To be precise, there isn't a beginning nor an end to the Great Migration, it's a circular, never-ending pilgrimage that starts again and again. Animals will follow the circular clockwise route year after year, back and forth from the Serengeti National Park, in northern Tanzania, to the Masai Mara National Reserve, in southern Kenya.
However, for the sake of setting a starting point, we could say that the Great Migration begins from late Januaryto mid-March that is, when things always begin: with birth. Indeed, several hundred thousand wildebeest calves are born each year during this period, though many will be shortly hunted by hyenas, jackals, and other predators. The animals set off in April, when the Southern Serengeti plains have dried up and become increasingly worn out. The herds gather and start the trek, following a North West direction, into the Western Corridor (near Lake Victoria), where they'll find fresh tall grasses. Although the herds include many different herbivores, the big numbers are made by Wildebeest, of course, Thomson's gazelle, and Zebra: respectively, 1.3 million, 360 thousand, and 191 thousand. Integration among the migration companions is highly accomplished. On the one hand, each species eats a different part of the grass sward and so do not compete. On the other, a larger number provides a greater safety for individuals, as there are more targets for predators.
Unfortunately, gazelles and zebras aren't the wildebeest's only companions. Several gangs of carnivores -most notably lions and hyenas- march along, closely following an irresistible and fairly convenient-to-catch protein source. Hunting is not strictly necessary: many animals will fall to the fatigue of the trip, making an easy lunch for the meat-eaters.
sumber dari: mamboviewpoint.org
No comments:
Post a Comment