The goal of everyone who goes on safari is to spot The Big 5: lion, elephant, leopard, rhinoceros, and Cape buffalo. It took us 3 tries to see them all, but in January this year we finally did it!
Less famous (or looked-for) are The Ugly 5. The 5 are known for weird body builds and dull coloration, on a continent where each animal is more striking than the next. I give you #2:
The Wildebeest. It’s not only one of Africa’s Ugly 5: the wildebeest, along with the zebra, takes part in the largest migration in the world. In January we watched from a jeep as 1.5 million animals made the winter trek in Serengeti National Park.
Like the hyena (who we met as Ugly #1), the blue wildebeest has short hind legs and longer front legs (for endurance) and wide forequarters (greater lung capacity). The wildebeest has a strangely flat face, both sexes grow horns, and their coloring is a dark grey, blueish sheen. I’ve heard them called the ‘spare parts critter’: the horns of a juvenile buffalo, the tail of a horse, the beard of a goat, and a sloped, hyena-like back. Definitely a strange looking dude!
NOTES: https://www.sabisabi.com/ I just discovered that the wildebeest has the honor of being the only animal on the Ugly 5 AND the Stupid 5 list. I’ll get to that list soon! © Jadi Campbell 2026. All photos © Uwe Hartmann. To see more of Uwe’s animal photos and pics from our trips go to viewpics.de.
I am a Best American Essays-nominated writer. My books are Broken In: A Novel in Stories, Tsunami Cowboys, Grounded, The Trail Back Out, and The Taste of Your Name. Recent awards include F
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