At around 50,000 sq km, the Selous is Africa’s
largest game reserve, a wilderness area bigger
than Denmark or Switzerland. The Reserve covers
more than 5% of Tanzania’s total land area, and
is three times larger than the Serengeti.
Although slightly off the beaten track of the
more well-worn safari circuits, a visit to the
Selous offers unforgettable game viewing in
almost completely isolated surroundings.
The park supports enormous numbers of wild
animals: 200,000 buffalo, 30,000 elephant (more
than half the country’s population), and 80,000
wildebeest, as well as one of the healthiest
populations of the endangered African Wild Dog.
A successful project is underway to nurture the
Reserve’s population of black rhino back to
health following their depletion by poachers in
the 1970s and 80s, and sightings are now
possible in the tourist area.
A part of the Reserve’s modern-day area was set
aside as a game conservancy as far back as 1905,
an area which was expanded and named (after
Frederick Courtenay Selous, a 19th century
hunter and soldier) in the 1920s. Repeated
sleeping sickness epidemics during the 1930s and
1940s meant that the area’s human inhabitants
moved out, leaving the Selous to the animals.
Today, sleeping sickness is a thing of the
distant past, but the Selous is still an
uninhabited, untamed slice of ‘Old Africa’. In
1982, the Reserve’s unique ecosystem was
recognised internationally and the area
designated a World Heritage Site by the United
Nations.
The greater part of the northern sector of the
Selous is earmarked for photographic tourism,
and it is one of the most beautiful and
game-rich areas in the whole ecosystem.
Three-quarters of the Reserve is woodland of
various types, short grassy plains, and
seasonally flooded pans. Impressive riverine
forests and dense impenetrable thickets are
important habitats within the Selous. The wide,
meandering Rufiji River is one of the largest
water systems in East Africa. With its
associated wetlands, lakes and swamps, it is one
of the most outstanding ecological systems in
the whole of East Africa.
Walking and boat safaris, as well as traditional
game drives, are on offer to visitors to the
Selous’ small and remote camps and lodges, with
little chance of bumping into any sign of human
life. Fly camping, or mobile walking safaris,
are becoming a popular option for intrepid
visitors intent on seeing the best of Africa on
foot, unhampered by the closed-in atmosphere of
a safari van. Boat trips and longer safaris down
the spectacular Rufiji River offer visitors a
chance to see hippos, bird life and crocodiles
up close. During a game drive or walk one might
be lucky enough to see a pack of African wild
dogs, disappearing throughout Africa but
thriving in the Selous. These complex and
fascinating mammals show little fear of
vehicles, and it is often possible to observe
their intense social life from close proximity.
In the tourist area the density of dogs is
higher than anywhere else in Africa.
Although the Selous is best known for its
spectacular large mammals, it is equally
celebrated for its abundant and varied birds.
The most conspicuous bird life is to be found
around the constantly changing pattern of
sandbanks, oxbow lakes, lagoons and channels
along the Rufiji River. The river scenery is
made all the more spectacular by the groves of
Borassus palms, an indigenous species with tall
fronds that sway majestically in the African
breeze. Ancient baobabs, a tree held sacred by
many tribal groups, stand majestically against
the far-reaching horizon. Their dead, hollow,
leafless trunks provide vantage points for Fish
Eagles and nest sites for Egyptian Geese and
Dickinson’s Kestrels.
