National Geographic - USA (2021-12)

Old

uv

ai^ Gorge

Loita^ Plains

Musabi Plains

Ndoha

Plains

Salei

Plains

Dutwa

Plains

Ngorongoro

Crater

Ndabaka

Plains

S

E

R

E

N

G

E

T

I

P

L

A

I

N

NGORONGORO

CONSERVATION AREA

IKORONGO

GAME

RESERVE

KIJERESHI

GAME RESERVE

MAKAO

WILDLIFE

MANAGEMENT

AREA

LOLIONDO

GAME

CONTROLLED

AREA

MWIBA

WILDLIFE

RANCH

IKONA

WILDLIFE

MANAGEMENT

AREA

M A S W A G A M E

(^) R
E S E R V E
GRUMETI
(^) GA
ME (^) R
ESERV
E
MASAI
MARA
NATIONAL
RESERVE
SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK
Lak
e^ V
icto
ria
L
a
k
e^
E
y
a
s
i
Grumet
i
Or
ang
i
M
ara
Mb
ala
ge
ti
Mara
Olduvai
Gorge
Museum
Serengeti N.P.
Headquarters
Serengeti
Research
Center
DRY-SEASON
RANGE
RAINY-SEASON
RANGE
Resident
wildebeests
Fort Ikoma
Robanda
Kakesio
Oloirobi
Piaya
Talek
Loliondo
Mugumu
Lamadi
Makao
KE
NY
TANZ A
AN
IA
Conservancies
in Kenya prioritize
wildlife conservation
and sustainable
land use.
Path of
tracked
wildebeest
Residents do not
join the broader
migration.
Buffer zones allow
regulated agriculture and
game hunting in Tanzania.
MAP
AREA
AFRICA
ASIA
KENYA
TANZANIA
Lake
Victoria
SERENGETI
N.P.
MASAI
MARA
NAT. RES.
KE
NY
TA A
NZ
.
12 72
Average annual rainfall (inches)
10 mi
10 km
3
2
1
1
2
3
WAYS OF THE WILDEBEEST
Driven by a constant search for food, 1.3 million wilde-
beests chase the rains across the greater Serengeti
ecosystem every year. The migration stretches from the
fertile short-grass plains of the southeast to the wood-
lands and savanna of the north when rainfall gets scarce.
The rainy season brings
nutrient- rich grasses that feed
migrant wildebeests. They
calve while food is plentiful.
When the rains and grasses
dwindle, the animals must move
to the north, where there’s more
competition for less food.
In the dry season the Mara River
still provides water. But the grasses
in the north are poorer in nutrients;
many wildebeests starve.
RAIN VARIATION
Evaporation from Lake Victoria
delivers ample moisture to the
northern sectors of the Serengeti.
In the south, volcanic peaks create
a “rain shadow” that reduces rain-
fall, parching the southern plains.
RILEY D. CHAMPINE AND MATTHEW W. CHWASTYK, NGM STAFF
SOURCES: GRANT HOPCRAFT, THOMAS MORRISON,
AND CALLUM BUCHANAN, UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW;
JARED STABACH, SMITHSONIAN CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
INSTITUTE; TANZANIA NATIONAL PARKS; TANZANIA
WILDLIFE RESEARCH INSTITUTE; KENYA WILDLIFE SERVICE
GREAT
MIGRATION