GIANT TORTOISES
Once found on almost every continent, giant
tortoises were hunted to near-extinction
during the Age of Exploration (from the 15th to
the 17th century). However, in the Seychelles, a
late 19th-century ban on their slaughter saved
the Indian Ocean’s last tiny population. There
are now around 150,000 Aldabra tortoises,
mostly on the island of Aldabra. This atoll is
breathtakingly remote, but if you’re keen to
see some huge reptiles lumbering around,
there’s a more accessible alternative: Curieuse
Island, which can be reached by water taxi
from Praslin Island. seychelles.travelHUMPBACK WHALES
Most of us are familiar with East Africa’s
Great Migration, which gallops across Kenya’s
Maasai Mara between July and October each
year. But have you heard of East Africa’s
Marine Migration? At around the same time
the wildebeest and zebras are arriving from
the Serengeti, humpback whales appear in
Kenya’s coastal waters, ready to breed. Some
calve in the warm, calm refuge of Watamu
Marine National Park. The Watamu Marine
Association has been studying them since
2011, and runs a project allowing tourists to
add their sightings to its database. watamu.bizisland of
Mozambique
In its medieval heyday, Africa’s
Swahili Coast was dotted with
prosperous trading posts.
Tragically, some of their most
magnificent buildings crumbled
away after independence, but
in Mozambique’s first capital,
Ilha (as the locals know it), many
mansions have been restored,
with appealing guesthouses,
galleries and museums popping
up on the historic streets.CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: A youngster
cycles through the streets of Stone Town,
Island of Mozambique; a humpback
whale breaches at sunset off the coast
of Madagascar; giant tortoise, Île aux
Aigrettes, MauritiusIMAGES: AWL IMAGES; GETTY
Jul/Aug 2020 99INDIAN OCEAN