Our Stories
Find inspiration and learn more about Tswalu through our stories, written by members of our community as well as guest contributors. Browse by category to read all about our luxury safari camps, what to do and see on the reserve, how your stay positively impacts our sustainability journey, and much more. For seasonal updates and wildlife sightings from our guiding team, don’t miss the Tswalu Wildlife Journal.
Tswalu’s pangolin research legacy
A decade of dedicated pangolin research at Tswalu has built one of the most sustained bodies of knowledge on Temminck's pangolin in Africa, guiding the release of rehabilitated pangolins back into the wild.
How Vlei Lilies Survive Kalahari Summers
New research reveals how Tswalu's mass-flowering vlei lily survives the unpredictability of the Kalahari: by relying equally on day- and night-time pollinators. When one pollinator group fails, another maintains the system – a survival strategy guests can witness firsthand during...
Summer’s most fascinating migration is winged
CONSERVATION JOURNAL ISSUE 4 – The new year has truly taken flight with millions of migrating butterflies, a phenomenon which extends beyond South Africa into neighbouring countries. A new species was added to Tswalu’s checklist, bringing the total to 84.
Safari at the height of summer
Electric storms, prolific birdlife, and a landscape impossibly green. Summer at Tswalu demands a different rhythm: early starts, long midday pauses, and evenings that stretch past sunset into star-filled silence.
Studying mongoose ecology in a semi-arid environment
PhD candidate Juri Filonzi is studying two rarely coexisting mongoose species at Tswalu to understand whether they compete or coexist through segregation. His research fills crucial knowledge gaps about small carnivores as environmental sentinels.
The Kalahari butterfly migration
For more than a decade Lepidopterist Reinier Terblanche has been documenting butterfly migrations at Tswalu. His long-term research has established the reserve as a critical source area for one of southern Africa’s most remarkable multi-species migration events.
New lion cubs trigger territorial tensions
CONSERVATION JOURNAL ISSUE 3 – Eight lion cubs were born in November, and the northern pride sisters are fiercely protective. Meanwhile, territorial tensions escalate as southern females push boundaries, and a young male navigates precarious new ground.
Outwitting the black-backed jackal
Researcher Geke Woudstra is studying how black-backed jackals influence predator-prey dynamics across Tswalu. Her in-depth fieldwork is revealing the surprisingly complex ecological role of this adaptable, intelligent canid in the southern Kalahari.
Early summer in the southern Kalahari
CONSERVATION JOURNAL ISSUE 2 – The first rains arrived early this year, greening the Kalahari and triggering new life. Lion cubs, migrant birds, meerkat pups, and flowering plants dotted across the red dunes mark summer's transformation.
