch their prey. The Namib Desert’s red dunes are dotted with these mini death traps, and watching an ant lion flip its prey into the air is better than any wildlife documentary. The best spot? The dunes near Sossusvlei, where these crafty creatures build their traps in the shade of desert bushes.
How to Find Them:
Look for small, perfectly round pits in fine sand
Visit early morning when the pits are freshly made
Carefully drop an ant near a pit (yes, really!)
Watch the lightning-fast capture technique
3. The Rhinoceros Beetle – Kruger National Park, South Africa
These tiny tanks called rhinoceros beetles, can lift 850 times their body weight – that’s like you lifting six fully grown African elephants.
At Kruger’s Skukuza Rest Camp, these mighty mites regularly show up around the lights at night, proving that size really doesn’t matter when it comes to strength. The males battle each other with their horns in miniature sumo matches that’ll have you completely forgetting about the big five.
When to Watch:
Summer evenings after the rain
Around camp lights at night
Near decomposing logs during the day
In areas with plenty of fruit trees
4. The Buffalo Weaver – find them at Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya
These social birds might be small, but their massive communal nests can weigh more than an actual buffalo! Lake Nakuru’s fever trees are prime real estate for buffalo weavers, where entire colonies create apartment-like complexes that look like something out of a bird-sized sci-fi movie. The early morning chaos as hundreds of birds renovate their homes is pure entertainment.
Viewing Hotspots:
The fever tree forests near the lake
Around the larger acacia trees
Near the park’s southern entrance
Around old abandoned buildings
5. The Leopard Tortoise at Matobo Hills, Zimbabwe
These spotted shells are the speed demons of the tortoise world (okay, that’s not saying much). But what they lack in pace, they make up for in personality. Matobo’s granite domes create perfect basking spots for these surprisingly agile creatures.
Watch them navigate massive boulders with the skill of a rock climber – they can even swim! The kopjes near Rhodes’ grave are a particularly good spot to find them sunbathing.
Finding Tips:
Early morning on sun-warmed rocks
Around water sources after rain
In grassy areas between the kopjes
Near aloe plants during the flowering season
Mapungubwe National Park, South Africa – The Full House
Want to tick off all small five in one go? This UNESCO World Heritage site is the jackpot. The diverse landscape of riverine forests, sandstone formations, and savannas creates perfect micro-habitats for all the Small Five.
The park’s walking trails are specifically designed to showcase these miniature marvels, and the guides here are passionate about their tiny charges. The recently introduced Small Five tracking course teaches you to spot and identify tracks smaller than your fingernail.
Must-Do Activities:
Join the specialized Small Five walking safari
Book a macro photography workshop
Take the early morning habitat walk
Visit during summer when all species are active
Participate in the citizen science program tracking Small Five populations
Join a night walk to spot nocturnal beetle activity
Photography Tips:
Use a ring flash for macro shots
Bring a bean bag for low-angle stability
Focus on eye level with your subjects
Morning dew adds magic to close-ups
Conservation Note: The Small Five face their conservation challenges. Climate change affects ant lion pit construction, while habitat loss impacts elephant shrew populations. Supporting parks that protect these species helps ensure their survival for future generations.
The Small Five Challenge
Do you think spotting the Big Five is hard? Try finding all these tiny treasures! But here’s the real secret – while tourists spend thousands chasing lions and elephants, you’ll discover a whole new world of African wildlife that most people never see. And trust me, once you’ve watched an ant lion snare its prey, those big cats might just seem a bit… boring!
Do you have a story to tell about the small five and have you ever seen one of them? Feel free to let me know in the comment section below or join me on my social media channels for more!
Who am I? Well, the least you can say is that I am quite crazy about Africa, its nature, its climate, its culture, and more.
As a young woman in my twenties, I had already traveled to several African countries by traveling along in an overlander on my own and mostly camping ( or glamping ) and just fell in love with the diversity of it all.
So much, so that at the age of 26, I went back to university to study biology, which, unfortunately, I couldn’t finish because of health reasons (yes, I got sick from a tropical disease, oh cynicism). But this did not stop my dream of traveling back to Africa several times, and I still do.
My dream was back then to leave Europe and go study animal behavior, especially the elephants (sure, that’s every girl’s dream haha), but I am also very much intrigued by hyenas and other “ugly African animals“.
So, I “kind of” have a little bit of a scientific approach to my articles, when I write about African birds, for example. And most of all: the passion.
But life goes on, you move from one side of the country to the other, you get sick again and top it off with lower back problems, and before you know it, you are over 50 hahaha!
Now, I still travel to Africa, but take it a bit “easier” than the good old camping days, and stay in comfortable, yet affordable accommodations, together with my husband Wouter.
These are some of the countries I have traveled to: Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Tunisia, and a little bit of Lesotho LOL .
While clearly not being African territory, but Spanish, I also visited Gran Canaria and Tenerife, and location-wise, I consider them “African”, because of their climate and nature, sue me :-p
The last trip I took was to South Africa in the year 2023, and it sure got the fevers for Africa back! From the Barberton mountains to the Drakensberg and the Southcoast, one month wasn’t enough at all to see the whole country, so we’ll be back! At ease and with a little bit more luxury than in my younger days haha!
