Desert-Adapted Lion & Elephant — Skeleton Coast & Hoanib Valley

The remote river valleys of the northern Skeleton Coast — the Hoarusib, Hoanib and Uniab — support one of only two viable desert-adapted lion populations in Namibia outside of Etosha, and a population of desert-adapted elephants that have learned to survive with minimal water by covering vast distances between seasonal waterholes. These are among the most studied and celebrated desert-dwelling large mammals on the planet. Access is fly-in only via licensed operators including Natural Selection (Shipwreck Lodge) and Wilderness (Serra Cafema).