I think most people’s understanding of Ethiopia is that it is a mostly arid country with an extremely rich history and culture. That’s true, to a point. There is certainly no debating the fact that the Ethiopians themselves are a very traditional people who adhere to their religions…religiously.
And as for their history? Well, you have the fact that they successfully resisted European colonization when most of the rest of Africa was ruled by outsiders. They have laid claim to the Queen of Sheba. The Ark of the Covenant resides there (apparently), and some of their UNESCO World Heritage churches and ancient monuments are literally thousands of years old.
But is it dry and dusty? Sure, some of it is. But would you believe me if I told you there were steamy Amazonian-like rainforests, as well as mountain plateaus over 4,000 meters in altitude, where frigid “Alpine” meadows dominate, and endemic species are commonly encountered?
Would you believe there is a wolf that lives in Ethiopia? Well there is, and it’s found in Ethiopia’s chilly highland meadows, and nowhere else on Earth.
Every year I lead small group excursions for Oryx Photo Tours to see these wolves (a species which, sadly, numbers less than 500 individuals). And every year my guests and I have amazing encounters with them.
This year was no different.
We spent the first half of our “Endemic Wildlife Photo Tour” in the UNESCO World Heritage Bale Mountains National Park. It’s where the largest population of these high-altitude predators can be found.
But before we headed up to the highland plateaus, we first explored the grasslands and forests found in the lower elevations of the national park.
Here we encountered warthogs and black-and-white colobus monkeys, as well as the endemic Mountain Nyala – a beautiful antelope with grandiose horns and a penchant for succulent shoots.
They can be found up towards the top of the Bale Massif, but there are far more of them down in the lowlands, where the air has more oxygen, and the grasses are all the more tasty.
After that, we made several excursions over the next four days up to the Web Valley and the Sanetti Plateau, where the average elevation is 3,800 meters above sea level. The landscapes up there are surreal. Dense flowery heather, grasses, strange palm-like lobelia plants, frosted lakes, and towering escarpments set the stage for our hunts of this extremely rare and beautiful russet-hued canid.
But it’s not just all about the wolves. There are other endemics up there too. From the blue-winged geese that dabble in the mountain ponds, to the charismatic, boggle-eyed giant mole rats who rarely poke their heads up above ground. The Bale Mountains National Park is home to over 30 specialized animals which are not found outside of Ethiopia.
The skies are alive with raptors, which are there for the rodents, for which the Sanetti Plateau is known. According to researchers, there are a plethora of varieties and a biomass of rats, mice, and voles that surpass pretty much anywhere else on the planet.
It’s why the wolves are there too. They eat mostly giant mole rats, rabbits, and whatever other scurrying little mammals they can wrap their jaws around.
We drove around the highland road network in our comfortable 4x4s, and after some searching we had our first encounter. Two wolves were working together to hunt down a rabbit – but, alas, it was just a fleeting meeting. The rabbit broke from cover, and sped off over a rise of rocks; the wolves in hot pursuit.
However, over the following days of exploration, we managed to find and photograph around 10 of these critically endangered creatures. They are beautiful canids that sport a white chest and a coat of orange and reds—and what’s more, despite being incredibly rare, when encountered, they tend not to be so shy of humans. For decades, researchers and conservationists have been studying the wolves of Bale Mountain, and this has resulted in them being quite used to nearby vehicles, and even photographers out on foot.
Some of them were actively hunting. Others were out and about, moving at speed around the boundaries of their pack’s territory.
To see and photograph an Ethiopian wolf is a very special experience.
On our last day in the Bale Mountains National Park, we drove down the switchback road from the Sanetti Plateau and into the much warmer and humid Harenna Rainforest. The towering trees, vibrant bird calls, swirling mists, and lush green tones there are a stark contrast to the spartan and stunted vegetation in the park’s high-elevation areas.
Here we cruised in search of the endemic (and also very rare) Bale Mountain Monkey; but to be honest, I wasn’t really expecting we would find them.
I’ve conducted over a dozen tours to Ethiopia with Oryx, and I have only found these monkeys twice.
So you can imagine my surprise and elation when I spotted some movement in the tree canopy, and lo and behold, a large group of monkeys made themselves known to us.
These charming little primates are a treat to view, and as they scurried shyly through the undergrowth and along boughs and branches, we all managed to get some great shots, and enjoy observing their antics.
We had only been in Ethiopia a few days, and we had already seen and photographed at least six endemic species.
What a treat….
The second part of my tour takes us further north to the Simien Mountains National Park—yet another high-altitude destination where the Ethiopian wolf can sometimes be seen. But we were not there for the canids this time. We were there for the Geladas—a visually strange, grass-eating, shaggy-coated, oversized, mountain-dwelling endemic monkey, which sometimes forms groups of more than 500 individuals.
During the day, these impressive-looking primates gather together on the grassy plains atop the Simien hills to graze on grass shoots rather like wildebeest do in the Masai Mara.
It’s an amazing sight to behold, but what makes these encounters truly magical and memorable is that as guests, we can walk amongst them at close quarters without so much as a reaction from them. They truly are very habituated, and will tolerate photographers mingling in the very midst of their super-sized troops.
In the evening, after a full day of grooming and eating grasses, these mega ‘herds’ depart the highland plateaus to sleep on the impossibly steep cliffs below the mountains. The landscapes surrounding the Simien Mountains are absolutely incredible.
Also resident up in the highest reaches of this stunning location lives the exceptionally rare Walia Ibex; a large-sized wild mountain goat, the males of which sport massive curved horns.
There are less than 300 of these alive in the wild, and every single one of them is to be found in the Simien Mountains, and nowhere else on Earth.
We took a special excursion to the areas where they are most likely to be found, and carefully scrutinizing the surrounding mountain peaks, we finally spotted a pair of tell-tale horns sticking up from behind a rock.
This is when the real adventure began. Judging the direction of the wind, so that we wouldn’t be detected, we plotted a slow route up the mountain, being very careful not to reveal our presence to the animals we hoped to approach.
It took a while, but finally we reached an overhang above where we had seen the horns, and slowly and silently crept forward towards the edge.
Wow… what a sight.
A whole herd of these magnificent and exceptionally rare creatures were resting below. Needless to say, we all got great photos, and by the time we headed back home, we had counted 14 of these incredible animals… That’s nearly 5% of the entire species.
On the very last evening of my tour, we returned to the Geladas, finding them grazing in a field of grass down inside of a forested valley. There looked to be about 100 of them, but what we couldn’t see at the time was just how many were under cover of the giant heather-like trees.
We followed them for a while, under the cover of the canopy, only to have them lead us back out into the open at around the same time that the sun was setting and the sky had turned orange.
That’s when the true magnitude of this particular herd became evident to us. There were easily over 500 adults (and probably close to as many babies clinging to their mothers).
The sound of them, chatting amongst each other with human-like sounds, was raucous.
They moved like a swarm across the landscape, and we walked amongst them, privileged, awed, and very, very happy with the photos we were getting.
I have spent a large chunk of my adult life working with wild primates. I have lived with chimpanzees, and I have visited the gorillas of Rwanda and Uganda on numerous occasions. But I can truly say that walking with, and mingling amidst, these rambunctious and ever-so-hairy Geladas rates as possibly the most incredible primate-related experience anyone could ever hope for.
Personally, I can’t wait to head back to these endemic Geladas, wolves, and Ibex again next year. Ethiopia’s highlands, and the wildlife that lives on and around them, are truly special… And I very much hope you will consider being there with me when I do…
It’s the chance of a lifetime to see, experience, and of course, photograph a smorgasbord of earthly delights which are both magical and, of course, utterly endemic and wonderfully unique.
It’s a side of Africa unlike any other.
