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Wildebeest Migration
Wildebeest, zebras, gazelles and others follow the rains every year in the largest animal movement on the planet.
When most people envision going on safari to Africa, they envision seeing lions, elephants, and giraffes. They're excited about possibly seeing a lion make a kill but their focus is on the lion, not what is being killed. More often than not, that prey is a wildebeest or a zebra.
Every year, approximately 2 million wildebeest, zebras and gazelles migrate between the Serengeti and Maasai Mara game parks. They are constantly in search of grasslands, forcing them to follow the rains. Below is a generalized guide to where you will find them in any given month. (Based on Serengeti National Park guidebook)
January/February
The animals are concentrated in the southeastern portion of the Serengeti, near the Naabi Hill Gate, which is where most people enter the park. January is a peak month for zebra births and February for wildebeest births.
March/April
The long rains begin in March and continue through April. The wildebeest are scattered evenly on the short-grass plains.
May/June
Water starts becoming scarce and the animals begin to move into the Western Corridor near the Grumeti River. In June they cross this river where many will drown. In a normal year, the animals will be in the Seronera/Moru kopjes areas.
July/August
The migration moves northwest and enters the Grumeti Controlled Area and then the Ikorongo Controlled Area. In a normal year, the migration is in the northern Serengeti in August.
September/October
In September the migration moves into Kenya's Maasai Mara Game Reserve. They will stay there throughout October.
November/December
November marks the return of the short rains and the migration back to the Serengeti. By December they are back in the southwestern area and zebra calving season begins.
Wildebeest are the dominant herbivores in the Serengeti.
Resident herds live in the Serengeti year-round.