Serengeti

LOCATION

The Serengeti Wildlife Research Centre (SWRC) is within the Serengeti National Park (SNP) which is about 327km from Arusha town. The Serengeti National Park lies in northern Tanzania at an altitude ranging from 910 – 1820m a.s.l. and the park has an area of about 14 763sq.km (1o28′ – 3o17′ S; 33o05′-35o20′ E). It is one of the largest wildlife sanctuaries in the world and was accepted by the World Heritage Convention as a World Heritage Site and Biosphere Reserve in 1981. SNP is a one hour flight from Arusha. The Centre has one research station (Endala) which is in Lake Manyara National Park and is located about 17km from the main entrance gate.

RESEARCH

The SWRC is the genesis of all wildlife research in Tanzania, since it is at this centre where first research work was initiated by the Germany scientist Prof. Bernhard Grizmek 50 years ago. In fact, SWRC was originally the headquarter of Serengeti Research Institute (SRI) before the establishment of Serengeti Wildlife Research Institute (SWRI) by the parliament Act no. 4 of 1980 and the name was changed to Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI) by the parliament Act no. 10 of 1999. SWRC continues to be the centre of excellence in wildlife research since it is here where most of the wildlife researchers are based. SWRC is responsible for wildlife research carried out in the Serengeti National Park and surrounding protected areas including Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), Ikorongo-Gurumeti Game Reserves (IGGR), Maswa Game Reserve (MGR) Lake Manyara National Park (LMNP), Tarangire National Park (TNP), Loliondo Game Controlled Area (LGCA) and Lake Natron Game Controlled Area (LNGCA).

 

RESEARCH PROJECTS UNDER FOREIGN SCIENTISTS

  1. Serengeti ecosystem processes
  2. Serengeti hyaena project
  3. Serengeti cheetah project
  4. Serengeti lion project
  5. Serengeti biodiversity programme
  6. Biocomplexity project
  7. Carnivore diseases project

RESEARCH PROJECTS UNDER SWRC

  1. Biodiversity and Human Wildlife Interface (BHWI) in western Serengeti which is executed by TAWIRI in collaboration with the University of Dar Es Salaam and the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA) of Norway.
  2. Human Elephant Conflict Project in western Serengeti.
  3. Wild Dog Conservation Project in Serengeti Ecosystem.
  4. AfricanBioServices consortium project (2015-2019).

FACILITIES

  1. A well-equipped modern wildlife veterinary laboratory.
  2. A library with publications on wildlife research carried out over 50 years in northern Tanzania.
  3. Enough working space in the two office buildings.
  4. Communication facilities for networking (Internet and Landline phone) within and outside Tanzania.
  5. A zoology museum and herbarium consisting of many different animal and plants specimens.
  6.  A rest house with 10 beds and the student hostel with 20 beds.
  7. Fuel station is operating and staff canteen
  8. Office and library building

FUTURE PLAN

  1. To improve both water and power supply.
  2. To develop research projects on wildlife aspects which have received less attention, such as migratory birds, insects and other wildlife species in the Serengeti Ecosystem.

SERENGETI WILDLIFE RESEARCH CENTRE (SWRC) CONTACT

Address: P.O. Box 661, Arusha, Tanzania.

Tel: +255 (0) 732985740,

Fax: +255 (0) 27 2548240,

Email.swrc@tawiri.or.tz