The Great Wildebeest Migration |
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18 June 2010
The Great Wildebeest Migration From The Serengeti In Tanzania To The Masai Mara In Kenya Has Begun It's official - the annual migration of the wildebeest from the Serengeti in Tanzania to the Masai Mara in Kenya started six days ago. The comical animals nicknamed "the clown of the plains" and said to be put together by a committee, have moved across the south Mara plains. The herds split before entering the Central Plains with one herd heading west and the other to the north. It's a welcome surprise to see the migration start earlier than expected. Also this time, the main migration for the south arrived before the Loita herds as has been the tradition. GREAT MIGRATION OF WILDEBEEST AND ZEBRAS Having crossed the Sand River, the wildebeest with the zebras mowed their way from Keekorok to the Mara Bridge covering a distance of about 25 to 30 kilometers in a few days. Marching north towards Lookout Hill, they are busy and noisy as this is their rutting season. The males are calling, running up and down and fighting any competition to win over the females. It is indeed an interesting time to be in the Mara. The females with their five-month-old calves are relishing the fresh red oat grass. However many natural water holes in the Mara are dry which will hasten the wildebeest to move further in search of waterholes with water in them. The first destination will be Ol-keju-Ronkai River and the Mara River near the Ashnil Mara Camp. This might mean that the Mara River crossing may happen sooner than expected. Due to the recent heavy rains, there's a lot of grass for the herbivores. The effect? It's triggered the mating season for elephants and topis. We are seeing many herds of elephants around Olkiombo. The topis are in their local breeding grounds on Topi Plains and Paradise Plains. There's good game viewing east of Ashnil Mara towards the Masai villages where the grass is short due to over grazing by the Masai cattle. Down south towards Lookout Hill, there are a lot of zebras and topis. Somak Holidays offers The Great Migration Safari flying with Kenya Airways. Kenya Airways flies daily from London Heathrow Terminal 4. Kenya Airways operates a convenient schedule of overnight flights to and from Kenya and onward flights with Kenya Airways to numerous destinations in Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa. Kenya Airways also offers excellent prices to upgrade to Kenya Airways Premier World. Kenya Airways also offers a generous baggage allowance of two bags at 23kgs per bag.
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