Serengeti National Park Facts

The Serengeti National Park is a Tanzanian National park in the Serengeti ecosystem that includes Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve. It is famous for its annual migration of over 1.5 million white-bearded wildebeest, 300,000 Thomson’s gazelle, and 200,000 zebra and for its numerous Nile crocodiles.

The park covers 5,700 square miles (14,763 km2) of land area.

Here Are Facts About The Serengeti You May Not Know

1. Serengeti National park is bigger than the Bahamas, Montenegro, Vanuatu, Falkland Islands, Qatar, Jamaica, Gambia, Lebanon, Cyprus or Puerto Rico.
2. The park contains more large mammals than any other park in Africa and there are over 3 million large animals living in the Serengeti, the big five animals which include the lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, and Cape buffalo all call the Serengeti home.
3. The Serengeti landscape has been shaped by elephants. They knock down trees to create clearings where new grass can grow. The animals that eat this new grass help keep the clearing open as the trees try to regrow.
4. The Serengeti has some of the world’s highest concentrations of predators and there are over 3,000 lions in the Serengeti more than in any other African park with lion numbers in the wild numbering less than 24,000
5. The Serengeti is thought to have the largest population of cheetahs in Africa.
6. There are more than 500 species of birds in the Serengeti.
7. The oldest rocks in the park date back over three billion years.
8. The word Serengeti comes from the Maasai language and means “endless plains”.
9. The area now known as the Serengeti was first established as a game reserve in 1921 and became a national park in 1929.
10. It is one of the oldest and most popular national parks in Africa and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
11. The Serengeti is famous for the Great Migration, a massive movement of animals that takes place every year. Over 1.5 million wildebeest, 250,000 zebra, and 300,000 Thomson’s gazelle travel from the southern part of the park to the northern part in search of food and water. This journey takes them through the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya.
12. The Serengeti is also one of the few places in Africa where you can find Africa’s Big Five: lions, leopards, elephants, buffalo, and rhinos.
13. The park is open all year round, but one best time to visit the Serengeti is between June and October which is the wildebeest migration season and also a dry season so the animals are easier to see.
14. Masai Mara National Park in Kenya and Ngorongoro crater in Tanzania are all part of the Serengeti eco-system.
15. Temperatures can get really cold in the Serengeti, with lows of 7 degrees Celsius (44.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in July and August. The rainy season
16. Foreigners pay more park fees around $70 per person per day while residents of Tanzania pay $ 35
17. Serengeti is accessible by road and by air and there are many daily flights from Arusha, Dar es Salaam, and Zanzibar to one of the several airstrips in the park.

In Conclusion

As one of the best parks in Africa , Serengeti National Park should definitely be on your bucket list. With an endless supply of plains and wildlife, there is no shortage of things to do and see in this park. The Serengeti is also one of the best places in Africa to see the Big Five: lions, leopards, elephants, buffalo and rhino. It has the highest concentration of lions in Africa at 3,000, Over 7,000 elephants and 50,000 buffalo.

So start planning your trip today!