The Maasai Mara National Reserve is one of Africa’s most celebrated wildlife destinations, situated in southwestern Kenya and forming part of the greater Mara-Serengeti ecosystem. It is renowned for vast open savannahs, rolling grasslands, riverine forests along the Mara and Talek rivers, and an exceptional concentration of wildlife that can be viewed year-round.
The reserve is most famous for the Great Wildebeest Migration. In this natural spectacle, over a million wildebeest, accompanied by zebras and gazelles, move from the Serengeti in Tanzania into the Maasai Mara in search of fresh grazing, usually between July and October. River crossings filled with crocodiles make this one of the most dramatic wildlife events on earth.
Animals commonly viewed by tourists in the Maasai Mara include lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant, buffalo, black rhino, giraffe, plains zebra, wildebeest, topi, eland, impala, Thomson gazelle, Grant gazelle, hartebeest, waterbuck, bushbuck, warthog, common duiker, dik dik, hippopotamus, Nile crocodile, spotted hyena, striped hyena, African wild dog, black backed jackal, side striped jackal, bat eared fox, serval, caracal, African civet, genet, olive baboon, vervet monkey, and patas monkey.
The reserve is also a birding paradise with over four hundred species, including ostrich, secretary bird, kori bustard, crowned crane, lilac breasted roller, marabou stork, saddle billed stork, African fish eagle, martial eagle, vultures, hornbills, and bee eaters.
Together, this diversity of landscapes, abundant wildlife, and the iconic Great Wildebeest Migration make the Maasai Mara a must-visit destination for safari enthusiasts from across the world.
