What is the Migration?

There have many been people curious about safaris in Tanzania, so I thought I would start updating with a bit more information about the basics of safari. If you ever have a safari question, you can call safari expert Donovan at 866-549-7614.

Every year, over one million wildebeest move through the Serengeti plains in search of food and water. The phenomenon of these animals moving en mass through the African savanna is known as the Migration. The seasonal rains that water the grazing pastures drive their movement. It is impossible to predict in advance exactly how or when this progression will take place, but there is a pattern.

Generally from mid-December through May the herds are feeding in the southern Serengeti. During February thousands of calves appear on the plains. Between June and July, the wildebeest begin their annual migration north reaching the Mara River that marks the Kenyan border sometime between the end of July and beginning of August. After the first short rains, usually in the beginning of November, the herds move back into Tanzania’s Serengeti and make their way to the southern pastures where they rest and feed through the rains until their search for better grazing leads them to begin their annual migration once again.

Even when the “migration” moves into Kenya for the summer months, there are many resident herds in the Serengeti and there is always an incredible array of wildlife to experience there. Also, in the summer months, which are the height of the dry season, thousands of elephant congregate around the Tarangire River. This park is at it’s prime during these months.