Every year, the Great Wildebeest Migration sees millions of wildebeests, zebras, and gazelles move between Kenya and Tanzania, in a systemic pattern.
This greatest natural spectacle is the 8th wonder of the world.
The enormous migration takes place between the months of July and ends in late September, with herds of animals trekking the Serengeti and Maasai Mara in pursuit of greener pastures through the crocodile-infested Mara River.
This wonder is a response to rain patterns that determine their feeding grounds.
Inside this landscape covered with orchards of acacia and thorn savannahs is the famous Mara Triangle.
This triangle is one of the areas where herds of the Great Migration enter and exit the Maasai Mara National Reserve from the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania, making it one of the prime viewing locations for this annual spectacle.
Tall grasslands are visible everywhere as we drive through the Triangle, with resident animals perhaps hidden inside, not to be seen.
I am in the company of David Aruasa, who is the Mara Triangle Administrator, and he tells me the cover of tall grass, gives room for the fauna here to move closer to the community where they ‘feel safer’ and from whence they can observe the movement of their predators.
I learn from Aruasa that these animals browse the shoots and leaves found near or around homesteads.
This movement toward homesteads poses a danger to domestic animals given the endless trial by predators. And this is how human-wildlife conflicts have become so frequent.
To reduce cases of conflict between man and the beast, the Mara management has resorted to setting fires on the grasslands, leaving wild animals with no other option but restricted to the reserve.
But igniting the fires, according to Aruasa is not haphazard. It is done in a controlled manner, he says.
“This is carried out on a rotational basis to ensure other areas are afforded time to grow and mature. Fires can be a useful tool to burn away grass and bush, stimulating a new flush of fresh grass for the purpose of improved grazing. The animals are also a source of revenue in the triangle, especially now that it is the tourism pick season,” he tells me
Fire is a natural component of the Mara landscape and the true impact of a well-timed burn is witnessed in the months to come when wildlife flock back into the ecosystem.
Speaking to KBC digital from location, Aruasa explains how the Wildebeest earned the nickname ‘lawnmower of the mara’.
The Mara Administrator narrates how the over 2 million herds of wildebeest in the company of zebras and gazelles move in one accord, flattening all the grass on their path. But the nickname, he says, emanates from their tendency to graze heavy.
“As the lawnmowers flatten the grass, more wildlife tends to trickle back into the wild making the scenes beautiful and scenic. The grass also tends to regenerate faster during this period because it is a rainy season,” he said.
photo By Beth Nyaga
He says community members aren’t allowed into the conservancy for security reasons. But, they are not locked out altogether. The second Tuesday of every month sees the community and their herd granted access to the Triangle, for the much sought-after Salt Lick inside the reserve.
The Salt lick
A salt lick is a natural source of nutrients, made up of salt deposits and other minerals. Natural licks are common, providing biometals such as sodium, calcium, iron, zinc, phosphorus, and the trace elements the local animals and wildlife need for bone and muscle development and healthy growth.
The weather patterns naturally expose these salty mineral deposits, attracting animals from miles away.
In addition to the minerals, water holes attract regular visits from elephants, buffalos, giraffes, wildebeests, elands, zebras, impalas, and warthogs. Predators are not to be left behind.
Today, the Mara Triangle in the southwestern part of the Maasai Mara National Reserve is managed by the not-for-profit organization The Mara Conservancy on behalf of the Trans-Mara County Council.
Security
The onset of the migration has resulted in the increase in the use of wire snares by poachers mainly along the Kenya-Tanzania border.
“The relatively low numbers of poachers in no way diminishes the extremely hard work done by our rangers, with the help of organizations like World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Kenya we have acquired FLIR cameras which we use to deter poaching,” disclosed Aruasa.
