Swirls
of opaque mist hide the advancing dawn. The first shafts of sun
colour the fluffy grass heads rippling across the plain in a russet
halo. A herd of zebras, confident in their camouflage at this
predatory hour, pose like ballerinas, heads aligned and stripes
merging in flowing motion.
Mikumi National Park abuts the northern border of Africa's biggest
game reserve - the Selous – and is transected by the surfaced road
between Dar es Salaam and Iringa. It is thus the most accessible
part of a 75,000 square kilometre (47,000 square mile) tract of
wilderness that stretches east almost as far as the Indian Ocean.
The open horizons and abundant wildlife of the Mkata Floodplain, the
popular centre piece of Mikumi, draw frequent comparisons to the
more famous Serengeti Plains.
Lions survey their grassy kingdom – and the zebra, wildebeest,
impala and buffalo herds that migrate across it – from the flattened
tops of termite mounds, or sometimes, during the rains, from perches
high in the trees. Giraffes forage in the isolated acacia stands
that fringe the Mkata River, islets of shade favoured also by
Mikumi's elephants.
Criss-crossed by a good circuit of game-viewing roads, the Mkata
Floodplain is perhaps the most reliable place in Tanzania for
sightings of the powerful eland, the world’s largest antelope.
The equally impressive greater kudu and sable antelope haunt the
miombo-covered foothills of the mountains that rise from the park’s
borders. More than 400 bird species have been recorded, with such
colorful common residents as the lilac-breasted roller,
yellow-throated longclaw and bateleur eagle joined by a host of
European migrants during the rainy season. Hippos are the star
attraction of the pair of pools situated 5km north of the main
entrance gate, supported by an ever-changing cast of water birds.
MIKUMI NATIONAL PARK