Photo: Contiki
Across the world’s great national parks and reserves, a few wild animals rise above the rest – not just for their size, beauty, or power, but for the stories they leave behind. These are the legends of the safari world: lions who ruled against the odds, tigers who fought crocodiles, elephants with tusks that scrape the ground, and tortoises who carried the fate of their species on their shells.
These are some of the most famous creatures to ever roam the wild. And yes, you can still spot some of them on your safari trip!
1. Craig, AKA “Super Tusker”
Amboseli National Park, Kenya
Craig is one of the last “Super Tuskers” (AKA elephants whose tusks are so long they almost scrape the ground). What makes Craig legendary isn’t just his size, but his temperament. Despite being a giant capable of flattening anything in his path, he’s known for his calm, gentle nature. Guides often tell of Craig wandering right past safari vehicles, so close you could hear him breathe, yet completely unbothered. He’s basically a living ambassador for his species. Craig is still alive, and spotting him on the plains of Amboseli in Kenya, with Kilimanjaro rising behind him, is considered one of Africa’s ultimate safari experiences.
2. Scarface
Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya
Scarface was perhaps the most famous lion in Africa, instantly recognised by the deep scar across his right eye – a wound from a territorial fight that never healed. That scar turned him into a legend, a lion who embodied survival against all odds. For nearly a decade, he ruled the Maasai Mara with his brothers, the Four Musketeers, holding vast territories and fathering countless cubs. Anecdotes abound of Scarface limping into battles, injured but unwilling to back down, his resilience inspiring both guides and conservationists. He lived longer than most wild lions ever do, finally passing in 2021 of natural causes. A true king – who went on his own terms.
Other legends in the Mara today include the Marsh Pride, known for their dramatic battles with hyenas, and cheetah coalitions like the Five Musketeers, who continue to dominate the savannah.
3. Machli (T-16), AKA Queen of Ranthambore
Ranthambore National Park, India
Machli wasn’t just a tigress – she was an empress. Nicknamed the “Queen of Ranthambore,” she ruled the park for over a decade, raising cub after cub and single-handedly boosting the park’s tiger population. What made her legendary was her fearlessness: one of her most famous encounters was when she fought and killed a 14-foot crocodile in Ranthambore’s lakes, a battle that cemented her status as one of the fiercest tigers ever documented. Beyond her battles, her legacy lives on in her descendants – over half of Ranthambore’s current tiger population traces back to her bloodline. Machli passed away in 2016, but her name still echoes through the ruins and lakes she once patrolled.
Today, you can spot her descendants like Arrowhead, Riddhi, and Siddhi who carry on Machli’s dynasty in India.
4. Kali, AKA Mama Kali
Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Kali the lioness captured hearts on the docu-series Serengeti, set in the iconic plains of Tanzania. Her story is one of betrayal and resilience: after having cubs with a male lion from outside her pride, she was exiled, forced to navigate the harsh Serengeti alone. But against all odds, Kali proved herself a devoted mother, hunting, protecting, and nurturing her four cubs in a landscape where survival is never guaranteed. Her journey highlights the strict social rules of lion prides and the daily challenges of raising young in the wild, turning Kali into a symbol of strength and determination in Tanzania’s legendary Serengeti.
5. Lonesome George
Galápagos Islands, Ecuador
Lonesome George became the face of extinction and conservation. As the last known Pinta Island giant tortoise, he lived alone for decades, despite every attempt to find him a mate. Scientists tried pairing him with females from related subspecies, but George never produced offspring, deepening his legend as the eternal bachelor. When he died in 2012, he left behind not just an empty enclosure, but a legacy that continues to inspire global conservation. A true legend of the Galápagos Islands.
6. Diego
Galápagos Islands, Ecuador
The Galápagos Islands are still home to other legendary tortoises, such as Diego, who fathered over 800 offspring and helped save his subspecies from extinction. If Lonesome George was the symbol of solitude, Diego was the opposite – the saviour playboy of Ecuador. Taken to the San Diego Zoo in the 1930s, he was later returned for a breeding programme on Española Island. Over the decades, Diego fathered more than 800 offspring, almost single-handedly rescuing his subspecies from extinction. Rangers often joked he carried the future of his species on his shell – and he did. Now retired back on Española, Diego lives out his days as a conservation legend.
