Kruger National Park is one of the most famous wildlife reserves on the planet. It is bigger than several European countries - around 20,000 square kilometres - and is home to thousands of elephants, lions, leopards, buffalo and rhinos, plus hippos, giraffes, zebras, wild dogs and over 500 kinds of bird.
Each of the Big Five is special in its own way. The elephant is the biggest land animal alive. The white rhino is the second-biggest. The leopard is the best climber - it can drag prey twice its own weight up a tree. The buffalo lives in huge herds that look after each other carefully. And the lion is the only big cat that lives in family groups.
All five are protected by law. South Africa has rangers whose job is to look after them, count them, and make sure they are safe. Some of the rangers are women, some are dog-and-handler teams, and many work overnight on patrol in the parks.
Tourists from all over the world come to South Africa hoping to see the Big Five in the wild - on safari, in a special vehicle, with a guide. Spotting all five on one trip is called 'getting the Big Five' and is the proudest thing a safari guide can help you do.

