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There is a chance of heavy rain during this period and showers can be expected for a few hours every day or every other day. Perhaps because of this, fewer people go on safari towards the end of March. During April and May the parks of Kenya and Tanzania are fairly empty and accommodation costs are often quite a bit lower. However, this time actually offers the finest game viewing opportunities of the year. Wildlife concentrations are at their highest in the Southern Serengeti, and the landscape is a lush green. With less crowding, lower prices and abundant wildlife, this can be the best time to go on safari.
 

Eastern Serengeti National Park.

The eastern plains of the Serengeti are very seasonal. During the dry season, you are not likely to encounter more than a few gazelle. However, the eastern plains come to life in the wet season and offer incredible game viewing for certain species of animals. The cheetahs in the Serengeti are migratory and many of them go to the eastern plains during the wet season and head back to the central Serengeti for the dry season. Hyenas are also semi-nomadic and go 'holidaying' in the eastern plains during the wet season.
  

Southern Serengeti National Park.

The rains trigger the great wildebeest migration into the plains of the South Serengeti and the northern Ngorongoro Conservation Area. April, May and June are the best months for game viewing in the Southern Serengeti. The southern plains encompass a massive area, so you should try to visit more than one lodge if time allows. Elephants can also be found in the Southern Serengeti now, in the patches of woodland that dot the plains.
  

Ngorongoro Crater.

The Ngorongoro Crater provides some of the very best game viewing Africa has to offer and is excellent at any time of year. The crater is not a self-contained ecosystem and some animals do migrate in and out but not in sufficient numbers to warrant tailoring your itinerary around this. The main factors for planning your trip here are weather and visitor numbers. From April to June the crater will be lush and green and visitor numbers will be at their lowest.
 

Wildebeests Migration: April to June.

In April the wildebeest migration is usually spread out across the plains of the northern Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the southern Serengeti. There are thousands of young wildebeest calves on the plains - along with predators waiting for easy pickings.

In May, the rains stop, the land dries up and the wildebeest mow the grazing to stubble. The herds are forced to start moving. The great journey starts in a rather disorderly manner. A few of the 1.5 million individuals decide it's time to go and start off towards Lake Victoria and the Western Serengeti; the others eventually follow. Individuals and small groups gradually merge into vast herds on the march.

Given the fact that the exact timing of the wildebeests' departure from the plains is completely dependent upon when the rains end in May, it is a good idea to try several different locations if you are on safari at this time of year. The migration could reach the Western Serengeti anytime from early May to early June, depending on when the southern plains dry up.

Late May to early June is also when the wildebeest breed. The wildebeest rut depends on the availability of food and the animals' condition, but, whenever it happens, all the mature animals come into breeding condition at the same time. Breeding males bellow and grunt to advertise their presence, see off rivals and round up females to keep them from walking away, and the calves and females constantly call to each other so they don't get separated in all the confusion. The resulting cacophony is quite something!

By June, the migration should be in full swing as the herds make their way from the plains to their transitional range located in the Western Serengeti. The mass movements of the migration, combined with the wildebeest rut at the beginning of June makes this an exciting time for a safari in the Serengeti.
 

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