Serengeti National Park is located in Tanzania and is part of the larger Serengeti ecosystem which covers 12,000 square miles (30,000 sq km) and includes several other game reserves. The national park itself covers an area of 5,700 square miles (14,750 sq km) (14,750 sq km). It is a GANP Ambassador Park and runs contiguously with the Masai Mara in Kenya.
The name Serengeti is derived from a similar Masai word which translates, “the place where land runs on forever.” It is also affectionately known as the “endless plains.” The area is comprised of grassland plains, savanna, riverine forest, and woodlands. Although the majority of the park is open plains, the elevation does vary from 3,000 to 6,000 feet (914 to 1,828 m) (914 to 1,828 m). The lofty rock croppings spawn visions of the movie “Lion King,” and it is possible you may even see lions on them.
The Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, and Mount Kilimanjaro are almost inseparable when it comes to traveling to Tanzania. Visitors will almost always experience the three of these together. Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti share the migrating wildebeest, zebra and impala herds.
In general, the park is often described as three regions with boundaries of the national park. The primary area is the Serengeti plains where is where the wildebeest breed. A second area is a western corridor featuring black clay covered savannahs. This area is home to crocodiles and hippopotamuses. Hippo pools near this area are guaranteed to have hippos sleeping and lounging.
Hills and woodlands dominate the northern Serengeti, the third area. This is the best place to find an elephant and a giraffe.
Wildlife and biodiversity are famous in Serengeti National Park. The park has the Big 5—lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, and buffalo. Except for the mountain gorilla, all of Africa’s Big 7 (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, hippo, and crocodile) can be found in the national park.
The African wild dog, cheetah, hyena, jackals, African golden wolf, honey badger, serval, and lion are other predators. Most predators can be seen in the park’s open landscape. If more than three safari vehicles are gathered, they are likely looking at lions or leopards.
The largest remaining unaltered mammalian migration in the world is the pinnacle wildlife experience of the Serengeti. Over 1.3 million wildebeest, 250,000 zebra, 500,000 gazelles, and thousands of topi, hartebeest, and impala migrate. This statistic helped make the migration one of Africa’s Seven Natural Wonders.
