Mikumi National Park

Located north of the selousReseve, less than 300km. from Dar es Salaam, is the Mikumi National Park. Because of its accessibility it is one of the most popular parks in Tanzania and is an important centre for education where students go to study ecology and conservation. The Mikumi flood plain, with itsopen grasslands, dominates the park together with the mountain ranges that border the park on two sides.

A wide range of wildlife inhabits its 3,230 sq km area. Lion is commonly seen as are packs of wild dog, rare elsewhere in Africa. Elephant may be encountered and other animals frequently observed are buffalo, civet, eland, giraffe, impala, kudu, reedbuck, warthog, waterbuck, wildebeest, zebra and Lichtenstein’s hartebeest. Near the southern boundary of the park it is possible to see groups of female and young bachelor sable with their one dominant male.Crocodiles, monitor lizard and giant python are among the park’s many other residents.

At the southern end of the flood plain, in the Kikoboga area, families of yellow baboon live while wallowing hippos are frequently joined in their pools by flocks of open-billed storks, hunting for molluscs.

Over 400 species of birds have been observed in the park, many of which are Eurasian migrants who stay between October and April. Getting there: A four-hour drive, or a one hour flight, from Dar es Salaam.