Channel Title: African Plant Hunter Channel Description: If you've ever wondered about the marula oil hype, why baobab is the "Tree of Life", or what the best natural remedy for skin cancer is, you've come to the right place. My name is Gus, the African Plant Hunter, and it's my mission to share the secrets of Africa's trees an plants with the rest of the world. I was born in a little mission hospital in Kenya. As an 18 year old (back in '85 - you do the math!), I drove a beaten up old Land Rover from London, across the Sahara, through the Congo rainforest, to the East African coast. After that, I was lucky enough to study anthropology at Cambridge University and social ecology at Yale, and that set me off on a career working with African plants. As for this channel, I started it as a way of sharing my love for Africa and its biodiversity. In my travels, I get to learn and see many amazing things, and it seems wrong to keep it all to myself! So, if you're intrigued by some of Africa's planty secrets, hop on the bus. It'll be a wild ride! <video> Insiders Guide to Christopher, the Old Legs Tour Support Truck Description: Old Legs Angola tour 2024 has been an extraordinary experience for me on so many levels. Not least because it's the first time I've really ventured into the wilds with a full support team (a luxury I could definitely get used to!). One of the key elements of the support has been Christopher, the sturdy Isuzu 4wd truck who has conveyed us through forest, savannah and desert without so much as a hiccup. This is a behind the scenes look at this extraordinary vehicle, for whom I have now the very deepest respect! </video> <video> Biking to Angola: Highlights Week 2: Victoria Falls to Angola Description: Week 2 Highlights: Western Zambia. Our second week took us past the Ngonye Falls, across the magnificent Barotse floodplain, through the source of the Zambezi and into Angola. Unforgettable landscapes and plenty of adventure as we started to really get into our stride! Not too late to support our fundraising efforts for old age pensioners. Check out www.oldlegstour.com for more info. </video> <video> Notable Trees of the African Bush E19: Ghost tree/Moringa ovalifolia Description: Few people haven't heard of the Moringa tree, whose leaves and seed oil are touted as something of a miracle cure for a wide range of ailments. Although often perceived as an African species, the Moringa tree (specifically Moringa oleifera) is actually from India. But there is another, genuinely African Moringa species, which is found exclusively in Northern Namibia and southern Angola. It's called Moringa ovalifolia and, on my recent trip to Namibia, I was thrilled to see a sample in the fabulous National Botanic Garden in Windhoek. If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ To see some of my other work on underutilised plants, check out: https://www.bio-innovation.org/ #moringa #Namibia #plants </video> <video> Snippets from the bush: What happens when a Baobab falls over? Description: Not all baobabs fall because they've died. Sometimes they fall simply because they're structurally weak, or they got blown over in a storm, or maybe pushed by an elephant. So when this happens, do they actually die? In this short snippet from north-eastern Namibia, I show a baobab tree that has clearly fallen over, but that doesn't actually appear to be dead. How is that?! Dive in and you'll find out! If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ To see some of my other work on underutilised plants, check out: https://www.bio-innovation.org/ #baobab #Namibia #plants </video> <video> Madagascar Self Drive Adventure 2024 E01: Antananarivo to Antsirabe Description: Malagasy queens didn't mess about. Queen Ranavalona 1, who ruled in the 1800s, was very specific about how she wanted her lovers. But you gotta hand it to her, she lived in an awesome spot on the top of a hill overlooking Antananarivo. And hey, she was queen, so she could do whatever she wanted! We visited her palace yesterday before collecting our vehicles, and today was our first day on the road in Madagascar. We're in Antsirabe now, where they make beer. And I saw a spectacular medicinal tree today, called the Thousand Ailments, because of its legendary ability to cure so many diseases. I feel like I've died and nearly got to heaven! This is the next part in a series of short video episodes from the trip, chronicling highlights of our journey around the south-west of the country. If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ If you're interested in joining me on a future Self Drive Adventure, check out: https://www.selfdriveadventures.com/ #overlanding #overlandingafrica #selfdrive </video> <video> Madagascar Self Drive Adventure 2024 E04: Bemaraha to Morombe Description: The road ends at a river. There's a ferry on the opposite bank. People appear from all sides and, before we know what's happening, the ferry is being manuallly towed across the river by a group of willing helpers. This is real Madagascan adventure! Our Self Drive Adventure through this magnificent country continues down the west coast from the Tsingys of Bemaraha national park, through the stunning Allée des Baobabs, to a gloriously quiet and isolated beach resort at Belo sur Mer, and on to the forgotten town of Morombe. Via a ferry. That was hand pulled across the river! This is the next part in a series of short video episodes from the trip, chronicling highlights of our journey around the south-west of the country. If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ If you're interested in joining me on a future Self Drive Adventure, check out: https://www.selfdriveadventures.com/ #overlanding #overlandingafrica #selfdrive </video> <video> Madagascar Self Drive Adventure 2024 E03: Bemaraha National Park Description: The Little Tsingy and the Big Tsingy. Up from Morandava is the Parc National de Bemaraha, with some incredibly unique limsestone formations called "Tsingy". Totally spectacular, with the added benefit of a fitted Via Ferrata, allowing us to get into some surprisingly exciting and precarious positions on the top of these very sharp, rocky protrusions. Madagascar keeps on giving! This is the next part in a series of short video episodes from the trip, chronicling highlights of our journey around the south-west of the country. If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ If you're interested in joining me on a future Self Drive Adventure, check out: https://www.selfdriveadventures.com/ #overlanding #overlandingafrica #selfdrive </video> <video> Biking to Angola: Highlights Week 1, Harare to Victoria Falls Description: My first week on a bicycle was one of the most challenging but rewarding weeks of my life. The learning curve was steep as I tried to master the names for parts of a bicycle (never thought I'd use the word "cassette" again in my life), and the parts of my body that I never knew existed and were now experiencing severe pain ("perineum", apparently!). But our journey from Harare cross country to Victoria Falls was a lot of fun. To support our fundraising efforts for old age pensioners, please check out our website, www.oldlegstour.com. </video> <video> Biking to Angola: Highlights Week 3: AngolanBorder to Cuemba Description: This is a long overdue highlights reel from our epic third week in Angola. This was the week we entered Angola from the north-eastern border with Zambia and DRC, passing through some incredibly remote and untouched country before finally encountering, to our total surprise, a tarmac road. As well as a borken helicopter, several blown up tanks, some stunning flora and a terrifyingly close nocturnal encounter with a train! </video> <video> My Idea of Heaven - the Allée des Baobabs, Madagascar Description: Madagascar is rightly famous for its Baobabs. While we make do with one species of Baobab on the whole of mainland Africa, Madagascar has a whopping seven different species. This country is, genuinely, paradise for Baobab lovers! The Allée des Baobabs on the west coast is the poster child for all Madagascan Baobabs, and on my recent trip there, I tickets off a bucket list item and saw them. Wow wow wow! If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ To see some of my other work on underutilised plants, check out: https://www.bio-innovation.org/ #baobab #madagascar #selfdrive </video> <video> Madagascar Self Drive Adventure 2024 E02: Antsirabe to Bemaraha Description: We saw the magnificent Allée des Baobabs, met our first lemurs and even saw that rarest of all Madagscan predators, the fossa. If this had been the end of our Madagascar trip, we'd feel fully satiated. But it's only the start! Wow, what an incredible country.....!! This is the next part in a series of short video episodes from the trip, chronicling highlights of our journey around the south-west of the country. If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ If you're interested in joining me on a future Self Drive Adventure, check out: https://www.selfdriveadventures.com/ #overlanding #overlandingafrica #selfdrive </video> <video> Madagascar Self Drive Adventure 2024. Prologue: Antananarivo Description: It's been a lifelong dream of mine to visit Madagascar (dating back to even before they brought the movie out!). So when I got the chance to accompany a group of self drive tourists on a one month odyssey through the country, naturally I leapt at it! Which baobab lover wouldn't jump at the chance of visiting one of the world's most biodiverse countries, containing some of the world's quirkiest flora and fauna and nearly all of the world's Baobab tree species (most of which are only found on Madagascar!). It was a no brainer. And, let me tell you, I wasn't disappointed. This is an extraordinary country and I loved every minute of being there! This is the first part in a series of short video episodes from the trip, chronicling highlights of our journey around the south-west of the country. There's still a lot more to see of Madagascar but, as a first bite of the cherry, it sure tasted good! If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ If you're interested in joining me on a future Self Drive Adventure, check out: https://www.selfdriveadventures.com/ #baobab #madagascar #selfdrive </video> <video> ikigai of Baobab Description: Ikigai is the Japanese secret to a long and happy life. As one of the longest-living species on our planet, the Baobab tree is master of the art of ikigai. How and why has this happened, and what pointers Baobabs have for the rest of us, is the subject of this talk I gave to a group of Rotarians in Zimbabwe. It’s a rare interdisciplinary foray for me, combining elements of my love of plants with my desire to help people find fulfilment and happiness on earth. </video> <video> Notable Plants of the African Bush E17: Nara Melon/Acanthosicyos horridus Description: It almost never rains in the Namib desert. How a juicy melon can grow and thrive in this environment almost defies biological explanation. But, somehow, the Nara melon (Acanthosicyos horridus) does just that! I've long known of this extraordinary plant, but never had the chance to get up close and personal. On a recent trip to Swakopmund, I was thrilled to see a large clump of Nara melon close to the road. naturally I jumped out, camera in hand, and shot a video! If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ To see some of my other work on underutilised plants, check out: https://www.bio-innovation.org/ #wildmelon #Namibia #Topnaar </video> <video> Notable Plants of the African Bush E18: !Khores/Bushman Poison/Adenium boehmianum Description: Adenium boehmianum (Bushman poison) is one of several plants in southern Africa with a common name relating to their traditional use as poisons. This one, found in Namibia and Angola, is especially associated with the Hai//om of northern Namibia, who use an extract of the tuberous roots as a highly effective and potent arrow poison. Sadly I haven't yet had the chance to see this plant in its natural environment, but I was thrilled to encounter it on my recent visit to the extraordinary National Botanic Garden in Windhoek. So thrilled that I shot this video to share with you! If you enjoyed this, please consider supporting me in my mission to raise awareness of African plants and wild places through my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/africanplanthunter To see more videos of the African Plant Hunter in action, please subscribe to this channel or check the following links: https://africanplanthunter.com/ https://www.facebook.com/AfricanPlantHunter/ https://www.instagram.com/africanplanthunter/ To see some of my other work on underutilised plants, check out: https://www.bio-innovation.org/ #adenium #Namibia #Hai//om </video>

Contacts and Links

Description

If you've ever wondered about the marula oil hype, why baobab is the "Tree of Life", or what the best natural remedy for skin cancer is, you've come to the right place. My name is Gus, the African Plant Hunter, and it's my mission to share the secrets of Africa's trees an plants with the rest of the world.

I was born in a little mission hospital in Kenya. As an 18 year old (back in '85 - you do the math!), I drove a beaten up old Land Rover from London, across the Sahara, through the Congo rainforest, to the East African coast. After that, I was lucky enough to study anthropology at Cambridge University and social ecology at Yale, and that set me off on a career working with African plants.

As for this channel, I started it as a way of sharing my love for Africa and its biodiversity. In my travels, I get to learn and see many amazing things, and it seems wrong to keep it all to myself! So, if you're intrigued by some of Africa's planty secrets, hop on the bus. It'll be a wild ride!

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