The place of the baobab
One of the most popular and accessible of Tanzania's national parks, Mikumi lies in the lee of the Uluguru Mountains and is dominated by the floodplains of the Mkata River. Covering an area only 3,230 square kilometres, the park offers a wide range of habitats including: swamps, plains, hippo pools, palm groves and woodlands, whilst its array of wildlife is unusual indeed.
Fact File
Area: 3,230 sq kms
Location: 280 kms west of Dar es Salaam
Altitude: 500-1,257 m
Vegetation: Miombo woodland on the Mkata River flood plain. The remainder is thorn acacia, ebony shrub, baobab and riverine thicket broken by Borassus palm.
Fauna: Mammals include yellow baboon, vervet monkey, Sykes monkey, lion, elephant, rhino, giraffe, zebra, eland, buffalo, greater kudu, bushbuck, waterbuck and Lichtenstein’s hartebeest.
Birds: The birdlife is abundant and varied with both northern species such as, superb starling and straw-tailed whydah, and southern species such as– Dickinson’s kestrel and Boehm’s bee-eater.