Challenge

River Giants of Africa

Q: Where is the best place to see River Giants of Africa?

Akagera National Park. In Akagera National Park, Rwanda, the chance of seeing all 4 (hippo, nile crocodile, elephant and fish eagle) on the same day is about 30%, the highest of the 27 parks where all of them live, and over a three-day visit it rises to about 90%. Next come Lower Zambezi National Park (about 20% a day), South Luangwa National Park (about 20% a day) and Murchison Falls National Park (about 20% a day). It multiplies each animal's daily chance, as if they were independent, so read it as a rough guide.

Q: Which of River Giants of Africa is hardest to see?

Nile crocodile. In Akagera National Park, the best park for River Giants of Africa, about about 70% of wildlife watchers report the nile crocodile on a given day, against about 80% for the hippo. The hardest one decides how many days you need.

Q: How do you complete River Giants of Africa on Wallace's Line?

Mark them as seen. Tick ✓ Seen on each animal's card, add your trips, or link your iNaturalist account. Your passport counts River Giants of Africa three ways: anywhere in the world, all in one park, and all in a single trip.

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The checklist: 4 animals

Hippopotamus amphibius

Daily sighting probability ~80% · Very likely

Crocodylus niloticus

Daily sighting probability ~80% · Very likely

Loxodonta africana

Daily sighting probability ~90% · Very likely

Haliaeetus vocifer

Daily sighting probability ~80% · Very likely

Where to go

Chance of seeing in

Month by month at Akagera National Park

~80%

Jan

~30%

Feb

~90%

Mar

~90%

Apr

~90%

May

~50%

Jun

>90%

Jul

~90%

Aug

~20%

Sep

~90%

Oct

~90%

Nov

~90%

Dec

Time of day

Where they are recorded most Parks with some of them Cities with some of them

Parks

#	Park	Country	Animals	All 4 in 3 days
1	Akagera National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	4 of 4	~90%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
2	Lower Zambezi National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	4 of 4	~90%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
3	South Luangwa National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	4 of 4	~90%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
4	Murchison Falls National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	4 of 4	~90%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
5	Liwonde National Park	🇲🇼 Malawi	4 of 4	~80%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
6	Kafue National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	4 of 4	~80%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
7	Mana Pools National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	4 of 4	~80%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
8	Queen Elizabeth National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	4 of 4	~80%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
9	Chobe National Park	🇧🇼 Botswana	4 of 4	~80%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
10	Selous Game Reserve	🇹🇿 Tanzania	4 of 4	~70%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Bush Elephant			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
11	Kruger National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	4 of 4	~70%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
12	Moremi Game Reserve	🇧🇼 Botswana	4 of 4	~70%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
13	Ruaha National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	4 of 4	~60%
	Common Hippopotamus			~80%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
14	Gonarezhou National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	4 of 4	~60%
	Common Hippopotamus			~70%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
15	Pilanesberg National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	4 of 4	~50%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
16	Hwange National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	4 of 4	~50%
	Common Hippopotamus			~80%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
17	Meru National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	4 of 4	~40%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~60%
18	Masai Mara National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	4 of 4	~40%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
19	Gorongosa National Park	🇲🇿 Mozambique	4 of 4	~30%
	Common Hippopotamus			~70%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Bush Elephant			~80%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
20	Serengeti National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	4 of 4	~30%
	Common Hippopotamus			>90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~30%
21	Tsavo East National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	4 of 4	~30%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~30%
22	Tsavo West National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	4 of 4	~20%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~30%
23	iSimangaliso Wetland Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	4 of 4	~20%
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~70%
	African Bush Elephant			~50%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
24	uMkhuze Game Reserve	🇿🇦 South Africa	4 of 4	~20%
	Common Hippopotamus			~80%
	Nile Crocodile			~40%
	African Bush Elephant			~80%
	African Fish-Eagle			~60%
25	Samburu National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	4 of 4	~20%
	Common Hippopotamus			~40%
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
26	Mikumi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	4 of 4	~10%
	Common Hippopotamus			~70%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~20%
27	Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	4 of 4	~10%
	Common Hippopotamus			~40%
	Nile Crocodile			~70%
	African Bush Elephant			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~20%
28	Tarangire National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	3 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile
	Common Hippopotamus			~40%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
29	Nairobi National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	3 of 4	Missing: Elephant
	Common Hippopotamus			~70%
	Nile Crocodile			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
30	Amboseli National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	3 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~90%
31	Lake Mburo National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	3 of 4	Missing: Elephant
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
	African Fish-Eagle			~80%
32	Lake Manyara National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	3 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile
	Common Hippopotamus			~50%
	African Bush Elephant			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
33	Addo Elephant National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	3 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile
	Common Hippopotamus			~20%
	African Bush Elephant			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~20%
34	Virunga National Park	🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo	3 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile
	Common Hippopotamus			~20%
	African Bush Elephant			~20%
	African Fish-Eagle			~70%
35	Arusha National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	3 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile
	Common Hippopotamus			~30%
	African Bush Elephant			~50%
	African Fish-Eagle			~40%
36	Ngorongoro Conservation Area	🇹🇿 Tanzania	2 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile, Fish eagle
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	African Bush Elephant			~90%
37	Lake Nakuru National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	2 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile, Elephant
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
38	Niokolo-Koba National Park	🇸🇳 Senegal	2 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile, Elephant
	Common Hippopotamus			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			>90%
39	Awash National Park	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	2 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Elephant
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
40	Odzala-Kokoua National Park	🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo	2 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile, Elephant
	Common Hippopotamus			~40%
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
41	Etosha National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Fish eagle
	African Bush Elephant			>90%
42	Kidepo Valley National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Fish eagle
	African Bush Elephant			~90%
43	Ankarafantsika National Park	🇲🇬 Madagascar	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Elephant, Fish eagle
	Nile Crocodile			~80%
44	Aberdare National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Fish eagle
	African Bush Elephant			~80%
45	Mkomazi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Fish eagle
	African Bush Elephant			~70%
46	Garden Route National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
47	Semuliki National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
48	De Hoop Nature Reserve	🇿🇦 South Africa	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~50%
49	West Coast National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~40%

Cities

#	City	Country	Animals	All 4 in 3 days
1	Lilongwe	🇲🇼 Malawi	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Elephant, Fish eagle
	Nile Crocodile			~90%
2	Mombasa	🇰🇪 Kenya	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~80%
3	Kampala	🇺🇬 Uganda	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~80%
4	Cape Town	🇿🇦 South Africa	1 of 4	Missing: Nile crocodile, Elephant, Fish eagle
	Common Hippopotamus			~30%
5	Durban	🇿🇦 South Africa	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~20%
6	Nairobi	🇰🇪 Kenya	1 of 4	Missing: Hippo, Nile crocodile, Elephant
	African Fish-Eagle			~20%

Zoos & centres

#	Zoo / Centre	Country
1	Valencia Bioparc	🇪🇸 Spain	4 of 4 in captivity
2	Disney's Animal Kingdom	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 4 in captivity
3	Busch Gardens Tampa	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 4 in captivity
4	Pairi Daiza	🇧🇪 Belgium	3 of 4 in captivity
5	ZooParc de Beauval	🇫🇷 France	3 of 4 in captivity
6	akwarium warszawskiego ZOO	🇵🇱 Poland	3 of 4 in captivity
7	bioparco	🇮🇹 Italy	3 of 4 in captivity
8	Dallas Zoo	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 4 in captivity
9	Explorer Village	🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates	3 of 4 in captivity
10	Gatorland	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 4 in captivity
11	Guadalajara Zoo	🇲🇽 Mexico	3 of 4 in captivity
12	Johannesburg Zoo	🇿🇦 South Africa	3 of 4 in captivity
13	Kansas City Zoo	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 4 in captivity
14	Lisbon Zoo	🇵🇹 Portugal	3 of 4 in captivity
15	Memphis Zoo	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 4 in captivity
16	Mysore Zoo	🇮🇳 India	3 of 4 in captivity
17	National Zoological Garden of South Africa	🇿🇦 South Africa	3 of 4 in captivity
18	Safari Masai Mara	🇲🇽 Mexico	3 of 4 in captivity
19	Safaripark Beekse Bergen	🇳🇱 Netherlands	3 of 4 in captivity
20	San Diego Zoo	🇺🇸 United States	2 of 4 in captivity

Show all 20 Show fewer

Before you go

Where is the best place to see River Giants of Africa?

Akagera National Park

In Akagera National Park, Rwanda, the chance of seeing all 4 (hippo, nile crocodile, elephant and fish eagle) on the same day is about 30%, the highest of the 27 parks where all of them live, and over a three-day visit it rises to about 90%. Next come Lower Zambezi National Park (about 20% a day), South Luangwa National Park (about 20% a day) and Murchison Falls National Park (about 20% a day). It multiplies each animal's daily chance, as if they were independent, so read it as a rough guide.

Which of River Giants of Africa is hardest to see?

Nile crocodile

In Akagera National Park, the best park for River Giants of Africa, about about 70% of wildlife watchers report the nile crocodile on a given day, against about 80% for the hippo. The hardest one decides how many days you need.

How do you complete River Giants of Africa on Wallace's Line?

Mark them as seen

Tick ✓ Seen on each animal's card, add your trips, or link your iNaturalist account. Your passport counts River Giants of Africa three ways: anywhere in the world, all in one park, and all in a single trip.

← All challenges

River Giants of Africa

The checklist: 4 animals

Common Hippopotamus

Nile Crocodile

African Bush Elephant

African Fish-Eagle

Where to go

Month by month at Akagera National Park

Month by month at Akagera National Park

Month by month at Akagera National Park

Month by month at Akagera National Park

Month by month at Akagera National Park

Month by month at Akagera National Park

Time of day

Parks

Cities

Zoos & centres

Before you go

Where is the best place to see River Giants of Africa?

Which of River Giants of Africa is hardest to see?

How do you complete River Giants of Africa on Wallace's Line?