KnowKi

Learn the wildlife of national parks

Learn the wildlife of Mana Pools National Park

Zimbabwe

476 species have research-grade observations inside Mana Pools National Park on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, so you know what you're looking at before you go.

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Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. White-fronted Bee-eater Merops bullockoides26
  2. Meves's Starling Lamprotornis mevesii22
  3. Yellow-billed Stork Mycteria ibis20
  4. Great Egret Ardea alba20
  5. Southern Red-billed Hornbill Tockus rufirostris20
  6. Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus19
  7. Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca19
  8. African Fish-Eagle Icthyophaga vocifer19
  9. Western Cattle-Egret Ardea ibis17
  10. Helmeted Guineafowl Numida meleagris16

Plants

  1. African baobab Adansonia digitata13
  2. Sausage tree Kigelia africana9
  3. Zambezi fig Ficus bussei6
  4. Ana tree Faidherbia albida6
  5. Candelabra Naboom Euphorbia cooperi4
  6. Wild citrus Citropsis daweana4
  7. Barleria spinulosa4
  8. Jackalberry Diospyros mespiliformis3
  9. Common water hyacinth Pontederia crassipes3
  10. True Indigo Indigofera tinctoria2

Mammals

  1. Impala Aepyceros melampus29
  2. African Savanna Elephant Loxodonta africana29
  3. Greater Kudu Tragelaphus strepsiceros24
  4. Chacma Baboon Papio ursinus20
  5. Common Eland Tragelaphus oryx19
  6. Common Warthog Phacochoerus africanus17
  7. Waterbuck Kobus ellipsiprymnus17
  8. Lion Panthera leo12
  9. African Buffalo Syncerus caffer11
  10. Smith's Bush Squirrel Paraxerus cepapi11

Insects

  1. Southern Banded Groundling Brachythemis leucosticta14
  2. Matabele Ant Megaponera analis8
  3. Elegant dropwing Trithemis werneri6
  4. Desert Orange Tip Colotis evagore5
  5. Guineafowl Butterfly Hamanumida daedalus4
  6. Yellow Pansy Junonia hierta4
  7. Bold Skimmer Orthetrum stemmale4
  8. Plain Tiger Butterfly Danaus chrysippus3
  9. Red Groundling Brachythemis lacustris3
  10. Violet Dropwing Trithemis annulata3

Spiders and kin

  1. Robust Burrowing Scorpion Opistophthalmus carinatus5
  2. Eastern Nomad Scorpion Hottentotta trilineatus4
  3. Yellow Lesser-Thicktail Scorpion Uroplectes flavoviridis3
  4. Usambara Baboon Tarantula Pterinochilus murinus2
  5. Hump Back Araneid Spider Eriovixia excelsa2
  6. Thyene ogdeni2
  7. Uroplectes zambezicus2
  8. Brown Widow Latrodectus geometricus1
  9. Eastern Bark Scorpion Uroplectes vittatus1
  10. Longleg Dandy Portia schultzi1

Reptiles

  1. Nile Crocodile Crocodylus niloticus24
  2. Fischer's Thick-toed Gecko Chondrodactylus laevigatus6
  3. Spotted Bush Snake Philothamnus semivariegatus5
  4. Wahlberg’s Striped Skink Trachylepis wahlbergii5
  5. Rock Monitor Varanus albigularis3
  6. Leopard Tortoise Stigmochelys pardalis3
  7. Nile Monitor Varanus niloticus3
  8. Snouted Cobra Naja annulifera3
  9. Dwarf Sand Snake Psammophis angolensis2
  10. Pointed Thick-toed Gecko Pachydactylus punctatus2

Amphibians

  1. Grey Foam-nest Tree Frog Chiromantis xerampelina10
  2. African Red Toad Schismaderma carens2
  3. Giant African Bullfrog Pyxicephalus adspersus2
  4. Guinea Snout-burrower Hemisus guineensis1
  5. Mottled Shovel-nosed Frog Hemisus marmoratus1
  6. Red-Banded Rubber Frog Phrynomantis bifasciatus1
  7. Power's Rain Frog Breviceps poweri1
  8. Müller's Clawed Frog Xenopus muelleri1
  9. Sharp-nosed ridged frog Ptychadena oxyrhynchus1
  10. Mozambique ridged frog Ptychadena mossambica1

Fish

  1. Sharptooth Catfish Clarias gariepinus3
  2. Redbreast Tilapia Coptodon rendalli2
  3. Striped Tigerfish Hydrocynus vittatus1
  4. Chessa Distichodus schenga1
  5. Vundu Heterobranchus longifilis1
  6. Malapterurus shirensis1
  7. Nile Tilapia Oreochromis niloticus1
  8. Spot-tail Robber Brachyalestes imberi1

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

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Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. Parks outside the U.S. are from the World Database on Protected Areas (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, Protected Planet). KnowKi is not affiliated with the National Park Service or any park's managers. Free, with no ads, no account, and no purchases.