The calving season in Tanzania

The calving season in Tanzania

The calving season is among the highlights during the great wildebeest migration which takes place in Tanzania. During safaris in Tanzania, the calving season can be seen during the months of January, February and March. This calving season takes place in the southern plains of Serengeti national park and also in the Ndutu area.

This great wildebeest migration is among the natural wonders of the world and over 8,000 wildebeests are born daily in the grasslands and can be seen in the southern plains of Serengeti national park and in Ndutu area during safaris.

The wildebeests follow the rains and move in a clockwise direction as they search for greener pastures to graze in around the southern part of Serengeti national park. During the migration, zebras and gazelles can also be seen grazing along with the wildebeests. The rains make it easier for the wildebeests to feed on fresh pasture around Ndutu area.

Many predators like lions, cheetahs and leopards can also be seen during the wildebeest migration around the southern plains of Serengeti national park. These predators can be spotted during safaris around the herds of wildebeests as they hunt the calves of the wildebeests.

The wildebeest calving in Tanzania takes place in the short grass plains which makes it easier to spot the predators in case of any attacks during safaris around Serengeti national park and the Ndutu area.

There are various camps which set up around or close to the areas where the wildebeest calving takes place in Tanzania which makes the wildlife viewing experience exciting as they are located in the best places to see the wildebeest migration.

Tanzania safaris which include the calving season around the Ndutu area and other destinations of Tanzania are exciting and can be group safaris or private safaris when tourists get to watch as the calves are born and start running around the savannah shortly after they are born.

Wildlife viewing in Tanzania can be carried out through the year and the best time for safaris is the dry season from June to October when wildlife species can easily be spotted around the savannah plains during safaris and also around the water points where they gather to drink.

The rest of the wildebeest migration in Tanzania

Apart from the calving season that takes place in the southern part of Serengeti national park and Ndutu area, the wildebeest migration also takes place around the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem annually as over 2 million wildebeests can be spotted during safaris as follows;

April and May

After grazing around the Ndutu area, the wildebeests continue their migration towards the central part of Serengeti national park. This is during the months of April and May which is also during the rainy season. During a safari around the central part of Serengeti national park, many other wildlife species can be seen such as elephants, lions, leopards, buffalos, hippos, giraffes, impalas, gazelles, zebras, kudu, hartebeests among others. The central part of Serengeti national park is home to numerous wildlife species and is also referred to as the Seronera area.

Safaris to Tanzania around April and May are discounted and costs are reduced. In the rainy or low season, there are also few tourists on safari and it is a good time to avoid crowds during a safari at the destination.

June and July

The wildebeest migration continues from the central part of Serengeti national park towards the western part of Serengeti national park around June. The migration can be seen around the Grumeti river which is also a river crossing point for the wildebeests.

Around July, the wildebeest migration continues towards the northern part of Serengeti national park. In the northern part of the national park, the river crossings can be seen along the Mara river which is a riskier crossing point for the wildebeests where Nile crocodiles attack the wildebeests.

August, September and October

The wildebeests after their crossing of the Mara river continue to the Masai Mara national reserve in the south western part of Kenya.

Some of the wildebeests can still be seen around the northern parts of Serengeti national park around August, September and October. After the migration in Kenya, the wildebeests cross back to Serengeti national park and the migration starts over.

November and December

The wildebeest herds during the months of November and December continue to the southern plains of Serengeti national park where the calving season takes place and the migration starts over.

There are different ways to get to Serengeti national park for the calving season safaris and this includes driving from Arusha to the southern part of Serengeti national park which takes about 7 hours and for safaris to the Ndutu area, the drive from Arusha takes about 6 hours.

Another way to get to get to the Ndutu area is by flights to Ndutu airstrip or the Seronera airstrip.