Central Kalahari Game Reserve

The Central Kalahari Game Reserve is only a part of the Kalahari and is situated in the centre of Botswana with a size of 53.000 km².

The best time for game viewing in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve is during and just after the summer rains (December to April). During these less dry months, the wildlife gathers in the valleys and pans transforming the reserve into one of Botswana’s top game viewing destinations.

The Central Kalahari Game Reserve hosts South African giraffe, African bush elephant, spotted hyena, brown hyena, honey badger, meerkat, yellow mongoose, common warthog, South African cheetah, caracal, African wild dog, black-backed jackal, bat-eared fox, cape fox, African leopard, lion, blue wildebeest, plains zebra,

Central Kalahari is a great reserve for bird watching throughout the year, but the best time is during the wetter months which is from November to April, when migrant birds are present.

The Central Kalahari game reserve has over 250 bird species that have been recorded and most of these can be viewed during the wet season. Some of the birds found here include the Ostrich Struthio camelus, Ducks Anatidae ,  Egyptian Goose, Alopochen aegyptiaca , Spur-winged Goose and Plectropterus gambensis.

The Kalahari Central Game Reserve climate is subtropical (average annual temperature greater than or equal to 18 °C, at peaks reaching 40 °C and above, with mean monthly temperature of the coldest month strictly below 18 °C) and is semi-arid with the dry season from April to September, the coldest six months of the year.