Tarangire Ecosystem
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Tarangire Ecosystem (/ˌtɑːrɑːnˈɡɪreɪ/) is a geographical region in northern Tanzania, Africa. It extends between 2.5 and 5.5 degrees south latitudes and between 35.5 and 37 degrees east longitudes.[1][2]
The Tarangire Ecosystem hosts the second-largest population of migratory ungulates in East Africa and the largest population of elephants in northern Tanzania.[3][4]
The Tarangire Ecosystem is defined by watershed boundaries of the Lake Manyara Basin and the Engaruka Basin,[5] and the long distance migratory movements of eastern white-bearded wildebeest and plains zebra.[2][6][7] It includes the dry season wildlife concentration area near the Tarangire River in Tarangire National Park, and the wet-season dispersal and calving grounds to the north in the Northern Plains and to the east in Simanjiro Plains, spanning in total approximately 20,500 km2 (7,900 sq mi).[7][8] Migratory animals must have access to both the dry-season water source in the park, and the nutrient-rich forage available only on the calving grounds outside the park to successfully raise their calves and maintain their high abundance.[9]
The Tarangire Ecosystem is also known as the Masai Steppe, or the Tarangire-Manyara Ecosystem.
Tarangire has approximately 500 species of birds, and more than 60 species of larger mammal.[10][11]