Ch. 13 Make up Assignment
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Read and highlight. Then, list ten facts about the Serengeti, its wildlife, and safaris.
Discover Serengeti
It was 1913 and great stretches of Africa were still unknown to the white man when
Stewart Edward White, an American hunter, set out from Nairobi. Pushing south, he
recorded: "We walked for miles over burnt out country... Then I saw the green trees of
the river, walked two miles more and found myself in paradise."
He had found Serengeti. In the years since White's excursion under "the high noble arc
of the cloudless African sky," Serengeti has come to symbolize paradise to many of us.
The Maasai, who had grazed their cattle on the vast grassy plains for millennia had
always thought so. To them it was Siringitu - "the place where the land moves on
forever."
The Serengeti region encompasses the Serengeti National Park itself, the Ngorongoro
Conservation Area, Maswa Game Reserve, the Loliondo, Grumeti and Ikorongo
Controlled Areas and the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. Over 90,000
tourists visit the Park each year.
Two World Heritage Sites and two Biosphere Reserves have been established within
the 30,000 km² region. It's unique ecosystem has inspired writers from Ernest
Hemingway to Peter Mattheissen, filmakers like Hugo von Lawick and Alan Root as
well as numerous photographers and scientists - many of which have put their works at
our disposal to create this website.
The Serengeti ecosystem is one of the oldest on earth. The essential features of
climate, vegetation and fauna have barely changed in the past million years. Early man
himself made an appearance in Olduvai Gorge about two million years ago. Some
patterns of life, death, adaptation and migration are as old as the hills themselves.
It is the migration for which Serengeti is perhaps most famous. Over a million
wildebeest and about 200,000 zebras flow south from the northern hills to the southern
plains for the short rains every October and November, and then swirl west and north
after the long rains in April, May and June. So strong is the ancient instinct to move that
no drought, gorge or crocodile infested river can hold them back.
The Wildebeest travel through a variety of parks, reserves and protected areas and
through a variety of habitat. Join us to explore the different forms of vegetation and
landscapes of the Serengeti ecosystem and meet some of their most fascinating
inhabitants.
Magnificent Wildlife
".. The only living things which look as if they really belonged to it are the Wild Animals.
Between the animals and Africa there is an understanding that the human beings have
not yet earned .."
-Laurens van der Post, Venture to the Interior, 1963
Today, the Serengeti National Park, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and the
Maasai Mara Game Reserve across the border in Kenya, protect the greatest and most
varied collection of terrestrial wildlife on earth, and one of the last great migratory
systems still intact.
The Serengeti is the jewel in the crown of Tanzania's protected areas, which altogether
make up some 14% of the country's land area, a conservation record that few other
countries can match.
Safari
Safari, in Kiswahili, simply means "journey". But in English it has become a synonyme
for a wildlife viewing adventure in the African bush. 'To go on safari' In Tanzania is, and
always will remain a fascinating and exclusive experience!
It is well known that Tanzania has beautiful nature reserves rich in wildlife. There are,
however, still many false ideas about this big southern neighbour of Kenya. It is true
that Tanzania, measured in terms of pro-capita income, is one of the world's poorest
countries. It is a fact that the country can feed itself and, what is of greater significance,
is that since independence Tanzania politically has been among the most stable African
countries. In regard to safety, both for its own citizens and for tourists, it is well ahead of
its more economically advanced neighbours.
In the past, tourism was of little significance to Tanzania and few people chose to visit
it. To have to deal with all the uncertainties, and at the same time not really be sure
what natural attractions the country had to offer made one question whether the cost
was reasonable. In fact this did not have a negative effect upon the nature reserves
and even during the most difficult times major efforts were undertaken to maintain the
national parks and also to create new ones.
Today, several sections of the tourism infrastructure have developed well and a couple
of new hotels and luxury, charming camps conforming to 'international' standards have
opened. There is reason to hope that the difference between the local way of life and
the standards of rich international tourists, which in many other third world countries
has had such a negative impact, will be kept within reasonable limits.
Write 10 facts about the Serengeti, its wildlife, and safaris.
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