UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Tanzania

UNESCO's Description

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area spans vast expanses of highland plains, savanna, savanna woodlands and forests. Established in 1959 as a multiple land use area, with wildlife coexisting with semi-nomadic Maasai pastoralists practicing traditional livestock grazing, it includes the spectacular Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest caldera. The property has global importance for biodiversity conservation due to the presence of globally threatened species, the density of wildlife inhabiting the area, and the annual migration of wildebeest, zebra, gazelles and other animals into the northern plains. Extensive archaeological research has also yielded a long sequence of evidence of human evolution and human-environment dynamics, including early hominid footprints dating back 3.6 million years.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

The Serengeti ecosystem includes multiple preserved areas in Tanzania. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is in the southeast portion (shown in dark grey). The NCA adjoins the Serengeti National Park to the northwest and is contiguous with the SNP's southern Serengeti plains. These plains also extend to the north of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area into the unprotected Loliondo division and are kept open to wildlife through transhumance pastoralism practiced by the Maasai. The south and east of the NCA are volcanic highlands, including the famous Ngorongoro Crater and the lesser-known Empakaai Crater.

The southern and eastern boundaries of the Serengeti ecosystem are approximately defined by the rim of the East African Rift wall, which also prevents animal migration in these directions.

History

The name of the crater has an onomatopoeic origin; it was named by the Maasai pastoralists after the sound produced by the cowbell (ngoro ngoro). Based on fossil evidence OH 7 found at the Olduvai Gorge, various hominid species have occupied the area for at least 1.75 million years.

Hunter-gatherers were replaced by pastoralists a few thousand years ago. The Iraqw people came to the area about 2,000 years ago and were joined by the Datooga around the year 1700. Both groups were driven from the area by the Maasai in the 1800s.

No Europeans are known to have set foot in the Ngorongoro Crater until 1892 when it was visited by Oscar Baumann.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q1217726 (CC0).

Visiting Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Ngorongoro Conservation Area is a park and UNESCO World Heritage site in Northeast Tanzania. It contains an old volcano that has collapsed and formed a crater (caldera). The steep sides of the crater have become a natural enclosure for a wide variety of wildlife.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Ngorongoro Conservation Area (CC BY-SA 4.0).

UNESCO's Description

The vast plains of the Serengeti comprise 1.5 million ha of savannah. The annual migration to permanent water holes of vast herds of herbivores (wildebeest, gazelles and zebras), followed by their predators, is one of the most impressive natural events in the world.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

The park covers 14,750 km2 (5,700 sq mi) of grassland plains, savanna, riverine forest, and woodlands. The park lies in northwestern Tanzania, bordered to the north by the Kenyan border, where it is continuous with the Maasai Mara National Reserve. To the southeast of the park is the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, to the southwest lies Maswa Game Reserve, to the west are the Ikorongo and Grumeti Game Reserves, and to the northeast and east lies the Loliondo Game Control Area.

The landscape of the Serengeti Plain is extremely varied, ranging from savannah to hilly woodlands to open grasslands. The region's geographic diversity is due to the extreme weather conditions that plague the area, particularly the potent combination of heat and wind.

Geology

The basement complex consists of Archaen Nyanzian System greenstones (2.81–2.63 Ga in age), Archaean granite-gneiss plutons (2.72–2.56 Ga in age), which were uplifted 180 Ma ago, forming koppies and elongated hills, the Neoproterozoic Mozambique Belt consisting of quartzite and granite, and the Neoproterozoic Ikorongo Group, consisting of sandstone, shale and siltstone that form linear ridges. The southeast portion of the park contains Neogene-aged volcanic rock and Oldoinyo Lengai Holocene-aged volcanic ash. The Grumeti, Mara, Mbalageti, and Orangi rivers flow westward to Lake Victoria, while the Oldupai River flows eastward into the Olbalbal Swamps.

In the eastern portion of the park lie the Serengeti volcanic grasslands which are a Tropical Grassland Ecozone.

History

In 1930, Major Richard Hingston, visiting Tanganyika on a mission from the Society for the Preservation of the Fauna of the Empire (SPFE), proposed that the Serengeti Game Reserve be designated as a national park to ensure its protection from the pressures of population growth and economic development.

The area became a national park in 1940. It was granted strict protection in 1948 when the Serengeti National Park Board of Trustees was formed to administer the national park. The government restricted the movements of the resident Maasai people, and the park boundaries were finalized in 1951.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q11812902 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

Large numbers of elephants, black rhinoceroses, cheetahs, giraffes, hippopotamuses and crocodiles live in this immense sanctuary, which measures 50,000 km 2 and is relatively undisturbed by human impact. The park has a variety of vegetation zones, ranging from dense thickets to open wooded grasslands.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History

The area was first designated a protected area in 1896 by the German Governor of Tanganyika Hermann von Wissmann, and became a hunting reserve in 1905. The reserve was named after Frederick Selous, a famous big game hunter and early conservationist, who died at Beho Beho in this territory in 1917 while fighting against the Germans during World War I. Scottish explorer and cartographer Keith Johnston had died at Beho Beho in 1879 while leading a Royal Geographical Society expedition to the Great Lakes of Africa with Joseph Thomson.

Since 2005, the protected area is considered a Lion Conservation Unit.

A boundary change to allow the use of uranium deposits has been approved.

Description

Interesting sites in the park include the Rufiji River, which flows into the Indian Ocean opposite Mafia Island, and Stiegler Gorge, a canyon measuring nearly 100 metres deep by as wide. Varied habitats include grassland, typical Acacia savanna, wetlands, riverine and riparian zones, and extensive miombo woodlands. Although total wildlife populations are high, the reserve is vast; densities of observable animals may be lower than in the busier parks in Tanzania's northern tourist circuit (such as the Serengeti). In 1976, the Selous Game Reserve contained about 109,000 elephants, then the largest population in the world; by 2013, that number had dropped to about 13,000 animals, including a sharp 66% drop just between 2009 and 2013 (an approx. 10-11% decrease per year for those six years).

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q2268839 (CC0).

Visiting Selous Game Reserve

The Selous Game Reserve is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Tanzania. With 54,600 km², it is the largest game reserve in Africa. The northern part of the reserve was designated Nyerere National Park in 2019.

Most of the reserve remains set aside for game hunting through a number of privately leased hunting concessions, but a section Nyerere National Park is a popular tourist destination. There are several high end lodges and camps mainly situated along the river and lake systems in this area. Rather difficult road access means most visitors arrive by small aircraft from Dar es Salaam, though train access is also possible.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Selous Game Reserve (CC BY-SA 4.0).

UNESCO's Description

At 5,895 m, Kilimanjaro is the highest point in Africa. This volcanic massif stands in splendid isolation above the surrounding plains, with its snowy peak looming over the savannah. The mountain is encircled by mountain forest. Numerous mammals, many of them endangered species, live in the park.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

History

In the early twentieth century, Mount Kilimanjaro and its surrounding forests were declared a game reserve by the German colonial government. In 1921, it was designated a forest reserve. In 1973, the mountain above the tree line (about 2,700 metres (8,900 ft)) was reclassified as a national park. The park was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in 1987. In 2005, the park was expanded to include the entire montane forest, which had been part of the Kilimanjaro Forest Reserve.

Tourism

Mount Kilimanjaro is the primary attraction of the park, and summit attempts account for the majority of visitor activity. Climbing is permitted only via designated routes and must be undertaken with licensed guides in accordance with park regulations administered by the Tanzania National Parks Authority (TANAPA).

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q756790 (CC0).

Visiting Kilimanjaro National Park

Mount Kilimanjaro is an inactive stratovolcano in northeast Tanzania, near the border with Kenya. At 5,895 m (19,340 feet) above sea level, Kilimanjaro is Africa's highest peak and the world's highest free-standing mountain. Aided by its relatively easy ascent, Kilimanjaro has become a major destination for mountaineers and trekkers from around the world. It's also inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Mount Kilimanjaro (CC BY-SA 4.0).