Tarangire

My Tanzanian safari started off in Tarangire National Park. I also visited this park in 2007, but compared to the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater, this region has less animals. In November, when I visited, many animals start to migrate away from the park. So my expectations were not too high, especially since we would mainly be there during the warmest part of the day. And as suspected, we saw primarily the more common herbivores, and relatively few birds this day. We entered the park at about 11.00 and left around 15.30. In other words, we drove around the area only during the hottest period of the day when most animals are inactive. Still, as long as the Tarangire River contain water, some wildlife will always be present even mid-day. So I think this park, if possible, should be included in the Northern Circuit.

Elephants are present here year-around, and Tarangire NP is a good place to spot the largest land animal. Also, the gnu found here, the Eastern White-Bearded Wildebeest, is a different subspecies compared to that found in the Serengeti west of the Great Rift Valley (Western White-Bearded Wildebeest). Tarangire is also well known for the abundant big Baobab trees. Being off-season, the park was quite crowded the day I visited. Lots of local school-children were visiting. With the rapidly growing population in Tanzania, it is good to see the local authority prioritize learning locals kids to appreciate the parks and wildlife. All in all, a well spent day in one of the lesser known parks in Northern Tanzania.

Tarangire National Park - 2016
		Home
Tarangire River		My Tanzanian safari started off in Tarangire National Park. I also visited this park in 2007, but compared to the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater, this region has less animals. In November, when I visited, many animals start to migrate away from the park. So my expectations were not too high, especially since we would mainly be there during the warmest part of the day. And as suspected, we saw primarily the more common herbivores, and relatively few birds this day. We entered the park at about 11.00 and left around 15.30. In other words, we drove around the area only during the hottest period of the day when most animals are inactive. Still, as long as the Tarangire River contain water, some wildlife will always be present even mid-day. So I think this park, if possible, should be included in the Northern Circuit. Elephants are present here year-around, and Tarangire NP is a good place to spot the largest land animal. Also, the gnu found here, the Eastern White-Bearded Wildebeest, is a different subspecies compared to that found in the Serengeti west of the Great Rift Valley (Western White-Bearded Wildebeest). Tarangire is also well known for the abundant big Baobab trees. Being off-season, the park was quite crowded the day I visited. Lots of local school-children were visiting. With the rapidly growing population in Tanzania, it is good to see the local authority prioritize learning locals kids to appreciate the parks and wildlife. All in all, a well spent day in one of the lesser known parks in Northern Tanzania.
African Bush Elephant (Loxodonta africana). Tarangire National Park is a good location to look for elephants		Feeding bull elephant
Tarangire National Park		Vervet Monkey (Chlorocebus pygerythrus)
Common Waterbuck cow (Kobus ellipsiprymnus)		Common Waterbuck bull
Grant's Zebra (Equus quagga boehmi)		Eastern White-Bearded Wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus albojubatus)
Masai Giraffe (Giraffa tippelskirchi) with Red-Billed Oxpecker (Buphagus erythrorhynchus)		Masai Giraffe
Common Impala ram (Aepyceros melampus melampus)		Kirk's Dik-Dik (Madoqua kirkii)
Bohor Reedbuck ram (Redunca redunca)		Bohor Reedbuck ewe
Bohor Reedbuck ram		African Buffalo (Syncerus caffer)
Common Warthog (Phacochoerus africanus)		Warthog having a drink with a Yellow-Billed Oxpecker (Buphagus africanus) and Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus). The oxpecker was hiking with the warthog until it reached the water, then jumped off to have a sap
Bare-Faced Go-Away-Bird (Corythaixoides personatus)		Bare-Faced Go-Away-Bird
Lilac-Breasted Roller (Coracias caudatus). Widely distributed, but probably one of the most spectacular birds in the region
White-Browed Coucal (Centropus superciliosus)		Northern White-Crowned Shrike (Eurocephalus rueppelli)
Lappet-Faced Vulture (Torgos tracheliotos)		Lappet-Faced Vulture
African Hawk Eagle (Aquila spilogaster)		Juvenile Bateleur Eagle (Terathopius ecaudatus)
Brown Snake Eagle (Circaetus cinereus)		Brown Snake Eagle
Red-Billed Buffalo-Weaver (Bubalornis niger)		White-Headed Buffalo-Weaver (Dinemellia dinemelli)
Male Yellow-Throated Sandgrouse (Pterocles gutturalis)		Female Yellow-Throated Sandgrouse
Crested Francolin (Dendroperdix sephaena)		Double-Banded Courser (Rhinoptilus africanus)
Water Thick-Knee (Burhinus vermiculatus)		Northern Red-billed Hornbill (Tockus erythrorhynchus)
African Spoonbill (Platalea alba)		Two birds differing quite a lot in size. Ostrich (Struthio camelus) and Blacksmith Lapwing (Vanellus armatus)
Female White-Bellied Bustard (Eupodotis senegalensis)		Male White-Bellied Bustard
Hadeda Ibis (Bostrychia hagedash)		Blacksmith Lapwing (Vanellus armatus)
Yellow-Spotted Rock Hyrax (Heterohyrax brucei), also called Bush Hyrax		Common Dwarf Mongoose (Helogale parvula)
A young Lion feeding on scraps		Lion youngster with red meat
African Baobab Tree (Adansonia digitata)		Tarangire National Park is famous for its Baobab Trees
Tarangire River		Tarangire River
Termite mound		Wildebeest herd
Tarangire landscape		Southern Ground Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri)
Female Marico Sunbird (Cinnyris mariquensis)		Superb Starling (Lamprotornis superbus)
Ashy Starling (Lamprotornis unicolor), a Tanzania and Kenya endemic		Magpie Shrike (Urolestes melanoleucus)
African Baobab tree (Adansonia digitata)		Palm trees. I am not sure of the species, but think it may be African Fan Palm (Borassus aethiopum)