|
Tarangire National Park
Tarangire National Park is about 2,600 sq km (1,005 sq miles) situated118 km (75 miles) southwest of Arusha. This National park derives its name from Tarangire River which crosses at its center. The river is the only permanent source of water for the wild animals especially during the dry spells. During such seasons, that is around mid August all animals congregate at this point, which is their last reliable water source.
Famous for its huge number of elephants, thousands of baobab trees and tree climbing African pythons, Tarangire lies south east of Lake Manyara and covers an area of approximately 2,850 sq km. Although it is relatively small, the park enjoys easy accessibility and boasts with some of the greatest concentrations of game in Tanzania.
Tarangire is also the best place in Tanzania to observe buffalo and huge numbers of elephant (up to 300 at one spot). In reality, the game numbers overall are overwhelming: 3,000 elephants, 5,000 buffalos, 2,500 Masai giraffes, 25,000 zebras, 25,000 wildebeests plus over 1,000 fringe-eared Oryx. Predators range from lions (tree-climbing just like their in Lake Manyara), cheetah and leopards. During the dry months the concentration of animals around the Tarangire River doubles as in the Ngorongoro Crater. There are a few resident lions, which are easier to spot when the migration arrives to excite their taste buds since they don’t tend to abandon their territory. Tarangire is a great spot for elephant gatherings at the end of the rainy season in June, and zebra and wildebeest return together through July.
There are a fantastic number of colorful birds flying down and blustering along the rough paths throughout the year, with likely spots including the Paradise Whyder and endearing Yellow-collared lovebirds. In other months they look quite mean and lean and slip easily between the lengthening grasses. The park is also known for its great avian diversity, in which it is surpassed only by Lake Manyara. Bird watchers will want to look out for the endemic ashy starling, rufous-tailed weaver and black-collared lovebird.
|
