Savute Wildlife - Savute Travel Guide

Savuti dry season.



Wildlife of Savute

Savute is a place that undergoes dramatic changes to its environment at unspecified intervals that are dictated by the forces of nature. The Savute Marsh is fed the Savuti channel which in turn is supplied by the Linyanti swamp to the north.

Once a dry season haven for a multitude of wildlife, the Savute now is a place to which animals migrate in the wet summer months. One of Africa’s last land migrations happens with the coming of the rains when thousands of zebra move from the northern regions of Chobe and Linyanti into the lush grasses of the marsh.

Predators and elephant killing

Savute is renowned for its predator interaction – the enmity between lions and hyenas was first recorded here – and it is in Savute where the drama of the elephant-killing lions happens. A pride of lions in the area has adapted to preying on adult elephants.

But Savute is far more than predators and bloody encounters. For many Savute does not have the intrigue of other places in Botswana as it is often a dustbowl and the game can be sparsely distributed. It is in this very facet that Savute is legendary. Despite the dustbowl the region still supports incredible wildlife.

One of the fascinating aspects of Savute is the presence of hundreds of bull elephants that winter in the area. It is not unusual to see 50 + of these gentle creatures at a waterhole at any one time. During the dry winter months breeding herds of elephants are a rarity in Savute due to the lack of water but in the wet summer months they move into the area.


Savuti dry season.
Page: 2 The wandering hippo
An incident I was witness to in Savute indicated how animals behave in times of stress. A hippo wandered into the Savute area and took up residence in one of the Savute waterholes – at a time when the waterhole was dry. Wildlife officials ...