The wildebeest are one of the most important pieces in the Serengeti ecosystem puzzle. Their migration is as old as the history of mankind. For centuries, wildebeest have followed the rains and used the Serengeti ecosystem with its mosaic of grasslands and savannas to their advantage. Everyone who has had the chance to see nearly two million animals on the move has been touched by the magic of this place. Even if the wildebeest looks a bit like a clown and, according to an African legend, has been put together by God using left over spare parts, the animal is superbly fit for its migratory lifestyle.

Wildebeest spend the rainy season from December to June in the volcanic open plains below the Ngorongoro Crater where the grass growth is most productive and nutrient contents high. It is here that the calves are born. Calving season is short and predators cannot make a dent in the new-born with such a sudden surge of food. When the monsoon rains stop in June, the plains dry out and the wildebeest move west towards Lake Victoria in search of pasture and rains.

The plains become a harsh and dry semi-desert in which no wildebeest could survive. Only through migration can the wildebeest and zebra use the widespread resources of the ecosystem and build up such large numbers. Following the rainfalls the migration moves on to the north, into the Maasai Mara, where the rift wall catches the last rains even in the middle of the dry season. With the onset of the monsoon rains in December the wildebeest move back into the lush Serengeti plains.

Father and son Grzimek put yellow plastic collars on wildebeest and zebras in an attempt to study their migration pattern. Today the Frankfurt Zoological Society uses the most up to date Geographical Positioning System Satellite technology to do just the same.

Text courtesy of the Frankfurt Zoological Society www.serengeti.org