THE GREAT NGORONGORO

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) covers some 8,300 square kilometres. It boasts the finest blend of landscapes, wildlife, people and archaeological sites in Africa. It is also a pioneering experiment in multiple land use. The concept of multiple land use in conservation perspective is a deviation from a traditional approach of regarding conservation as complete absenteeism of human interference

Ngorongoro is a huge caldera formed after the collapse of volcano, 250 square kilometers and 23 kilometers wide. The crater has an average depth of 600 meters. Its spectacular setting and abundance of wildlife combine to make it a wonder of the natural world.

The crater alone has over 20,000 large animals including some of Tanzania's last remaining black rhino. Animals are free to leave or enter the crater but most of them stay because of the plentiful water and food available on the crater floor throughout the year.

The floor has a number of wetland including the Munge River, Lake Makati and Lake Magadi. The Lakes are the attractive point to the numerous flamingos, pelicans, blacksmith Plover, African Cuckoo, Red-eyed Dove and other water birds more than 300 species are recorded. Also the wetland accommodates the large number of hippos and smaller creatures such as frogs and snakes.

Other mammals include wildebeest, zebra, spotted hyena, hunting dogs, gazelles, jackals and primates like mice and grasshoppers. The open grassland covers most of the crater floor and feeds the herbivores. The crater has abundant yellow barked acacia trees to its Lerai forest making a home to Elephants, baboon, bushbucks, waterbucks and velvet monkey.

 Ngorongoro being a conservation area and not a national park allows one to walk and hike along a number of trails covering many areas outside the crater area. It is not allowed to walk in the crater area. Cultural tours to the nearby Maasai village are also possible. These guided walks in the conservation area need to be booked in advance.

The main feature of the Ngorongoro Conservation Authority is the Ngorongoro Crater, the world's largest inactive, intact, and unfilled volcanic caldera, The crater, which formed when a large volcano exploded and collapsed on itself two to three million years ago, is 610 meters (2,000 feet) deep and its floor covers 260 square kilometres ,Estimates of the height of the original volcano range from 4,500 to 5,800 meters (14,800 to 19,000 feet) high.The elevation of the crater floor is 1,800 meters (5,900 feet) above sea level

Land in the conservation area is multi-use and unique because it is the only conservation area in Tanzania that protects wildlife while allowing human habitation. Land use is controlled to prevent negative effects on the wildlife population. For example, cultivation is prohibited at all but subsistence levels.

The area is part of the Serengeti ecosystem and, to the northwest, adjoins the Serengeti National Park and is contiguous with the southern Serengeti plains. These plains also extend to the north into the unprotected Loliondo division and are kept open to wildlife through transhumance pastoralism practiced by the Maasai. The south and west of the area are volcanic highlands, including the famous Ngorongoro Crater and the lesser known Empakaa Crateri. The southern and eastern boundaries are approximately defined by the rim of the East African Rift wall, which also prevents animal migration in these directions.