Mikumi National Park: Africa Natural
Safari
AFRICA NATURAL SAFARI (The best tour
company in Tanzania)
Specialized in: Wildlife safaris, Cultural tourism , Beach
holidays and
Mountain climbing
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Mikumi National Park
Swirls
of opaque mist hide the advancing dawn. The first shafts of sun colour the
fluffy grass heads rippling across the plain in a russet halo. A herd of
zebras, confident in their camouflage at this predatory hour, pose like
ballerinas, heads aligned and stripes merging in flowing motion.
Mikumi
National Park abuts the northern border of Africa’s biggest game reserve – the
Selous – and is transected by the surfaced road between Dar es Salaam and
Iringa. It is thus the most accessible part of a 75,000 square kilometre
(47,000 square mile) tract of wilderness that stretches east almost as far as
the Indian Ocean.
The
open horizons and abundant wildlife of the Mkata Floodplain, the popular
centrepiece of Mikumi, draw frequent comparisons to the more famous Serengeti
Plains.
Lions
survey their grassy kingdom – and the zebra, wildebeest, impala and buffalo
herds that migrate across it – from the flattened tops of termite mounds, or
sometimes, during the rains, from perches high in the trees. Giraffes forage in
the isolated acacia stands that fringe the Mkata River, islets of shade
favoured also by Mikumi’s elephants.
Criss-crossed
by a good circuit of game-viewing roads, the Mkata Floodplain is perhaps the
most reliable place in Tanzania for sightings of the powerful eland, the
world’s largest antelope. The equally impressive greater kudu and sable
antelope haunt the miombo-covered foothills of the mountains that rise from the
park’s borders.
More
than 400 bird species have been recorded, with such colourful common residents
as the lilac-breasted roller, yellow-throated longclaw and bateleur eagle
joined by a host of European migrants during the rainy season. Hippos are the
star attraction of the pair of pools situated 5km north of the main entrance
gate, supported by an ever-changing cast of waterbirds.
For more information visit www.africanaturaltours.com
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