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Understanding Serengeti's Annual Wildebeest Migration
Serengeti - Contents Table
Among the many resources and beauties found and seen in the Serengeti Ecosystem: rich animal and plant diversity, unexposed gold and mineral mines, superb sunsets on smooth landscapes, the number one wonder on the list in the Serengeti is the great wildebeest migration. The understanding on how and why the migration occurs is very complex; there are no definite and guaranteed conclusions to pin point a trigger(s) that starts the migration. The migration has formed its own culture in the Serengeti, with the wildebeest doing what they are doing for the last two million years. Nothing is a constant: not the rains, not the grass nor the timings of the migration. The migration starts when the wildebeest feel that the time has arrived. During the annual pilgrimage, that circumambulates the whole ecosystem starting from the South (Kusini) to the Western Corridor (Magharibi), curving back and heading North to Kenya (Kaskazini) and returning back through the Eastern Serengeti (Mashariki) back to the South, over a million wildebeest begin their journey, who will gallop over 1800 miles and consume over three million kilos of grass.
The whole migration is masterfully planned by nature, with most times the migration being led by the Burchells Zebra who relish the tall grasses, making it easier for the wildebeest with their sunken heads to chomp on the shorter grass. The remainder of short grass benefits the Thomson's (also called Tomi's) and Grant gazelles that trail the magical spectacle of the wildlife procession.
Details About Serengeti's Annual Wildebeest Migration
The complexity involved in the visitor focused research led by AfricanMecca and our guides to create a layman yet detailed documentation for the Serengeti National Park, an incredible task, which involved talking to personnel at all corners of the Serengeti ecosystem. Our documentation project entailed visiting all the sections of the Serengeti National Park where the Wildebeest, Zebras and Gazelles moved through. The details of the wildlife pilgrimage were needed to create an accurate awareness on the philosophy of the Serengeti. The below details follow chronologically:
Southeastern Serengeti: Lake Ndutu Area
The south-eastern section of the Serengeti bordering Ngorongoro Conservation Area is "the place to be" during December to March. The wildebeest pilgrimage actually come to life and concludes circumambulation in this region. During the December to March months, the wildebeest calve extravagantly, which creates a grand true to life lesson in nature science. Access to this region will be either from the border of Ngorongoro Conservation, which leads down to the Lake Ndutu or from within the Serengeti National Park. Visitors staying near the Lake Ndutu area are so blessed by the gift of wildlife that many visitors when staying at Ndutu Safari Lodge normally opt to pull a chair on their porch, grab a pair of binoculars and perform game watching from the comforts of their accommodation all day. Superb uncommon animals are seen with ease in this region apart from the famous big name ones. Our visit to Lake Ndutu gave us the opportunity to see, among others, the shy Steinbock gazelle, and cautious and beautiful Serval cat. Visitors can spend a good amount of time just game watching, grasping the behaviors of these and many other beautiful creatures.
Lake Ndutu from a visitor's perspective also harnesses the environment and the wildlife in the following manner: the rains fills up the seasonal lake, which brings the flamingoes and other beautiful birds to the lake. The lake also welcomes the calving wildebeest and other wildebeests that put a show to perform entertaining behavioral rituals on the lake; the wildebeest's presence is an encouraging call for the territorial predators like the lions to show up and take charge. Again, for AfricanMecca visitors the thrill of participating in these activities is once in a lifetime experience.
Southwestern Serengeti: Lake Magadi, Niaroboro Hills, Simba and Moru Kopjes Area
If you drive out from the Lake Ndutu area trekking the wildebeest as they continue their yearlong journey, the next stage would be the area cushioned by Lake Magadi, Niaroboro Hills, Simba and Moru Kopjes. We recommend visiting this area from April through end of May. The terrain of this area is hilly with perfectly positioned Kopjes. (The word Kopjes better pronounced Kop-ees than Kop-hes, is a Dutch word meaning "Rocky Outcrops" or "Hill Mounds of Rock". For those coming from a British education system would relate to the term called "Inselbergs", from their physical geography classes; kopjes were formed from ash deposits from years of volcanic activity. If the history behind the Kopjes were not revealed, the Kopjes of the Serengeti would be lying around like nothing happened.
The Kopjes of Serengeti plains promote the food web chain. They create the perfect lookout for predators like lions. The female lion, responsible for hunting, perches herself on the hill awaiting the snorting and galloping of the wildebeest, who take no notice of the watchful hunter until alerted by the sharp and watchful Zebras. With the sighting of a predator during their game drive, AfricanMecca guests park and turn off their vehicle engine and start a daylong watch that normally turns out to be their event of a lifetime.
Western Serengeti Corridor: Grumeti River Crossing
By the time the month of June arrives, the migration of the wildebeests, zebras and antelopes should be in the western corridor or should be arriving in the days ahead. The western Serengeti corridor is named as such because of the Serengeti National Park "horizontal thumbs up" shaped boundary, and the how the migratory wildlife seems to squeeze through and turn around later heading northwards. The park boundaries go as far as Lake Victoria; the park is accessible from north-western Tanzania region from Mwanza town. If one has not noticed it by now, there is change in the vegetation: from plains grass to mixture of acacia woodland and savannah plains grass. The additional wildlife viewing opportunities also brings a different perspective as you have the chance to view crocodiles, more hippos, and leopards lurking around on the acacia trees near riverbeds of the Grumeti, which flows into Lake Victoria.
Two interesting scientific questions have yet to be answered about Western Serengeti Corridor:
One, wildebeests migrating from the south stop and mix with "resident wildebeest of the western corridor" and do not join the current migration. Question is why?
Two, If the migration's primary trigger and motive is the search for water and greener grass, then at the depth of the migration in the western corridor, why do the wildebeest not continue onwards to Lake Victoria, which has ample of fresh water, but instead perform a complete turn around and continue their journey northwards crossing plains and rivers and facing gruesome challenges posed by predators?
Central Serengeti: Seronera
Seronera, heart of the Serengeti, is at the center of almost all safari program accommodations. This is where many visitors first arrive through by air at the Seronera airstrip or drive by road through route B144. From a wildlife perspective, our specialist safari guides also refer to Seronera as the no miss zone. Why?
First, because Seronera is all plains - hundreds of acres of flat land that our highly trained guiders can spot distant wildlife without a pair of binoculars.
Second, because Seronera's plains create incredible sundowners; one can actually see a whole bright orange ball just drop in front of one's eye.
Third, Seronera River and Ngare Nyanyuki are one of the main water sources for the central and eastern part of the Serengeti, which bring together a lot of wildlife.
Last but not least, Seronera provides an all-year game drive, and also allows visitors accessibility to the South, West and North of the Serengeti National Park.
Many of AfricanMecca's guests visiting the Serengeti get stunned to see burnt grass on the Seronera plains, often relating it to the wild forest fires, started naturally or otherwise, in regions like California. The fires often seen in the Serengeti are called "Early Season Burning Fires" started intentionally by Serengeti Park authorities, and are supposed to work in the following manner: During the end of the rains in May, the Serengeti Park personnel set fires to the grass inside the park boundaries to prepare for the dry month; the shortened burnt grass reduces the impact of a fire stemming from outside the park coming into the park, if such an unfortunate incident were to happen. One has to note the Serengeti National Park authorities do not have control of what happens beyond the park boundaries.
Northern Serengeti: Lobo Area
As the migration takes a turn around after the months of July heading northwards, it passes an area in the Serengeti referred to as Lobo. Staying at Lobo Lodge is a great opportunity to take a break and perform wildlife watching from the fantastic panoramic viewing points. Lobo remains what it is now as it was when we visited the first time in 1982: animals walking in and out of the area in numbers, and ability to see untamed giraffes less than 5 meters from the balcony of your room. Heading further on Lobo leads you close to Kliens Gate area, next to Loliondo Game Control. The vegetation changes to plains and woodlands; the landscapes elevate to display spectacular views of the Serengeti National Park and its ecosystem. If one is fortunate to be in the northern sector, staying at Kliens Camp, then migration of the wildebeest is literally at the bottom of the hill.
Masai Mara National Reserve: Journey into Kenya and Back
During the months of late August to end of October, the migration ought to be in Kenya or should be heading there. During the migration when the wildlife is crossing 2 different countries, many visitors undertake a dual visit to Tanzania and Kenya. The wildebeest crossing over the Mara River is a highlight for many who want to see them emerge victorious, when they make it across the river; other visitors take a different view and wait for the opportunity for nature to define its own rules, like the following incident: performing game watching on the Mara River gave one of our customers the opportunity to see a crocodile from the shallow brown river spring up and grab a hold of the wildebeest; in the process of the struggle, a lioness enters the river bed from the bush and attempts to successfully snatch the wildebeest right from the crocodiles mouth. Simply Incredible!
The migration spends the rest of the months on the Kenyan plains until end of October when they begin the journey back to Tanzania's Serengeti National Park and reaching the Lake Ndutu area by December to start the process all over again. At this time, the baked brown grass has turned green from the short rains, which act as a catalyst for the wildebeests to feed and regenerate their large number of herds lost on the way. And the migration cycle continues!
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