52 Places to Go: Week 11
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| Migrating wildebeest crossing the Mara River, Tanzania, Africa |
Our friend Owen Floody, who recently retired from a career of
teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, has had the good fortune of being able
to travel frequently. His trips have been divided between treks and safaris, reflecting his interests in seeing (and
photographing) interesting landscapes and wildlife. Here is his report on his safari to Tanzania in late July and early August of
2017.
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| Grey-crowned crane |
Though I have visited Africa many
times, I never had focused on, or adequately seen, the Great Migration of more
than a million wildebeest, zebra and other animals that is concentrated in Tanzania’s
Serengeti National Park.
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| Wildebeest launching themselves into the Mara River to begin their crossing |
In one sense the Great Migration is
difficult to miss: Rather than being confined to a fraction of the year, its
clockwise circulation of animals continues nearly year-round.
Still, there are parts of the migration that
are more dramatic than others and one of the most dramatic of all seems to be
that at which the animals are forced to cross the Mara River, near Serengeti’s
northern border.
It is at this point
that the wildebeest probably are at greatest risk of death due to drowning or
predation by crocodiles.
It is estimated that about 6,500 wildebeest drown in the Mara each year,
injecting tons of nutrients into the river ecosystem in the process
(
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 114, 7647, 2017).
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| Wildebeest entering the Mara River |
My desire to see a river crossing led me to work with
Warrior Trails, my favorite Tanzanian tour operator, to plan a trip to the
northern Serengeti in late July and early August, when crossing seemed likely.
Our plan committed us to five nights at
a tented camp within striking distance of the Mara. It seemed most prudent to give ourselves several
opportunities to catch crossings, assuming that we had guessed right on the
time of year.
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| Wildebeest emerging from the river at the end of the crossing |
So, did we see our crossing?
Yes, we did, and on the second day of our time in the north.
As crossings go, this seemed extremely
benign: The river was low and slow, and the crocodiles must still have been
digesting their meals from prior days as none of them made an appearance.
Nevertheless, the crossing was one of the
most exciting spectacles I have seen.
And
I did not feel cheated in the least by the uniform success of the animals we
saw crossing: There was adequate evidence of past (and likely future) failures,
and I did not really need to directly observe these.
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| Lion |
This focus made for a relatively simple
itinerary.
We flew into Kilimanjaro
Airport, near Arusha, and essentially made a beeline for the northern Serengeti,
a transfer that involved many hours of often dusty driving.
Upon the completion of our time there, we
returned to Arusha almost as directly.
What terrible hardships we endured!
Lest you feel too sorry for us, bear in mind that we made several stops
en route, at Lake Manyara National Park and in the central Serengeti on the way
north, in central Serengeti again and at the Ngorongoro Crater on the
return.
Also, bear in mind that
Serengeti is varied and wonderful, possibly my favorite place in earth.
What a privilege to be “forced” to spend a
couple of weeks there.
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| Female Leopard |
Our early success freed us for a succession of game drives exploring different nearby parts
of the Serengeti.
It exposed us to some of
the variety of habitats that the park incorporates and helped to put the Great
Migration in context by contrasting areas that the migrating animals were
vacating versus occupying.
In addition,
it provided us with the time we needed to find, view and enjoy some of the
other wildlife (and scenery) for which the Serengeti is so famous.
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| Grey-headed Kingfisher |
In preparing for an African safari, I think it generally
best to
not become too invested in particular sightings: The chance
element is too strong and there are too many wonderful things to be seen, any
subset of which is likely to be thrilling.
Altogether, our trip could not
have been much more successful or pleasant.
Note: A wildebeest is
a large dark antelope with a long head, a beard and mane, and a sloping back. It is also called a gnu.
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