Set in Northern Tanzania covering 8292 sq km,the Ngorongoro forms part of the unique Serengeti ecosystem and is a year round destination.The terrain embraces several distinct habitats from open grasslands to mountain forest, and from scrub bushland to highland heath. The area contains sites of international palaeontological and archaeological importance. Around 25 000 animals habitat the Crater floor throughout the year whilst in the Conservation Area as a whole the numbers can swell to more than 2,5 million, season depending. Man and his ancestors have lived in the Ngorongoro ecosystem for more than three million years. Evidence of a regional hunter-gatherer culture dates back 17 000 years and it is clear that the various tribes have migrated in and out of the area, just as they have done in recent times. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) aims to maintain the historic balance of people and nature in a way which has not been possible in many parts of Africa. Two main geological rifts run through the area. Nine volcanoes in the Ngorongoro highlands were formed during the past four million years. One of these, Oldonyo Lengai (Mountain of God) is still active. Over millennia the ash and dust from each eruption has been carried by the winds to form the fertile soils of the Serengeti plains. The earliest sign of mankind in the NCA is at Laetoli where hominid footprints are preserved in volcanic rock 3,6 million years old. Further north, Olduvai Gorge has yielded a wealth of hominid and animal remains discovered by Louis & Mary Leakey. The jewel in Ngorongors’ crown is a deep volcanic crater – the largest unflooded and unbroken caldera in the world – 19,2 kilometres in diameter, 610 metres deep and 304 sq kilometers in area. The rich pasture and permanent water of the Crater Floor supports a large resident population of wildlife including Wildebeest, Zebra, Gazelle, Buffalo, Eland, Kongoni and Warthog. The swamps and forest provide additional resources for Hippo, Elephant, Waterbuck, Reedbuck, Bushbuck, Baboons and Vervet monkeys. The steep inner slopes provide a habitat for dik dik and the rare mountain Reedbuck. Jackals thrive in the Crater and bat-eared Foxes live in the short grass areas. Predatory animals – Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Serval Cats live of the abundance of wildlife, and large packs of Hyena roam the crater, making their own kills and scavenging from others.
HIGHLIGHTS
• World Heritage Site •International Biosphere Reserve Status
• Ngorongoro Crater Game Drives •Maasai Culture and visits to traditional Maasai Manyattas •Bird Watching
• Black Rhino • Oldonyo Lengai, Olmoti, Embakaai Craters • Olduvai Gorge • Shifting Sands
• Wildebeest Migration •Walking Safaris
