Ana: I heard that South Africa is famous for its wild animals.

 

Mike: That's true. We have many different kinds of animals in South Africa. Have you heard of the big five?

 

Ana: I think so but I don't remember what it is.

 

Mike: So the big five are the animals that foreign tourists like to come and see in South Africa. And there are safaris and trips you can go on to wildlife reserves to see these animals.

 

Ana: So what are they?

 

Mike: So would you like to guess?

 

Ana: I guess lions.

 

Mike: Yes, that's one of them.

 

Ana: And elephants.

 

Mike: Yes.

 

Ana: And giraffes.

 

Mike: No. The giraffe is definitely a big animal but it's not one of the big five. The other three are rhinoceros, the – is it the water buffalo, I think. And the final one is – what is the final one?

 

Ana: Is it the cheetah?

 

Mike: Yes, the cheetah. Yes. The cheetah can run very, very fast.

 

Ana: Okay, and have you seen all of these animals?

 

Mike: Let me think. It's been a while since I visited a wildlife reserve but I've seen elephants before. And let's see; I've seen a lion. I don't think I've ever seen a cheetah. I've seen a rhinoceros from far away.

 

Ana: I've heard they're quite dangerous.

 

Mike: I don't think that there are not many of them in the wild. I don't know if there are any in the wild. They're all in wildlife enclosures so that actually I don't think many people are injured or killed by rhinoceroses. But actually, do you know what the most dangerous animal is in Africa?

 

Ana: Is it the lion?

 

Mike: No, it's not. It's the hippopotamus.

 

Ana: Really?

 

Mike: I think they killed more people every year in the world than any other animal.

 

Ana: Wow, that's very surprising.

 

Mike: Maybe mosquitoes kill more with malaria but in terms of big animals, it's definitely the hippopotamus.

 

Ana: Wow.

 

Mike: They have very long teeth as well.

 

Ana: That's scary.

 

Mike: Yeah. It is pretty scary. You don't want to be – you know, they can swim as well. So they would – and if you go out on the river in a little bit on a dam and there's a hippopotamus, he can tip your boat over and bite you in half.

 

Ana: All right. So you should definitely look out for hippos when you go to South Africa.

 

Mike: Yeah. You should be careful. Crocodiles can also be nasty.

 

Ana: Okay.