Aardwolf

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the Aardwolf at stays in or beside uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, Chelmsford Nature Reserve (Ntshingwayo Dam), Giants Castle Game Reserve, Ithala Game Reserve and Kamberg Nature Reserve and other reserves. A record means a host has seen it on the property or nearby, which makes these the places to base yourself; it is never a guarantee of a sighting on any given day.

The Aardwolf is most recorded in Northern Cape (43% of records), Eastern Cape (18% of records), Western Cape (14% of records), based on 449 iNaturalist observations. 18 places to stay on Spekboom in KwaZulu-Natal have recorded the Aardwolf on site or nearby.

The Aardwolf is recorded throughout the year, so no month is the wrong month to look for it. For the parks where hosts record it most, these are the best seasons they give. uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park: year-round, dry season May-Sep; Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park: year-round, dry season May-Sep; Chelmsford Nature Reserve (Ntshingwayo Dam): year-round; Giants Castle Game Reserve: year-round, dry season May-Sep. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

The Aardwolf (Proteles cristatus) is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

The aardwolf is an insectivorous mammal, native to East and Southern Africa. Its name means "earth-wolf" in Afrikaans and Dutch. It is also called "maanhaar-jackal" (Afrikaans for "mane-jackal"), "termite-eating hyena" and "civet hyena", based on its habit of secreting substances from its anal gland, a characteristic shared with the African civet. The aardwolf is in the same family as the hyena.