South Africa: Give me high five

Strictly speaking, we scored two out of a possible five points. A little creative accounting, though, brought that up to the magical number.

There was a genuine point each for the elephant and lion and an extra one for an unconfirmed sighting of a leopard (it might have been a spotty tree), another for the white rhinoceros (it's supposed to be the much rarer black rhino) and a final point for Chris Rock.

Surely a celebrity counts in the search for the Big Five. And certainly one that happens to be the voice of Marty the Zebra in the animated movie Madagascar.

Yes, the fifth greatest stand-up comedian of all time, as determined by American channel Comedy Central, was on safari in South Africa with his family, at the five-star Thanda Private Game Reserve.

Clearly he was doing research for Madagascar 3, expected in 2012. Strangely, however, he didn't seem to have much of a connection with the zebras there. Perhaps they were overawed.

The hunt for the Big Five has changed markedly from the original parameters.

It once referred to the five most dangerous animals to hunt on foot but is now used in reference to tourist safaris aiming simply to spot wild animals rather than shoot them.

It is no less thrilling - not that I have killed a lion or any other wild beast, for that matter - and a highlight of any trip to South Africa. The best thing is that it's done in the animal's natural habitat, which means there are no guarantees what you will see. That's why it's a treat if you can tick off that Big Five.

Our first point came courtesy of a sighting of an old lion watchfully surveying his territory.

He had every reason to look a little agitated.

The 14-year-old with the thick, dark mane (it gets darker with age) was being hunted by his two sons. He had kicked the twins out of home when they were just 2 because he wanted to mate again with their mother and clearly didn't want the kids around. Maybe it was performance anxiety.

The boys were now 4 and time had done little to dull their memories. The sons were now ready to take over and drive him out.

He sprayed large areas with his scent and scratched the ground with his back paws, but he had little option other than to flee.

It made for a sad sight, broken by Sakhile's hearty laughter. Our Zulu guide had seen this many times before, all with the same outcome, and knew it wasn't his place to interfere with the rules of the animal kingdom.

The old male had made his own bed, so to speak, and it wasn't all that comfortable at the moment. Little respect for your elders, here.

"If they get hold of him, they'll probably kill him," Sakhile says impassively.

Family dynamics were to the fore everywhere you looked at Thanda, 14,000ha of private woodland in Kwa-Zulu Natal about 400km north of Durban.

A pair of cheetah brothers who go everywhere together sat nonchalantly in the grass waiting for the temperature to cool before hunting again, while the one dominant wildebeest male looked over his harem of ladies - all the male wildebeest live together for a year before trying to unseat the dominant male 12 months later. Zebra behave similarly.

The second point took longer. Sakhile picked up signs of a herd of elephants as the sun rose at a ridiculously early hour in the morning. At first the fresh dung and footprints made it easy for us to follow them but soon the tracks tailed off. Our guide poked at tangled branches, then sniffed more dung to test its freshness. It was hard to tell how recently the elephants had passed through because of overnight rain.

Although little was happening in a PlayStation kind of way, this was the thrill of the chase. It's easy to spot animals on the savannahs of the Serengeti in East Africa but infinitely more difficult in woodlands such as Thanda.

In many ways it's more special when the elephants are found almost 90 minutes after picking up the scent.

A herd of about 15 elephants slowly make their way through the trees, stopping to eat as they go. Away from the main bunch are three young males. Two are practising fighting while an older one, perhaps 18 years old, boxes them around the ears with his trunk like an older brother would do to an annoying younger brother.

One of the youngsters breaks off and takes an interest in us. His ears start flapping and his trunk unfurls menacingly before he mock charges. He stops a few metres short of us. For him it is a game, for us, well, we can feel some of our own dung starting to form.

He soon loses interest but the 18-year-old takes his place. This time Sakhile becomes more concerned and backs up the Land Rover. Not too far, though. "Never run or retreat," Sakhile says, "because they'll remember and will always think people run."

The second elephant wanders over to a tree where he rubs his generous behind to satisfy an itch. It sounds like sandpaper on a rough surface. It is also a show of strength and we are happy to acknowledge he is much, much stronger. I'm not sure I could break a tree with my nose.

After a while our hunt continues. We find rhinos, warthogs, monkeys, impalas, vultures, kudus, giraffes, wildebeest, zebras, wild dogs, hyena, lions and elephants.

Oh, and a Chris Rock.

IF YOU GO

* The Thanda Private Game Reserve is a five-star lodge situated in woodlands about 400km north of Durban. As the name suggests, it's a private park and takes limited numbers.

* There are dozens of game reserves throughout South Africa, from the small to the enormous and they cater for all budgets. There are even some self-catering parks where you can pitch your own tent (not anywhere, obviously).

* South Africa is also home to a handful of marine reserves and it's possible to go whale watching and shark diving. Visit southafrica.net.

Michael Brown travelled to South Africa courtesy of Emirates Airlines and South Africa Tourism.