When looking for one of the most famous areas in Tanzania and Africa, look no further than the Ngorongoro conservation area. It’s a true Spectacle of Africa and that’s why it’s a UNESCO world heritage site from the year 1979 and on the list of the seven wonders of Africa. This area has stunning views and scenery that it provides to the visitors that come here.
The crater is believed to be about 260 meters deep and 2,000 Kilometers squared of area. It’s definitely one of the highlights of the visit to the Ngorongoro crater.
Besides the Crater and the site with the oldest remains, there are many other attractions. The Ngorongoro conservation area boosts of about 25,000 species of animals. In the rainy seasons, there will be over 1.7 million wildebeests the will migrate into the ndutu plains for calving. There are about 470,000 gazelles and over 260,000 zebras that will also go into calving during this same season and area.
The Ngorongoro conservation area will give you a chance to see the endangered black rhinos and the Giant African tusked Elephant. The area also has the wild cats of Africa that include: Lions, Cheetahs, Leopards, Caracals and Servals. Some of the special species are ostriches and the Kori bustard.
Wildebeests in Ngorongoro Conservation area.
Wildebeests in Ngorongoro belong to the Bovidae family that collects cattle. A family of wildebeests is called a herd just like cattle. Female wildebeests are usually brighter than the male counterparts. The wildebeest have long hair on the back. The creatures get their name from “wild beast” which was coined by the Dutch in southern Africa. The wildebeests are sub divided into two categories: western white-bearded wildebeest breed found in the Serengeti- Mara region and the eastern white-bearded wildebeest breed found in the Gregory rift.
The wildebeest live in the savanna and woodland areas. These animals are very territorial and they are very social animals. Therefore they live in groups of over 100 members in a herd and march a particular territory usually about 2 square Kilometers.
Wildebeests will move in search o water and greener areas in the dry season from August to October. They used sounds to communicate as well as the sense of smell. Their sound travels over 2 kilometers.
The gestation period of a wildebeest is about 8 months and 2 weeks.
The Calving Migration in the Ngorongoro.
When one thinks about the Wildebeests great migration, pictures of large herds of wildebeest’s crossing over fields and river will come to mind. There is a smaller migration that occurs prior to this great migration. Very many people overlook this season and yet it’s very important and contributes a great deal to the bigger migration.
What is the calving season?
This is a process by which by which the Wildebeests move to the southern areas o the Ngorongoro conservation area to spread out in the plains filled with lush vegetation to give birth. This period is usually in the Months of January to March. The routs they use to the plains are the same but the times sometimes vary but they usually prefer the rainy season. The wildebeests do not go through this process alone, the Gazelle and Zebras also follow through. They go to these areas since they have short grass that can easily be eaten by their young one and it’s also hard for predators to hide here.
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