The Northern Circuit: Watching Lions in Tanzania

The Ngorongoro Crater is a UNESCO World Heritage Sight and the largest volcanic crater in the world (second to the Sierra Negra on the Galapagos Islands). The crater’s diameter is between 10 and 12 miles, and it’s about 2,000 feet in depth. It almost always has enough food and water to support large populations of diverse wildlife, including lions, wildebeests, gazelles, hyenas, cheetahs, elephants, ostriches, cranes and other birds, black rhino, zebras, flamingos, and the list goes on. (And yes, I saw all of the things that I listed during my 8 hours in the crater!) It is remarkable because of the amount of biodiversity in such a relatively small place…though when you look at the crater from the viewpoint (2000 feet up) it looks anything but small.

That crater is one of the most naturally amazing and awe-inspiring things I’ve ever seen. You look left and you look right and all you see is lush greenery, blue lines (water), and little dots (animals) below. It literally left me speechless; the only way I can describe it is how the dinosaurs in The Land Before Time talk about the ‘great valley’-this large, lush area filled with life. I didn’t speak for the entire 30 minute descent drive to the crater floor.

Ngorongoro Crater 

Typically, on safari you spot animals not with your blind eye, but because several safari vehicles have gathered in one spot to observe one. Such was the case with the first lions I saw in the wild. Where several vehicles had gathered we found two female lions and two lion cubs asleep in the grass. If the lioness hadn’t been lying on her back with one foot stuck up in the air (much like Colby with you rub his belly), I wouldn’t have distinguished them from the tan colored grass blowing in the breeze. I sat watching the lions sleep for about an hour (I guess they weren't hungry that day) and Joseph (my safari guide) gave me background on lion prides and social structures. Lionesses are pretty fascinating creatures. As permanent members of their pride, they do most of the hunting (males just come to eat once the kill has been had!) and also tend to mate and give birth relatively close in time. That way, all of the cubs are able to nurse from any lactating mother, thus bettering their chances of survival. Though they were asleep the females were large and muscular - powerful.The cubs were like little bundles of curious fuzz. As cool as it was, this wasn’t my best encounter with lions last week...

Serengeti. Home to the annual migration of millions of wildebeast, who travel the ‘endless plains’ following the rains and fresh grasses, there are few names of national parks that have drawn as much attention as Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. But Serengeti is home to far more than the 1.2 million wildebeast, zebras and gazelles that participate in the annual migration; just about every African safari animal you can think of lives there.

I spent my first day in Serengeti National Park patrolling for big cats. In the Ngorongoro Crater I had seen a lion, and by the time we got to Serengeti, I was thirsty for more. Lucky for me, we spotted two cheetahs in the morning, and came to two lions in the afternoon. I ate my lunch near a small pool of water where the two male lions were lounging. One of the males eventually perched on a small hill over the water pool. We sat and watched as the two slept, then woke and rolled about.

Some time passed and I noticed that small black figures were beginning to gather on the horizon. It soon became apparent that those black figures were wildebeast. A lion and a herd of wildebeast in the Serengeti? I’m not sure what could be more exciting! The herd continued to mass; it was heavy on calves. Males are usually not the hunters in the lion pride, but if there were females around, this could be the perfect moment for a kill. The wildebeast had stopped moving forward and were uncomfortably inching back and forth – by that point they had to have seen the lion, which my safari guide Joseph said would have made them extremely anxious. The minutes passed as the deadlock continued. My heart was racing from excitement and nervousness as a scene from National Geographic happened right before my eyes.

Then, the wildebeast on the left flank started to run away. Just as suddenly, the lion on the hill rose and paced toward the herd. He sped up to a trot and the herd panicked, spreading out in all directions. The lion had traveled about 100 feet toward the herd when he stopped, sat, and watched as the calves scrambled to find their mothers, and the air was filled with snorts as the wildebeast called to each other. He remained that way until the herd had cleared, and I marveled at the magic of being on safari. Thousands of wildebeast in search of water, confronted by a lion who threatens a kill, the wildebeast recognize their position in the food chain and give up without losing any members of the herd. See the picture in my last post for the scene.

Click the photo and you'll see what I'm referring to. (Look closely in the grasses...)