We all know which animals are ranked as the big five ... perhaps we can discuss the order of transcendency of each one of these five among themselves ... but which are the following five animals that conform Africa´s top ten ?

Opinions would be appreciated - aswell as reasons, of course !

For me (and not specifically in this order):

Eland (BIG, smart and scarce ...)

Bongo (hard to hunt - really oppressive environment where it lives - and also scarce)

Sable (perhaps the most beautiful animal - at least antelope - on earth)

Sitatunga (always difficult )

Nyala (Mountain Nyala, perhaps the most exclusive trophy nowadays)

Five, did I said ?
Let us make six, and then I would add Kudu !!

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BTW, I like antelopes very much !!!

just behind the big felines ... the elephants ... the buffalos ... etc

It is a toss up for me between the spiral horn antelope and the horse antelopes.

Even worse, then I start thinking about impalas, wildebeests, reedbucks...etc....

I think the five most popular plains game species hunted would include kudu, impala, gemsbok, warthog and blue wildebeest.

Greater and lesser kudu should be on the list. Nyala are gorgeous. Roan is on my top 10 list. The various oryx should have some representation. Too many to chose from to stop at ten.

Mine would be a little different..............

For me the top PG in order of what I want to take are:

Wildebeest - Every subspecies on the continent
Eland
Gemsbok
Bushbuck
Greater Kudu

I would really want to mix some little guys(duiker, etc) in with them.

And always - Warthog!

But on my 1st safari, I'll pick one and the rest will be "Trophies of Opportunity".

Order in the Big Five;

1. Elephant
2. Lion
3. Buffalo
4. Leopard
5. Black Rhino

If you are talking big antelopes I would say;

1. Lord Derby Giant Eland
1. Bongo
3. Sable
4. Mountain Nyala
5. Greater Kudu

Giant Eland and Bongo are tied in my book. If I had to give it to one of them it would be a fair chase hunt (read: No Dogs) for Bongo.

That's a tuff one! I like hunting all the critters of Africa! But if I had to make a list, let's see - - - - - - -

ONE - Bushbuck (you have to get into the thick underbrush alone the river, his domain)

Two - Eland (exciting to go after to say the least!)

THREE - Kudu (nothng more enjoyable then getting on the trail of a kudu bull, then getting that one opportunity!)

FOUR - Sable - (haven't taken one yet but for sure up there in the top!)

FIVE - Waterbuck (I've hunted these critter for 6 Safaris now, haven't gotten one yet, I'm waiting for that "special" one)

SIX - If there's going to be a number six, I'm going with the Klipspringer (I really enjoy climbing through the rock outcrops and getting up into the hills looking for these little "rock hopper!"

I wanted to put Baboons down as my number one animal, I know they don't have horns, but one of my favorite trophies in Africa, I just can't pass up a moment to go after a big old troop leader!

Forgetting about the single-species hunts like Bongo, the bigger ones that get me going are: kudu, Sable, Gemsbok and Nyala. The smaller ones are the Grant's Gazelle, East African Impala and any of the various Bushbucks.

Bushbuck
Nyala
Sable
Roan
Maybe Sitatunga - but haven't even seen one, or Kudu or eleand.

For me-

Sable
Steenbok bigger than 5"
Bushbuck
Vaal Rhebok
Roan

These are my favorites.

In southern Africa I would take any of the tiny ten, but in order of preference:

Blue Duiker
Damaraland Dik-Dik
Suni
Red Duiker
Sharpes Grysbok
Cape Grysbok
etc.
Funny how they start with the smallest and go upward.

Most people can see Eland but the little ones you have to really look for them - I am taking nothing from the Eland they are great hunts also.

I second Bulldog563's list. If you have hunted and taken those five you have done some serious hunting in what is left of wildest Africa.

I second Bulldog563's list and Wink's.

The eland is done, the bongo in 4 weeks if all is going smoothly.
Then if God help, sitatunga and Giant forest Hog.

Among the more common game I'd pick as my "second five" (in no particular order): greater kudu, sable, gemsbok, nyala, and bushbuck.

My "third five" would be: eland, zebra, waterbuck, blue wildebeest, and impala.

IMO, there is no BIG FIVE any longer, and most of the rarer antilope don't interest me much. the most common of the plains game are representitive of AFRICA!

If I had unlimited funds, and could only take 10 animals in Africa, total, then the list would begin with an Elephant bull! From there it would next be a good Lion, then a good Leopard, and finally all the Buffalo I could aford! The cape Buffalo is the reason I don't have the others of the BIG FOUR, I can't seem to leave him alone long enough to hunt the others. All plains game, to me are simply targets of oppertunity, while hunting Buffalo. So the 10 would be 10 Buffalo! Or five buffalo, and one each of the others, Ele, lion, Leopard, Hippo.

I know that wasn't what was asked, but that is the way I feel about hunting in Africa.

I suppose if I had to concentrate on animals other than the big four, they would be a Sittunga, a Puku, a blue, and a black wildebeast, a nyala, heartebeast, and Gemsbok. For some reason, I have absolutely no desire to take KUDU, or Sable, and I already have most of the common plains game. So those above would get the shots. I could, however, live the rest of my life just fine hunting nothing but Cape Buffalo! Weard, HUH?

There are several different ways to approach the idea of the top five or ten animals outside the Big Five.

You could describe the five most identifiable African animals no trophy room should be without:
1. Impala
2. Kudu
3. Gemsbok
4. Hartebeeste
5. Wildebeeste


You could describe the ten small wonders, the anthesis of the Big five.
1. Clipspringer
2. Vaal Rhebok
3. Bush Duiker
4. Grysbok
5. Steinbok
6. Dik Dik
7. Blue Duiker
8. Mt Reedbuck
9. Oribi
10. Puku


You could describe the five "hardest" to take animals outside the Big Five.

1. Mt Nyala (Ethiopia)
2. Bongo (CAR)
3. Sitatunga (Tanz)
4. Roan/Sable (Tanz, Zim)
5. Eland (RSA, Zim, Tanz)

The thing that makes taking the last five so difficult is three of them live in different and dangerous venues. They are truly exotic.

The tiny ten are difficult because they live in several different venues, they are small targets, you have to hunt them because they just don't happen by, and there are twice as many of them.

The five "most common" are easy to collect, but its difficult to collect a good one. You can get all five on one hunt; however, to get five really nice trophy animalls requires some luck. One of the hardest to get a good example of is the most common, the impala. How many do you see with the horns parallel or rolled out? You really don't want to take a kudu until a second or third trip when you have learned what a really good one looks like. The difference between a kudu, a good kudu and a really good kudu is not horn length but how far out the tip is on the third curve. Unless of course its worn and that is another story.

What takes us back, again and again, is learning about the different animals and seeking them out as part of the challenge.

Although of the animals listed above, I have not taken Mt Nyala, Bongo and Sitatunga, my next trip is focused only on one of these animals, Sitatunga. My next quests, in addition to Sitatunga, are Grant's Gazelle, Thompson Gazelle, Lesser Kudu, and Gerenuk. The gazelles are beautiful and graceful. The Sitatunga and Gerenuk are exotic and weird, and the Lesser Kudu is a nice counterpoise to the Greater Kudu. I am not adventurous enough to go into Ethiopia or Cameroon or CAR right now, but I hope I can hold together long enough to get back to Tanz for a shot at the species above. Kudude

quote:

Originally posted by kudude:

You could describe the five "hardest" to take animals outside the Big Five.

(....)

The thing that makes taking the last five so difficult is three of them live in different and dangerous venues. They are truly exotic.

(.....)

What takes us back, again and again, is learning about the different animals and seeking them out as part of the challenge.

(...)

Kudude

Absolutely !!!

Couldn´t agree more ...

But actually, I think that that´s a somehow subjective (personal) appreciaton, that´s why I wanted to read other opinions - and (more important !) the reasons that sustained them

Kudude, I would replace your Cape Eland with Lord Derby Eland in CAR. Otherwise, it also makes for a good list.

The five African trophies that every African hunter should have:

Kudu - It's the horns, the corkscrew
Zebra- can you say rug
Warthog - no other mount will get more comments
Gemsbuck - again the horns, like two rapiers
Impala - the whitetail of Africa

Each one of these scream Africa. They are classic and classy. I am 4 for 5, Gemsbuck has, so far, eluded me. Next time!

TerryR

I think the waterbuck also screams Africa and has a regal bearing to boot but it doesn't seem to get on people's lists.

Here is my top ten list. I have a couple antelope ahead of some of the big five.
1 Mountain Nyala
2 Lord Derby Eland
3 Bongo
4 Lion
5 Elephant
6 Lesser Kudu
7 Roan
8 Gerenuk
9 Leopard
10 Sable

For me, I would think:
1. Bull Elephant
2. Bongo
3. Mt. Nyala
4. Lion
5. Cape Buffalo
6. Lord Derby Eland
7. Sitatunga
8. Leopard
9. Nyala
10. Greater Kudu

For me it goes like this:

First priority: elephant, any elephant.

Second priority: go back and hunt more elephant.

Third priority: other big stuff, such as buff or hippo.

Fourth priority: anything else, such as PG, baboon, etc.

I was able to take numerous world-class plains game animals on my first trip over to Namibia. I still want (or need) to take buffalo, leopard, sable, nyala, bushbuck, mt. reedbuck, and lechwe so at least a couple more trips seem to be in order.

congratulations my friend very good post,my top ten elephant,lion,leopard,buffalo,rhino,hyppo specially hunted in dry land,mountain nyala,lor derby eland,bongo,red forest buffalo.Any of the hogs hunted with dogs and knives can be here ,juan

1) Mountain Nyala (Ethiopia)
2) Bongo (CAR)
3) Giant forest hog (CAR)
4) Sitatunga
5) Elephant with the bow

Here's mine.

1. Elephant
2. Lord Derby Eland (the grandest game animal in the world)
3. Mountain Nyala (death at 10K feet)
4. Lion (A big black maned old nasty)
5. Giant Forest Hog (the hog of the world)
6. Bongo (21 days chasing an 700 pound orange bushbuck with pygmies)
7. Nubian Ibex or Aoudad on native soil.
8. Sitatunga (swamp thing)
9. Leopard (Mr spots, a black one would be fabulous)
10. Hippo or Crocodile

quote:

Originally posted by TerryR:
The five African trophies that every African hunter should have:

Kudu - It's the horns, the corkscrew
Zebra- can you say rug
Warthog - no other mount will get more comments
Gemsbuck - again the horns, like two rapiers
Impala - the whitetail of Africa

Each one of these scream Africa. They are classic and classy. I am 4 for 5, Gemsbuck has, so far, eluded me. Next time!

TerryR

Terry Bushbuck are the whitetails of Africa. Impala are well impala!

I Love the super hides of Giraffe and Zebra, soooo AFRICA!!!

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