All Big 5 gathered: Rhulani enters the Guinness Book of Records
This has never happened before on an African safari: all of the dangerous Big 5 – elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion, and leopard – gathered at the same watering hole at the same time and captured by an automatic camera. And this happened two days ago at the Rhulani Safari Lodge waterhole in the middle of the night. This puts the Rhulani waterhole in the Guinness Book of Records.
"Simply sensational," said Rhulani's manager Tom-Hendrik Basson the next morning, as he, as usual, clicked through the automatic photos from the previous night. "I almost dropped the camera when I saw this."
Since it's virtually impossible to see the famous Big 5 all together in the wild, we were immediately aware of the uniqueness of the photo and therefore applied for inclusion in the Guinness Book of Records.
And we weren't mistaken. We received confirmation that something like this has never happened before, no photo even remotely close to it had ever been taken, and it is truly record-breaking.
"It's a good thing our underground observation hide has a camera that reacts to movement, recording the animals' movements even in the middle of the night when we're all asleep," says Tom-Hendrik. "We've seen three of the Big 5 many times so far: rhino, buffalo, and elephant—but all five? I still can't believe it!"
The Guinness Book of Records has given us another requirement: to share our photo on social media and ask our readers to confirm the uniqueness of the event or, if possible, to send us similar photos immediately.
Related articles
VAT increase in South Africa: Rhulani's rates remain unchanged
| Rhulani Safari LodgeOn the 12 March 2025 the South African Minister of Finance announced the increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) from 15.0% to 15.5%, valid from 1 May 2025. Rhulani Safari Lodge has decided not to pass on t...Nosa and Willem: Two long-standing employees promoted to Assistant Manager
| Rhulani Safari LodgeRhulani Safari Lodge announces that two long-standing and highly qualified employees have been promoted to Assistant Manager. These are Valencia Nokane, former bar lady and front of house employee, al...Life of a Ranger: Community nest spider
| Rhulani Safari LodgeDid you know that the so-called "community nest spider" forms a real tangle of spider webs in a bush in order to catch as many insects as possible that fly past? Rhulani's ranger Thato introduces us t...Rhulani bush stories: Cheetah hunting lessons
| Rhulani Safari Lodge"I've never seen anything like this before," says Willem, who set off at 5:00 a.m. and didn't return to Rhulani until after 2:00 p.m. What initially seemed like a pleasant sighting of a mother cheetah...Rhulani Minute Safari - Sunset animals
| Rhulani Safari LodgeOne of the most impressive places in Madikwe at sunset is the northern plains. Simply the endless expanse of nature, the savannah landscape, and in the tranquility of the sunset a few animals roaming ...Rhulani Insights 247 – Cleaning the fish pond
| Rhulani Safari LodgeAt the entrance to the lodge, right next to the reception, there is a small pond in which a few goldfish swim around. However, dust and rain make the water cloudy, so cleaning the pond is one of the r...VAT increase in South Africa: Rhulani's rates remain unchanged
| Rhulani Safari LodgeOn the 12 March 2025 the South African Minister of Finance announced the increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) from 15.0% to 15.5%, valid from 1 May 2025. Rhulani Safari Lodge has decided not to pass on t...Nosa and Willem: Two long-standing employees promoted to Assistant Manager
| Rhulani Safari LodgeRhulani Safari Lodge announces that two long-standing and highly qualified employees have been promoted to Assistant Manager. These are Valencia Nokane, former bar lady and front of house employee, al...Life of a Ranger: Community nest spider
| Rhulani Safari LodgeDid you know that the so-called "community nest spider" forms a real tangle of spider webs in a bush in order to catch as many insects as possible that fly past? Rhulani's ranger Thato introduces us t...Rhulani bush stories: Cheetah hunting lessons
| Rhulani Safari Lodge"I've never seen anything like this before," says Willem, who set off at 5:00 a.m. and didn't return to Rhulani until after 2:00 p.m. What initially seemed like a pleasant sighting of a mother cheetah...Rhulani Minute Safari - Sunset animals
| Rhulani Safari LodgeOne of the most impressive places in Madikwe at sunset is the northern plains. Simply the endless expanse of nature, the savannah landscape, and in the tranquility of the sunset a few animals roaming ...Rhulani Insights 247 – Cleaning the fish pond
| Rhulani Safari LodgeAt the entrance to the lodge, right next to the reception, there is a small pond in which a few goldfish swim around. However, dust and rain make the water cloudy, so cleaning the pond is one of the r...VAT increase in South Africa: Rhulani's rates remain unchanged
| Rhulani Safari LodgeOn the 12 March 2025 the South African Minister of Finance announced the increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) from 15.0% to 15.5%, valid from 1 May 2025. Rhulani Safari Lodge has decided not to pass on t...Nosa and Willem: Two long-standing employees promoted to Assistant Manager
| Rhulani Safari LodgeRhulani Safari Lodge announces that two long-standing and highly qualified employees have been promoted to Assistant Manager. These are Valencia Nokane, former bar lady and front of house employee, al...Life of a Ranger: Community nest spider
| Rhulani Safari LodgeDid you know that the so-called "community nest spider" forms a real tangle of spider webs in a bush in order to catch as many insects as possible that fly past? Rhulani's ranger Thato introduces us t...Rhulani bush stories: Cheetah hunting lessons
| Rhulani Safari Lodge"I've never seen anything like this before," says Willem, who set off at 5:00 a.m. and didn't return to Rhulani until after 2:00 p.m. What initially seemed like a pleasant sighting of a mother cheetah...Rhulani Minute Safari - Sunset animals
| Rhulani Safari LodgeOne of the most impressive places in Madikwe at sunset is the northern plains. Simply the endless expanse of nature, the savannah landscape, and in the tranquility of the sunset a few animals roaming ...Rhulani Insights 247 – Cleaning the fish pond
| Rhulani Safari LodgeAt the entrance to the lodge, right next to the reception, there is a small pond in which a few goldfish swim around. However, dust and rain make the water cloudy, so cleaning the pond is one of the r...
