3 Days Sahara Wildlife Safari: Birds, Fennec Foxes & Reptiles

 After breakfast, begin your 3 Days journey with a dedicated birdwatching excursion around Merzouga. The desert plains and oases attract an impressive variety of species. You may see crowned sandgrouse, spotted sandgrouse, and with luck, the elusive pin-tailed sandgrouse. Other highlights include the African desert warbler, greater hoopoe lark, Egyptian nightjar, desert sparrow, desert lark, bar-tailed lark, black wheatear, and desert wheatear. It is also possible to encounter the African houbara, cream-colored courser, streaked scrub warbler, fulvous chatterer, trumpeter finch, Temminck’s lark, great grey shrike, and the majestic pharaoh eagle owl. In certain seasons, flamingos may also appear at desert lakes.

In the late afternoon, ride quads into the dunes for about two hours in search of the Fennec fox, one of the Sahara’s most iconic and elusive creatures. After sunset, return for dinner and an overnight stay in the desert.

Rise early, about 30 minutes before sunrise, for a quad excursion to track Fennec foxes in the soft morning light. After breakfast, continue exploring the desert to spot additional bird species or revisit locations for a second chance to see the sandgrouse and other specialties. This is an opportunity to observe and photograph any birds you may have missed on the first day.As the day cools, set off again on a sunset quad ride to see Fennecs at dusk. Dinner is followed by an exciting nocturnal wildlife safari, lasting three to four hours. The desert comes alive at night with small mammals such as Egyptian jerboas, gerbils, sand rats, fat-tailed gerbils, and northern elegant geckos. If luck is on your side, you may also encounter the rare sand cat (Felis margarita), one of the Sahara’s most elusive predators. Return to your desert accommodation for an overnight stay.

After breakfast, dedicate the day to a guided herpetological exploration of the Sahara. This fascinating tour reveals reptiles and desert specialists, including the desert monitor, horned viper (Cerastes cerastes), Cerastes vipera, sandfish, sand racer, Uromastyx, agamas, sand lizards, and desert scorpions. Your guide will explain their unique adaptations and the roles they play in the fragile desert ecosystem.

In the evening, enjoy a final quad excursion to track Fennec foxes as the sun sets over the dunes. The day ends with dinner and overnight in Merzouga, bringing your desert wildlife adventure to a close.