Namibia Drought

[Bearbait1]

It would seem that the drought has, at least temporarily, subsided in most of Namibia. It sounds like some areas will likely have severely reduced numbers of animals. Should this be a major concern when planning a hunt for next year? Ive seen the effects of severe drought in the western US and it is amazing how scarce game can become with several consecutive years of poor rains.
Should we just ask the outfitters if it is worth hunting their areas? Are any of the outfitters going to say the hunting is poor and not to hunt their areas? Should we be looking to hunt elswhere next year?

 

[375Fox]

When you contact outfitters ask the questions you think you need to ask about their animal numbers. Most large fenced operations would have provided supplemental feed combined with culling to protect their herds. Free range private land would have had access to water for cattle and the species native to area are built for droughts. Communal areas in NW I’m sure were hit to some degree. Ask multiple outfitters and see how their answers line up or don’t, I wouldn’t write off Namibia as a hunting destination just because of a publicized drought.

 

[Dee S]

I hunted Namibia in Sept/Oct of last year, and the rains came a month later. We saw plenty of animals and we hunted three different property's, all several hours apart.
I'm told the warthogs are the first to go, but the fastest to rebound. Having said that, their numbers rebound quickly, but the mature boars tend to die first and take the longest to become a trophy.
The animals there know how to survive and it's amazing to see the barren land inhabited by several large animal species all at once.
Now having said that, did other animals take a hit? I'm sure they did. We saw very few Kudu, but I wasn't after a Kudu, therefore my PH didn't target that animal and the land we hunted wasn't necessarily what you'd consider the ideal place to hunt them.
I'd just ask your PH about the animals available to him. There are some PH's that may only hunt their land and then there are some like my PH that knew his land wasn't the place to hunt during my trip and the drought, so we hunted other places he had access to and it paid off in spades.
And ask the basic question of 'do you have kudu (or whatever is your target) on your place?" Because the answer will be "yes" and that is a correct answer. I'd then ask, "well how much land do you have where these kudu live, and how many shooter kudu do you estimate are on that land?" 50K acres or larger is the norm in Namibia, but if they estimate the target animal at 25 shooter bulls on that property, well, you figure out the odds of seeing one.
To answer your question, I LOVE NAMIBIA. It's freakin' awesome! And would I let the drought prevent me from returning this year or next if I could make it? Absolutely not. But it all depends on what trophies you are after. Ask the PH's lots of questions, if every answer is positive and a "yes" then I'd be leary. My PH from the first conversation when we were discussing the animals on my list was up front and honest about some of those animals and flat out said he didn't have very many of that one, or I have some, but they are difficult to get a bow shot on, or in case of the Kudu, he flat out told me that if I wanted a Kudu with a bow, then that would be very difficult. His areas had been hit hard with rabies and then the drought. I pretty much knew after that first conversation what animals I had on my list I could feel positive about getting shot opportunities and which animals were a 'slim to none' opportunity. But in the end, there was only one animal, the impala, that we did not see any of and that again was one he clearly stated that in his areas, he didn't have many, and my chances were not good for an impala. I considered it a bonus animal if I happened to see one, and we didn't, but it did not take away from my hunt because he was up front about it and did not lead me on to believe that it was more probable than not probable for a shot.
I posted my story with videos and pictures, feel free to take a look. I hunted with Pieter Delport with Eintracht Jagd Safaris and I hope to return in the future to hunt with him again. He is an outstanding PH and he will be honest and upfront, no BS, no bragging, just flat out tell you what he can deliver.

 

[revturbo9967]

I speak with Johnny at Agarob Who’s in Namibia every so often and he was surely mentioning loss of some animals last season. He said it was one of the worst droughts of his life . That said, the corona may have helped for next years hunting as nobody hunted this year , or very little .