Ngorongoro Crater

Ngorongoro Crater is the world's largest intact caldera (19km wide).  Before the cataclysmic collapse of its cone 2 million years ago, this volcanic mountain may have been taller than Kilimanjaro.  Its rim, which averages 2,316m elevation, is cloaked in moist mountain forest and grassland.  At 1,700m elevation, the c rater floor is primarily grassland, with patches of spring-fed marshes, freshwater ponds, a salt lake and small forests.  An average 20,000 animals are present in the crater.  It is virtual Noah's Ark (without giraffes).  Black rhinos, buffalos, wildebeests, zebras, gazelles, and hartebeests graze the grassland, while male elephants roam he wooded areas, and hippos gather in marshes and ponds.  Lions, spotted hyenas, golden and black jackals are also present.

Resident ostriches, crowned cranes, and Kori bustards are joined seasonally by migrant flocks of white and Abdim's stork.  The lesser Flamingoes can be observed feeding in Lake Majadi.