Senegal: Bandia Reserve
Senegal and West Africa in general don’t come to mind when one think about safari and wildlife watching. But about 65km inland from Dakar, there is the Bandia Reserve, set in a classic african savanna with many towering baobabs and red sands. The reserve was established in the mid 1990s to bring back the native wildlife species that once lived here but were lost. There are no lions, but there are white rhinos, zebras, giraffes, warthogs, two types of monkeys. Antelopes are perhaps the most interesting as here you can see some rather uncommon species like Lord Derby’s eland, niala, western cob, damas gazelle, red fronted gazelle. There is also a different species of buffalo – West African buffalo. The Lord Derby’s eland is the most interesting as it is a very endangered species found only in Senegal and Guinea and is the largest antelope in the world. There are also hyenas, crocodiles, monitor lizards, and lots of birds.
