Working in the Bush

There are many people who live and work in the bush, some permanently and some on a part-time or volunteer basis. Some of them you may encounter during your stay at a game reserve, whilst others you will not, as they work in the background managing the wild areas for others to enjoy.

Working in the bush can be both exhilarating and difficult. Whilst you are surrounded by the raw beauty of nature, you also have to give up many creature comforts, with local shops often being miles away, and limited access to the things people in cities take for granted. But what you gain and experience, for most people, far outweighs the sacrifices.

This is an overview of the job types you will encounter in the bush.

Field Guides

Also known as Safari Guides and Game Guides, these are the people who guide tourists through the bush, on game drives and bush walks. The field guide is the ambassador for the bush, and it is their job to introduce tourists to the reserve, to educate them about the wildlife and the flora, and to take care of them while they are there. The guides are a fountain of knowledge, so don’t be afraid to ask questions!

Field guides work long hours, typically starting the day at around 4am, and finishing at around 10pm or whenever their guests decide to retire for the night. They work 7 days a week for many weeks on end. Some guides even help to prepare the meals and most guides have various administration duties, as well as being responsible for the upkeep of their vehicles and equipment. It is both a challenging and rewarding job, although financially speaking guides often rely on tips from guests to make up for a low pay level - so please don’t forget to tip them if you’ve had a good time!

You can learn more about the life of a field guide by reading some of our blogs, or chat to some guides by visiting our discussion forums. For more information about working as a field guide, and about field guide training courses, please visit the Field Guides Association of Southern Africa (FGASA) website. If you are interested in guiding in Kenya, you may visit the Kenya Professional Safari Guide Association’s site.

Game Rangers

The rangers are the people on the frontline of conservation in the bush, and they are responsible for the upkeep and management of the game reserve, and for the protection and conservation of all the wildlife and flora within the reserve. They are not safari guides and they do not usually interact with tourists, unless its to arrest them, or pull them out of trouble!

Amongst the ranger’s wide array of duties, they are in charge of the upkeep of park roads, surveying animal populations and health, mounting game capture operations, managing the flora of the reserves and the general ecological wellbeing of the local environment. They also play an important role in preventing the illegal poaching of animals on the reserves and managing park boundaries. This part of the job can be very dangerous and rangers may find themselves in gun battles with poachers. So the job of a ranger can be thought of as a kind of conservation policeman.

It’s a tough job, but the payoff is an office the size of a city and hairy colleagues who would sooner take a bite out of your leg than wish you a good morning. And then there’s the wildlife too.

You can learn more about the life of a game ranger by visiting the Game Rangers Association of Africa (GRAA) website for more details, or by reading our blogs featured in the Wildlife Blogs section.

Trackers

Trackers work with both the field guides and game rangers to track animals and to educate the tourists to the signs and tracks of the bushveld wildlife. They are highly trained and usually have a vast amount of experience of bush life and animal behaviour. They also work with rangers to track and arrest poachers.

Tracking is an ancient skill and a highly respected discipline. It is not easily learnt and takes years to master. It is a skill that early man had to master during a hunter-gatherer existence, reading the bush like a predator to hunt and track their prey, and it was arguably the birth of scientific thought.

The basics of tracking can be learnt on a course and you can get an overview of tracking skills by purchasing a book on the subject. Please see our book section in the discussion forum for recommended reading. Many of the FGASA accredited training schools also offer tracking courses.

Lodge Staff

Aside from the field guides, most game lodges (depending on size) will also employ cleaning staff, kitchen staff and administration staff. These people are responsible for the daily running and general upkeep of the lodge and the accommodation, to ensure that tourists enjoy a pleasant stay in the bush. They are often the unsung heroes of the tourist lodges, keeping the operations running smoothly in the background.

Ecologists

Ecologists are scientists who specialise in issues of wildlife and habitat management. They work with the rangers and reserve staff to monitor animal populations and habitat health, and to advise on the best wildlife management policies for the rangers to implement. You can read more about this in our Habitat Management section.

Zoologists, Botanists and other Scientists

Game reserves and wilderness areas are host to a huge variety of biological and geological diversity, and thus attract zoologists, biologists, botanists, geologists and ecologists amongst a range of other specialists from the scientific community. They often conduct field research for PhD studies or conservation projects, and often assist the reserve management in their policy-making decisions.

Conservationists

The term ‘conservationist’ could well be applied to the game rangers and the ecologists as well as almost everyone else working in the bush, but in this context we refer to the wider spectrum of conservation, such as volunteer workers and charities who work to protect endangered wildlife and plant species, and who help the local communities living in and around the game reserves.

Volunteer work may involve building new homes, establishing water supplies, clearing bush encroachment and repairing roads damaged by soil erosion. It is important work and it can be a great way to experience life in the bush for a short time, particularly if you are keen to work full-time in the bush oneday. Please see our Charities and Trusts section for more details about the different volunteer projects you can apply for, and the charities you can donate to. You will find similar information in our Wildlife Blogs.