Ngorongoro Crater
We shuffled into the cars bleary-eyed at dawn, yawning but excited. It was the day of our big safari and not even Tanzanian super-germs could stop us. The day got off to a quick start when a troop of baboons (Papio anubis) stole Berit’s breakfast at the park gate. We stopped on the crater rim to hunt big game with our spotting scopes. Hardly necessary, as a few minutes later we were nearly running over plains zebras (Equus quagga). “Hey, look! A zebra!” All the cameras came flying out. “Look, look, another!” Fumbling with cases and on-buttons, clickity-click-click-click. “Two more over there!” Click-click-click. After five minutes no one even noticed the zebras; there were hundreds upon hundreds. The number of species and the sheer population density was absolutely unreal.
The most numerous species were the grazers, including African buffalo (Syncerus caffer), gnu (Connochaetes taurinus), and Grant’s gazelles (Gazella granti). I saw a fair number of African bush elephants (Loxodonta africana), warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus), hippopotami (Hippopotamus amphibius), and vevert monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops). Fewer in number were the antelopes: I spotted a few waterbucks (Kobus ellipsiprymnus), eland (Taurotragus oryx) and an impala (Aepyceros melampus). Birds I noticed (though I am sure the bird group identified many more) included ostriches (Struthio camelus), helmeted guineafowl (Numida meleagris), lesser flamingos, (Phoenicopterus minor), a secretary bird (Sagittarius serpentarius), grey crowned cranes (Balearica regulorum), and the horrific Marabou storks (Leptoptilos crumeniferus). I also saw a few golden jackals (Canis aureus) and spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) here and there and a 2-metre Nile monitor lizard (Varanus niloticus) hunting birds. Distant but exciting were the pride of lions (Panthera leo) and one of the two remaining black rhinoceroses (Dicerorhinus bicornis) in the conservation area.
Unfortunately, some of the course participants were quite ill during the safari; some even vomited. Most of the people in our car looked like zombies by the end and it was good to get back to Karatu. After dinner, which was attended by around half of the course, the hotel managers had arranged a local group to sing and dance for us. They were amazingly fit, completing leaps, flips and other tricks with ease. The music was powerful and moving, deep rhythms being pounded out of homemade drums and scrap metal. I went to sleep with African rhythms echoing in my head.
Why so much science? What is this?
The most numerous species were the grazers, including African buffalo (Syncerus caffer), gnu (Connochaetes taurinus), and Grant’s gazelles (Gazella granti). I saw a fair number of African bush elephants (Loxodonta africana), warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus), hippopotami (Hippopotamus amphibius), and vevert monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops). Fewer in number were the antelopes: I spotted a few waterbucks (Kobus ellipsiprymnus), eland (Taurotragus oryx) and an impala (Aepyceros melampus). Birds I noticed (though I am sure the bird group identified many more) included ostriches (Struthio camelus), helmeted guineafowl (Numida meleagris), lesser flamingos, (Phoenicopterus minor), a secretary bird (Sagittarius serpentarius), grey crowned cranes (Balearica regulorum), and the horrific Marabou storks (Leptoptilos crumeniferus). I also saw a few golden jackals (Canis aureus) and spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) here and there and a 2-metre Nile monitor lizard (Varanus niloticus) hunting birds. Distant but exciting were the pride of lions (Panthera leo) and one of the two remaining black rhinoceroses (Dicerorhinus bicornis) in the conservation area.
Unfortunately, some of the course participants were quite ill during the safari; some even vomited. Most of the people in our car looked like zombies by the end and it was good to get back to Karatu. After dinner, which was attended by around half of the course, the hotel managers had arranged a local group to sing and dance for us. They were amazingly fit, completing leaps, flips and other tricks with ease. The music was powerful and moving, deep rhythms being pounded out of homemade drums and scrap metal. I went to sleep with African rhythms echoing in my head.
Why so much science? What is this?
