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I enjoy photographing landscapes, wildlife, people, and whatever catches my eye. My passion is learning about other cultures and capturing photographic stories of how and where people live.
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Northern Serengeti and The Great Migration, Tanzania: July 7, 2021
The Great Wildebeest Migration, the largest mammal migration on Earth, travels through Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. Over two million wildebeest accompanied by smaller numbers of zebras and antelope follow the rains looking for green grass and fresh water. Because it is instinct and weather driven, no one is able to give an exact date for the start. The migration is really a 1,000 mile, 12-month circle with no beginning or end.
In February in the highlands of Ngorongoro Crater 12,000 wildebeest babies a day are born over a 3-week period. Here the weakest, most vulnerable young are picked off by predators.
April to June heavy rains drive wildebeest northwest through central Serengeti and past the hazards hiding among the Simba kopje. The males are in rut during this time.
July to October begins the dry season which triggers herds to attempt the perilous crossing (hungry crocodiles) of the Mara River on their way north to new grass in the Massai Mara in Kenya.
November to December the herds leave the now over-grazed land of the Massai Mara and begin their journey south toward Ngorongoro where the females, now pregnant, will give birth and the migration cycle begins again. The females will even put off delivering their calves until they sense the coming rain.
Our driver explained that the migration has a head, a belly, and a tail. So far we've seen some of the head of the migration. We're hoping that when we get to the Mara River, we'll see some of the belly or a mass of wildebeest crossing the river.
Along the way we ran into more of the migration's head. There were thousands of wildebeest here. For some it was a speed dating event, for some they just followed in a line behind the wildebeest in front. There were many 4-month old babies with their short horns on their very first migration journey.
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Four-month old wildebeest |
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Going |
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Returning |
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Marabou Stork at the Barbecue |
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Flat tire #2 - no more spares |
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