Serengeti Landscapes

It was so interesting to watch the landscape change in the Serengeti.

Where there was water, there was green.  Palm trees even grew around some of the water holes.

And where there was no water, there was dryness and dust.

Chris said that the elders say rain is coming in 4 - 6 weeks when the acacia trees start to get green.   Now that we are home we believe him because it rained in Samburu in late December and early January, about 2 months after we were there.   

This cheetah was majestic across the savannah.

These 2 females and 1 male lion were starting courtship.  We watched awhile but other than a bunch of yawning, not much happened.

The hyenas always seemed to find a mudhole to cool off in.  You can see some hills starting to creep in here.

The termite hills were the only tall things in some parts!

And then we came upon these interesting rock formations called kopjes. 

The Serengeti plain is punctuated by granite outcroppings known as kopjes. These outcroppings are the result of volcanic activity. They were formed when the volcanoes of the Ngorongoro highlands erupted over one million years ago, spewing ash over the southernmost third of the Serengeti to create a rich and fertile, but alkaline, soil that produces short, sweet grass when it rains.

The Kopjes of Eastern Africa tend to be a refuge for life in the Serengeti of Tanzania and Kenya. Where the soil is too thin or hard to support tree life in large areas, soil trapped by Kopjes can be dense with trees while the surrounding land contains only short grass. Hollows in the rock surfaces provide catchments for rainwater. Many animals have adapted to the use of Kopjes, to include the lion, hyrax, and an abundance of bird and reptile life. One kopje likely to be seen by visitors to the Serengeti is the Simba Kopje (Lion Kopje) which was used as the inspiration for the Disney Lion King movie.  (from geocaching.com)

They were interesting and from the trail looked completely deserted.  I'm sure there were lots of animals, especially small ones including snakes, hiding there!

You can see a great map at safarimappers.com.   Here's a little explanation of the park from the website.

"The name 'Serengeti' comes from the Maasai language and means an 'extended place'. The National Park alone covers an area of 12,950 square kilometres. The Serengeti ecosystem, which includes the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, the Grumeti Game Reserve, the Maswa Game Reserve, the Maasai Mara Game reserve (in Kenya) and numerous concession areas, is roughly the size of Sicily. It lies between the shores of Lake Victoria in the west, Lake Eyasi in the south, and the Great Rift Valley to the east."