Down on their knees: why giraffes come to mine

If you’ve spent a dry-season morning parked near one of our waterholes, you may have seen something that looks almost comical: a giraffe, the tallest animal on land, splaying its front legs wide and folding its long neck all the way down until its muzzle is in the dirt. It’s not injured, and it’s not reaching for a low branch. It’s mining, working the soil for salt its diet can’t provide.

Like all animals, giraffes need minerals their food doesn’t always supply, especially sodium. So they get creative: eating mineral-rich soil and gnawing on bones found in the bush for calcium and phosphorus.

They’re not alone. Elephants dig for salt in riverbeds and inside caves elsewhere in Africa. Rhino, zebra and wildebeest gather at Kalahari salt pans. Gorillas fight over salty plants.
Limpopo-Lipadi sits right in that Kalahari transition zone, which is why our own mineral patches are worth a slow drive-by. Next time you spot a giraffe on its knees, you’ll know exactly why.

If you would like to support our conservation efforts, have a look on our website: https://limpopo-lipadi.org/donate/. For discreet information on share sales, contact invest@limpopo-lipadi.org. To book a safari, request our rates via reservations@limpopo-lipadi.org or via WhatsApp: (+267) 76770191.