Selous game reserve is located in the southern part of Tanzania; the park derived its name from an English man who was named Fredrick Selous who hunted in this area from 1871. The park is blessed with diverse Flora and fauna and was gazetted as a U.N.E.S.C.O site in 1982, Selous game reserve was preserved as a protected area by a German Guvnor Hermann Von Wissmann in 1896, the area became a hunting reserve in 1905. Its one of the tour destinations you should visit during your safari in Tanzania.
Selous game reserve covers an area of over 50,000 square kilometers and is recorded to be the largest game reserve in Africa; the park has got breathtakingviews of the splendid great Rhuha and Rufini rivers, stunning lakes and hot volcanic springs. Selous national park remains Africa’s untouched wilderness as it’s very large to explore and also located in a remote area hence being visited by less tourists annually. This partly explains why the most affordable Tanzania holidays are booked to this park.
Rufini River found at Selous game reserve is also the largest river in Tanzania, this river bisects the reserve into two sections north and south sector, the park is among one of the largest faunal reserves in the whole world. No permanent habituation or human settlement is permitted within the reserve making it a real untouched wilderness.
Selous game reserve boasts with large numbers of some animals for example the black rhinos whose number can’t outstand any other game reserve or national park. Selous also boasts with over 2000 plant species, 8% of the parks area is dedicated to photographic tourism.
Tourist’s activities at Selous national park;
Game drives: Selous national park harbors very large numbers of animals some of which are African bush elephants, black rhinos, cape buffalos, hippos, water bucks, hartebeests, reed bucks, zebras, giraffes, greater kudu, elands, warthogs, spotted hyenas, lions, leopards and crocodiles. River Rufini attracts large herds of elephants that drink from therein
Bird watching: Selous game reserve is a birders Paradise blessed with over 350 bird species, for bird enthuasts this marvelous destination must be included in your safari in Tanzania, Selous game reserve harbors both residential and migratory birds some of which are included here; purple crested turaco, malachite kingfisher, pied kingfisher, palmnut vulture, white fronted bee eater, ibises, Malagasy squaco heron, yellow billed stork, African skimmers and sour winged plovers to mention a few.
Nature guided walks: Guided nature walks can be taken using various walking trails at Selous game reserve this will reward you with a lot if plant life and wildlife encounter as well as the parks endless scenic views
Boat riding: Boat riding at Selous national game reserve can be done at the lakes and water channels, tourists will views animals like hippos and crocodiles just a few meters from their boats and also enjoy the lakes great Flora and fauna.
Hunting: Selous game reserve provides hunting blocks for visitors who would love to explore the wilderness on hunting however tourists must not exceed the number of animals to be hunted or hunt for animals their not permitted to, every tourist who would love to engage in this activity must acquire a permit before hunting. Hunting is mostly done in the southern sector of the park south of Rufiji River.
The best time for visiting Selous national game park is from June to October, during this time, the vegetation is not thick and animals are always gathered St the parks water sources making it easy to access them, wet season is the best time for those bird enthusiasts as the vegetation is thick and animals can access water anywhere in the park making them scarce at the water points. The roads are also very muddy and will require four wheel drive vehicles to explore the game reserve.
Selous game reserve can be accessed by air from Dar- es – Salam and this takes only fourty five minutes, the Selous game reserve can be accessed by road through various routes tourists can travel from Dar- es Salam to Selous via Morogoro town, Dar es Salam to Selous passing through Mikumi national park giving you a very thrilling experience. Selous national park can also be accessed from Dar- es Salma through Tanzania Zambia railway which normally takes about five to six hours drive this is the best way to explore the bush.
Tourists will choose where to stay from or with the help of a tour operator while at Selous game reserve some of the lodges found at Selous are Ndovu Selous lodge, the retreat Selous, lake manze tented camp, sand rivers Selous, and Selous Serena camp among the rest.
