Wildlife of Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the most unique landscapes on Earth, with lush forests, snow-capped peaks, and arid deserts. As a country with such varied habitats, Ethiopia is home to many species that cannot be found anywhere else on Earth, whose endangered status highlights the need for environmental stewardship and a radical re-imagining of how we co-exist with our environment.

While Ethiopia with about 320 species of mammals is one of Africa’s most diverse countries for mammals, most populations of the medium and large-sized mammals are severely depleted and difficult to see, as they suffer from habitat loss and hunting pressure almost everywhere in the country, including in most protected areas. Nevertheless, the country is fascinating for watching wildlife, as at least 36 species are endemic, about a quarter of which are large mammals. Furthermore, at least nine new species of small mammals have been described from the Ethiopian Highlands over the past half-century, and at least as many, formerly assumed to be synonyms of better-known species, have been shown to be species in their own right and more species may yet be discovered.

Popular wildlife destinations include Mago national park The Park is home to some 81 larger mammals and 300 species of bird. Among the mammals: African elephant, buffalo, lesser-kudu, greater-kudu, duiker, warthog, tiang, Lelwel’s hartebeests, Oryx, grant’s gazelle, gerenuk, giraffe, cheetah, wild dog, lions, leopards, gureza, common baboon, and various species of monkeys.-, Omo national park-The park has well over 300 species of birds belonging to the savannah ecosystem as well as riverine birds along the rivers, such as herons and egrets, kingfishers, barbets, chats and thrushes, woodpeckers, pigeons, shrikes, warblers, and flycatchers.-, Awash National park-Wildlife in this park include the Oryx, Soemmerring’s Gazelle, the tiny Salt Dik-Dik, the lesser and greater Kudus, Warthogs, Defassa waterbuck, Anubis, and Hamadryas baboons, Colobus and Grivet monkeys, Leopards, Lions, Black-Backed and Golden Jackals, Caracals, Servals and Wildcats And Bale Mountains national park which is home to the Ethiopian wolf and the Gelada baboons.

• The Ethiopian Wolf
• Walia Ibex
• The Mountain Nyala
• Somali Wild Donkey
• The Bale Mountain Vervet
• Menilik Bushbucks
• Gelada Baboons
• Swanyne’s Hartebeest
• The Black mane Lion
• African rock Python
• Nile crocodile
• oribi
• Dik dik
• Greater kudu
• Gazella
• Bush pig
• Warthog
• Elephants
• Serval cats
• civet cats
• Grevy’s Zebra
• Hyena
• Olive baboon

Best time to see Wildlife of Ethiopia

The best time to visit Ethiopia is Sep-April, but particularly at either end of the rains – in April, when the land is dry and barren, or as it flourishes again in Sep-Oct. This green season is also best for highland wildlife. Rains replenish the Omo Valley even sooner – so travel Nov-Mar or Jun-Sep.