CHALLENGES of THE GREAT MIGRATION | WILDEBEEST | SAVANA SAFARI

CHALLENGES OF THE GREAT MIGRATION

The GREAT MIGRATION was in progress. I stood on the bank of Mara river in Masai Mara and watched waves of Wildebeest and Zebras gathering on the other side of the bank in Tanzania. They came in hundreds and thousands and jostled for a place on the bank overlooking the river. From the distance they looked like heaving sea waves. It was a live wave of animals gathered by the call of their century old instinct of survival. A call of nature they could not ignore. Mother nature told them that in order to survive and multiply they should move ahead and cross the river. But, the animals were tense and scared. Unable to withstand the tension they would once turn away, run to the highland and watch the river from the distance fear written on their face. The next moment they would turn back and start running down the bank while another group tried to come up. It was absolute confusion and in the bedlam several of either group would get trampled and killed. Only one emotion ruled the waves of animals, it was fear!

They were afraid to cross the river because it was infested with scores of hungry crocodiles who were just waiting for them to get into the river. Yet the primal instinct of survival of the thousands gathered told them that in order to get food and rest they must cross to the other side of Mara. Their side of bank did not have enough grass to graze and they would perish if they stayed back. Yet each member knew that this could be the last swim of his life.

The ones gathered at the edge of the bank were constantly pushed by the ever gathering crowd above but they resisted because closest to the water they could see the crocodiles waiting eagerly. Suddenly, there is a commotion and a member of crowd below, unable to withstand the tension jumps in the river and this open the floodgates. Hundreds of wildebeest and zebras jump in the water and frantically start swimming to the other side. The crocodiles slowly raise their head and start grabbing different animals. This starts a panic, those who are about to jump wait anxiously at the water's edge and those who are already in the water try to somehow reach the other side and get on the bank. Finally numbers win. With thousands of animals in wait and some dozen crocodiles in water the former ignores the latter and all of them jump into the water one after another. While each crocodile has its fill the crowd starts crossing. Those who successfully cross scramble to the bank and wait for their surviving teammates. They know that they are safe for the next few months, they would have enough to eat and their children would grow up to adults. They have succeeded in the eternal battle for survival of the fittest.

This phenomenon takes place every year from July to September wherein more than 2 million animals migrate from Serengeti in Tanzania to Masai Mara in Kenya. This is happening for millions of years without fail for unlike man nature never fails. Unlike Fani, this cyclone that I witnessed was not about mayhem & destruction, but about life & continuity. Fani may have been God's punishment, but the great migration is a divine blessing that you all must witness at least once in your lifetime.

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(Music copyright: Moses Gombezani, Aflab Studio, Arusha, Tanzania)

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