A dark-maned male lion sitting in golden grass in Serengeti National Park

Wildlife

The Big Five

Lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino — and an honest look at your chances.

The term comes from the era of big-game hunting, when these five animals were considered the most dangerous and difficult to hunt on foot. It has nothing to do with size — it stuck as a phrase long after the hunting ended, and today it is used by photographers rather than shooters. Some guides gently point out that a wild dog, a pangolin or a serval can be a rarer and more exciting sighting than a buffalo.

Lions, elephants and buffaloes are widespread and often seen daily in the main parks. Leopards are present almost everywhere but are shy, nocturnal and superbly camouflaged, so sightings depend on habitat, patience and a good guide. Rhino are the real challenge: black rhino numbers in Tanzania are small and closely protected, and the Ngorongoro Crater is the best-known place to look for them — often at a distance, through binoculars, and frequently not at all.

We would rather set expectations honestly than sell a checklist. A trip built around varied habitats and unhurried time at sightings usually produces far better wildlife viewing than one rushing between parks trying to tick off five species.

Highlights

Lion: widespread and often seen, with large prides in the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Ruaha
Elephant: reliable in Tarangire, Ruaha and Nyerere, where herds gather near water in the dry season
Cape buffalo: common and often in big herds, including on the Ngorongoro Crater floor
Leopard: present in most parks, most often seen resting in trees along rivers in Seronera and Ruaha
Black rhino: scarce, closely protected and never guaranteed — the crater floor offers the best-known chance
The quieter “others”: cheetah, African wild dog, serval, caracal and honey badger reward slow, patient safaris

Where to see it

Best places for this

Serengeti National Park
Northern Circuit
Outstanding for lion and cheetah, with leopards regularly seen along the rivers near Seronera. Elephant and buffalo are common; rhino are present in small numbers but very rarely seen.
Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Northern Circuit
The single best-known place in Tanzania to look for black rhino, with lion, elephant and buffalo often seen on the same crater-floor drive.
Tarangire National Park
Northern Circuit
Large elephant herds, especially along the river in the dry season, with lion, buffalo and a chance of leopard.
Ruaha National Park
Southern Circuit
Big lion prides and one of the better parks for leopard, alongside large elephant and buffalo numbers — and far fewer vehicles.
Nyerere National Park
Southern Circuit
Elephant, buffalo and lion around the Rufiji, plus a genuine chance of African wild dogs, which many guides rate above any of the Big Five.
Lake Manyara National Park
Northern Circuit
Elephant and buffalo in a compact, varied park, with the well-known but unpredictable chance of seeing lions resting in trees.

An African elephant walking through green grass in Tarangire National Park

A black rhinoceros standing in tall golden grass on the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater

Three African buffalo with heavy curved horns standing in dry grass in the Ngorongoro Crater

A young leopard resting in the fork of a tree in Serengeti National Park

Best time

The dry season, roughly June to October, is generally easiest: vegetation is thin, animals concentrate near water and tracks are in good condition. The green season (roughly November to May) is beautiful and quieter, though thicker grass and scattered water can make some animals harder to find.

Good to know

Black rhino sightings are scarce and never guaranteed anywhere in Tanzania; please treat any sighting as a bonus rather than a plan.
Leopards are mostly active at night — early morning and late afternoon drives give the best chance.
Please do not ask your guide to break park rules, drive off-road where it is prohibited or approach animals too closely for a photograph.
A longer stay in fewer parks usually produces better sightings than a fast circuit of many.
Bring binoculars: many of the best sightings, rhino included, are at a distance.

Plan My Trip

Great for

Safari & Wildlife Photography Safaris

Journeys that include this

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Northern Tanzania Safari

Seven days through Tarangire, Lake Manyara, the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater

Arusha · Tarangire National Park · Lake Manyara National Park · Serengeti National Park · Ngorongoro Conservation Area

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A curving white-sand beach with turquoise water and coconut palms at Matemwe, Zanzibar

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Tanzania Safari & Zanzibar Escape

The Northern Circuit’s great parks, followed by Stone Town and the white sands of Zanzibar

Arusha · Tarangire National Park · Serengeti National Park · Ngorongoro Conservation Area · Zanzibar

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A Masai giraffe and its calf on a lake shore in the Selous (Nyerere National Park), with hills beyond

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Southern Tanzania Wilderness

Boat, walking and game-drive safaris in Nyerere and Ruaha, far from the crowds

Nyerere National Park · Ruaha National Park

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More to see

Wildlife

The Great Migration

The Great Migration is the year-round movement of well over a million wildebeest, together with hundreds of thousands of zebras and gazelles, through the Serengeti ecosystem in search of grazing and water. It is not a single event on a fixed date but a continuous cycle, and its timing shifts with the rains every year.

Month-by-month guide

A wild eastern chimpanzee looking out from dense green foliage in Gombe Stream National Park

Wildlife

Chimpanzee Trekking

In the far west of Tanzania, on the steep forested slopes above Lake Tanganyika, communities of wild chimpanzees have been studied and habituated for decades. Trekking to find them is a demanding, humbling walk rather than a game drive, and time with the group is deliberately limited to protect their health.

A flock of lesser flamingos wading and feeding in the shallows of Momella Lake, a soda lake in Arusha National Park

Wildlife

Flamingos & Soda Lakes

Northern Tanzania’s alkaline lakes look hostile — shallow, salty and often too caustic for fish — yet they support blooms of algae that feed flamingos in their thousands. Numbers move constantly between lakes with water levels and food, so a lake that was pink last month may be almost empty this one.