07-08 January 2021

In the centre of the country, located between the Uluguru and Lumango mountains, Mikumi is the fourth largest national park in Tanzania and is only a few hours drive from Dar es Salaam.The park is much less visited than those in the north but is becoming popular with people from Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar. The diversity and quantity of wildlife is less impressive, but nevertheless, very present and the landscapes are not outdone. We encountered a large family of Lion, an incredible birdlife including, among others, a flock of several dozen Vultures of different species, hundreds of Collared Pratincole, Dwarf Bittern and Dickinson's Kestrel!

The natural environments are largely savannah and a different ecosystem called the Miombo, a heavily forested savannah of central and southern Africa.

Miombo is the Swahili word for Brachystegia, a genus of tree with a large number of species. The characteristic of these trees is that they lose their leaves for a short period during the dry season to reduce water loss, and produce a flush of new leaves just before the arrival of the rainy season with gold and red colours masking the underlying chlorophyll, similar to the colours of autumn in the temperate climate of the northern hemisphere. The birdlife is exceptional and the environment is still well preserved in this part of the country.

Note the large concentration of woodpeckers and the African barred owl. However, we missed one of the target species of the trip, the Racket-tailed Roller....

Another place where we would have stayed much longer!

The other  visited regions:

- Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater (savannah and large mammals)

- Mkomazi National Park (north-east, large wildlife and birds)

- Usambaras Mountains (Magamba reserve, Amani forest) and Uluguru Mountains

-Uzungwas Mountains (tropical mountain forests and surprise viper)