Journeys of giraffe were common on the rolling open plain near Lemala Camp and the approach of a thunderstorm heightened the dramatic scene.
Photo © Bill Given
In my previous blog entries I have covered the fauna that typically draws visitors to the remote Northern Serengeti, the great migration and the big cats. However, the resident wildlife consists of a wonderful variety species and my four night stay resulted in the sightings of 25 mammal species as well as a plethora of beautiful birds and reptiles.
Young elephant near the Kogatende airstrip.
Photo © Bill Given
The density of mammals is very good in the Northern Serengeti and it did not take long to move from one sighting to another as there was usually something in view. As previously covered we saw all three of the big cat species as well as tens of thousands of wildebeest and zebra. There are no night drives so that limits the possibilities to see about 1/3rd of the mammals that are primarily nocturnal and only active during the night.
Sightings of megafauna was very good with outstanding observation opportunities of elephants, giraffe, and hippo. These were all easy to find and I would expect them to be seen by virtually all visitors.
In addition to the big cats we found one additional super predator, spending time with a large clan (about 15) of spotted hyena that like to relax in a muddy draw in the Lamai Wedge. Of smaller predators we saw a serval, black-backed jackal and banded mongoose. I did not see as many jackals as I have seen in other areas of the Serengeti and with no night drives it is not a prime area for viewing of the smaller carnivores.
The hoofed grazers were plentiful and diverse with eland, topi, Thomson gazelle, Defassa’s waterbuck, impala, reedbuck, klipspringer, and dik-dik. The diversity of habitats really helps as you can see the impala and klipspringer in the wooded rocky areas and then the spectacular open plains has the wonderful mix of many species – classic Africa when you can look around and see 7 or 8 different mammal species at once.
The male rock agama lizard does push ups to attract females.
Photo © Bill Given
As is often the case reptile sightings, other than huge crocodiles on the Mara River, are hard to come by when game driving. I find walks are much more successful for finding reptiles, especially snakes. We did have frequent sightings of the marvelously colored rock agama lizards, including a great opportunity to see one doing his push ups in a courtship effort to attract a female. We also had a dramatic sighting of a Nile monitor lizard as a spotted hyena discovered it moving through the grass.
Spotted hyena follows a large monitor lizard carefully.
Photo © Bill Given
The hyena had great interest in the monitor but seemed unsure of how to really get a hold of it. When the hyena would get to within 3 feet of the lizard the monitor would stop, turn toward the hyena and raise its head a couple feet out of the grass to a height a little above the hyena’s head. This would cause the hyena to pause and then the monitor would continue on its way until it got near water and then it quickly ran and slinked away to safety.
Monitor lizard escapes to the safety of water.
Photo © Bill Given
The bird life is always good in the Serengeti and with the variety of habitats in the Northern Serengeti it also supports a good diversity of birds. We did not devote any time specifically to birding but probably saw close to 75 species through casual observation. Lots of the big birds were present such as ostrich, marabou stork, white-backed vulture, martial eagle as were some of the colorful species like bee-eaters, lilac-breasted rollers, and Fischer’s lovebirds.
Cinnamon-chested bee-eater.
Photo © Bill Given
Overall the Northern Serengeti had a rich tapestry of different habitats including all the classics with stupendous rock kopjes, the Mara River, and some vast open plains. Diverse habitats leads to diverse wildlife and this was my favorite area of the Serengeti.