Tarangire National Park: Paradise of elephants

TARANGIRE National Park is impressively splendid for its famous concentration of wild animals especially the elephants and it is also one of the finest birding destinations in East Africa.

The name of the park originates from the Tarangire River that crosses the park and covers an area of 2,850 km 2. Climate Tarangire has a bimodal rainfall with short rains starting from November to December, long rains from March to May and dry season from June to October and January to February.

The park is located at an altitude between 900m and 1250meters with annual average rainfall ranging from 650 to 700mm.

Slightly off the popular northern Tanzania Safari Circuit, the park lies between the meadows of Masai Steppe to the southeast and the lakes of the Great Rift Valley to the north and west.

Within the northern part of Tarangire is the permanent River Tarangire also known as the lifeline of the park particularly in the dry season when most of the region is totally dry.

This flows northwards until it exits the park in the northwestern corner to pour into Lake Burungi.

There are a number of wide swamps which dry into green plains during the dry season in the south.

During you Safari in Tarangire, You are highly recommended to stay for a couple of days especially in the south of the park which offers a less crowded safari experience and gives you the opportunity to enjoy an authentic African feel of the Tanzania’s countryside.

Tarangire Vegetation The permanent Tarangire River is the most dominant feature here and it’s after this river that the park was named.

there are a number of large swamps that feed off some of its tributaries however, these are usually dry for most of the year but get very impassable during the rains.

The Tarangire park is usually dry, in fact drier than the Serengeti, however its vegetation is much more green especially with lots of elephant grass, vast areas with mixed acacia woodlands and some of the wonderful ribbons of the aquatic forest not to forget the giant baobab tree that can live up to 600 years storing between 300 and 900 liters of water amongst the large numbers of animals that spread across the large open areas of the Masaai Steppe and dispersing all the way to Lake Manyara.

Getting there The Park can be accessed by road or air Road: The park is 121km through a tarmac road from Arusha city.

Air: The park can be reached by flight from Kilimanjaro International Airport which is 46km from Arusha.

Charted flights are also available from Arusha to Kuro Airstrip located inside the park.

Attractions The Park has remarkable attractions with large groups of Elephants, spectacular natural beauty of savanna landscape and magnificent, majestic Baobabs.

Over 550 different bird species have been recorded in the park, of which several are threatened or endemic.

Wildlife Tarangire is noted as a safari destination for its large concentration of wildlife population.

Animals like elephants, eland, giraffe, lions, buffalo, cheetah, leopards and zebra are easily spotted when you are in fourwheel drive.

Animals Of Tarangire National Park At Tarangire you will be able to encounter various animals.

This park is home to one of the largest elephant populations in Africa with several herds of up to 300 members per herd.

In addition, there are large numbers of impalas, elands, buffaloes, giraffes, Bohor reedbuck, Coke’s hartebeest, Thompson’s gazelle, the greater and lesser kudu and on rare occasions, the unusual gerenuk and fringe –eared Oryx are also seen.

A few black rhinos are also thought to be still present in this park.

You will obviously see big numbers of elephants gather here as well as the wildebeests and zebras.

Among the other common animals in the Tarangire are the leopards, lions, hyenas, and cheetah that seem to be popular within the southern open areas.

The wild dogs are only seen once in a while The birds within the Tarangire are also quite many, there are over 545 species that have been identified here.

The stunning yellow collared lovebirds and the shy starlings are in plenty here in addition to other species.

Birds Enjoy spotting a large batch of colorful and exclusive bird species.

Over 500 different species are housed with swamps that are spread all over Tarangire.

This makes an area to be amazing destination for bird lovers.

One wouldn’t mii to see breeding species of birds found in Tarangire than anywhere else on the planet.

Plan your trip! Baobab trees They can live up to 300 years and can grow trunks reaching more than 100feet in circumference.

They have spent quite some time on the planet and seen a lot of history.

So, if only they could talk, they would surely be interesting storytellers!

Termite mounds the mounds built of mud from underground and held together by termite saliva are always seen and they provide observation points for animals.

It’s also a home to dwarf mongoose when abandoned. Activities Tarangire National Park has different activities that can be done once you have arrived at the park.

These activities include Day Game drive, night game drive, walking safari, filming and photographing, bush-meal, hot air balloon safari, birdwatching and picnicking.

Walking Safari, this gives you a more learning experience about animals within the bushland and a better way of spotting animals within the bushland and a better way of spotting animals at a close range.

It is mostly done in the morning and evenings and brings about a different scope and sense of adventure. It also conveys a different dimension in the whole safari experience.

Day game drive This is an adventure that entails viewing wildlife while in a car.

Tarangire offers tourist an opportunity to explore the large herds of elephants alongside animals like giraffe, Oryx, starling, greater kudu, gazelle, heartbeats, wildebeest, zebra, lions, leopards and tree climbing pythons.

Night game Going with a blanket sitting in an open vehicle under an African sky with the pretty stars is a moment to remember.

The bush is completely a different world at night.

You wouldn’t miss a night drive in Tarangire! Balloon safari Balloon air flight in Tarangire will give you a different experience.

Gliding across Tarangire river on your tour as the sunrise stains the plains pink, the golden grassland dotted with giant baobab trees, the silver ribbons of the rivers and animals congregate in their hundreds in the early morning; all these make you be park of the natural world.

Bird watching Tarangire is a great bird watching site with more than 500 species recorded.

Bird lovers should keep an eye open for flocks of dazzlingly colorful yellow –collared lovebirds and the somewhat drabber rudous –tailed weaver and ashy starling.

Bush meal Visitors can enjoy taking their meals at the middle of the bush after a short- or long-day game drive Ranking as the 6th largest National Park in Tanzania and covering an area of 2,600 square kilometers, The Tarangire National Park is most popular for its large elephant herds and mini wildlife migration that takes place during the dry season which sees about 250,000 animals enter the park.

See more about Tanzania safari tours.

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