The area of the Park in the vicinity of the lodge, campsites and Engelhard Bridge over the Tarangire River is known as Matete, taking its name from the tall elephant grass and reeds which grow along the river banks. Lolkisale, the mountain which stands outside the Park to the east, can often be seen from here.

The vegetation is primarily open umbrella acacia parkland with scattered baobabs and is dominated by the river which attracts many animals in the dry season. The water in the river is very saline, but the animals seem to have a considerable tolerance to the sodium concentrations.

Open acacia woodland is the favored habitat of a wide variety of wildlife, because of the shelter and food which it provides. Bird life is very abundant and the canopies of the flat-topped trees provide excellent nesting sites which are difficult for a predator to reach. Acacia tortilis is easily recognized by its umbrella-like thorny canopy and gnarled, twisted branches. In and around the woodland you will see a plant called the sodom apple recognized by its small purple flower and round yellow fruit This plant is rarely eaten by browsing animals and is a pernicious weed in cultivated land.

Primates

Baboons are particularly common in the Matete area. Much of their diet consists of grass, fruit and insects but they frequently hunt and kill the young of impalas, reedbucks and other antelopes. A single baboon troop can range an area as large as 10 sq km.

A baboon troop consists of between 30 and 100 individuals, and is made up of females and their young, adolescent animals of both sexes and a number of adult males. At adolescence, males leave their parents' troop and 'transfer' to another troop.

Males are distinguished from females by their larger size, mane and canines. At first, females carry their young on their stomachs, but after about a month the young infant rides jockey style on the mother's back near the tail. Female baboons form dominance hierarchies, in which the members of the same family assume similar ranks. High-ranking females have greater access to food and sometimes have more offspring. The hierarchies of males are not so clear cut and depend less on their mothers' rank than on such factors as fighting ability and age. Fertile females develop large pink swellings on their rears which signal receptivity.

A very common monkey here, indeed throughout woodlands in East Africa, is the vervet monkey. The vervet is a small monkey with a black face, white cheek tufts and gray fur. Male vervets are easily identified by their azure blue scrotum. Vervets feed on insects, fruit, leaves and seeds and may also eat young birds and eggs. Their social structure is similar to baboons, although vervet groups are territorial and defend their ranges against nearby groups. Larger eagles, such as the martial eagle, and leopards are their main enemies.

The large bird of prey, bluish-black in color with chestnut upperparts is the bateleur eagle. The tail is very short and the contrasting black underparts and white undersides of the wing make this eagle easy to identify in flight. The name bateleur means 'tumbler' in French and refers to the sensational aerobatics this species can perform.

The Kopje

About one kilometer south of the bridge is a rocky kopje (pronounced copy) which is an ideal habitat for hyraxes, of which two species occur, and klipspringers. Hyraxes are notable for being the nearest living relative to the elephant, as distinguished by anatomical similarities -- but seeing them it's hard to believe! They look like a short-eared rabbit. The rock hyrax is larger and browner in color than the bush hyrax, whose fur is grey.

Also seen on this kopje are klipspringers. These thick-set, rough- coated antelopes are about the size of goats and adapted for leaping from rock to rock. Klipspringers are monogamous and pair for several years, living in their own territory which they mark using scent glands near the eye. If you see three together, one may have shorter horns and is likely to be a young animal. The klipspringer found here is the Maasai race in which the males, as well as the majority of females, are horned.

Bohor reedbuck are often seen in this area. They can be confused with impala, but the Bohor reedbuck can be distinguished by its uniform sandy-red color and a very bushy tail with a white 'flag'. The males have short forward curving horns. Reedbuck are difficult to see as they often lie down in tall grass. If alarmed they will give a shrill whistle and run off with a characteristic 'rocking horse' gait.

The Open Plains

The fringe-eared oryx, often found in the Matete area, is a large antelope with a well-defined pattern on the head and body. The body is rufous grey with black stripes along the spine and separating the lower flank from the white underparts. The black and white facial markings are striking, and the ears bear a distinctive tuft of long black hairs. The ridged horns, carried by both sexes, are long and narrow and grow straight back from the head.

Fringe-eared oryx live in grasslands, bush steppe and dry savannah; their wanderings follow the rainfall. Oryx are grazers and can go for long periods without drinking, eating succulent roots to obtain enough water for their needs. Oryx live in herds of up to 40 animals. Their main predator is the lion, and adults will put up strong fight against attack using their horns as effective spears.

Bat-eared foxes live in burrows in the open plains and although mainly active at dawn and dusk, may sometimes be seen and recognized by their generally foxy appearance and very large ears. They feed almost exclusively on insects, but apparently eat roots, fruit and eggs from time to time. Bat-eared foxes give birth once a year, at the end of the dry season. Four cubs to a litter is typical but up to ten are occasionally seen.

Lions are often found near the river because they need to drink regularly and because they frequent areas of the Park where prey species congregate. When you find a pride of lions they are most likely to be resting, as lions spend a large part of their day doing this. If they are awake, they may be licking, grooming, playing and greeting one another. Lions greet upon waking and whenever they meet after being separated. Greeting behavior is easy to recognize and consists of rubbing heads or even their whole bodies together. A cub greets its mother by rubbing the top of its head and then the whole body and tail against her chin.

Lion prides consist of a core of related females: mothers, daughters, sisters, cousins and aunts. These groups of females have a large territorial range within which they capture prey and raise their cubs. Cubs of different females are often born close together and are raised by several females. The cubs can suckle from any lactating female and if a mother dies, her orphans will be adopted by the other females.

The role of male lions is very different. A band of male lions, often brothers, have a range which they mark, patrol and defend. Within this range may live one or more prides of females and the males will join these prides and mate with any receptive females. The more prides they hold, the more cubs the males are likely to sire. Some lions live a nomadic life, roaming singly, in pairs or in small groups, with no fixed territories.

Lions usually hunt at night but you may be lucky enough to see a kill during the day. A high proportion of hunts are unsuccessful but they are nevertheless fascinating to watch, particularly if several members of the pride are hunting together. Lions hunt by stealthily stalking their prey, crouching low to the ground before they advance close enough to make a rush. Lions generally knock running prey over with a swipe of the paw, or pull it down with both front paws, whilst keeping their hind legs on the ground. As soon as the prey is down, the lion either grasps the throat, biting down on the windpipe, or grabs the muzzle and suffocates it.

Once the animal is dead, the lions will sometimes move it to a secluded or shady spot. Depending on how hungry the lions are, they may feed quietly or if it is a large pride, eat anything they can get hold of and begin dragging pieces away as soon as possible. Cubs start to eat a kill from about three months old but males usually get priority at a kill, even over the females that hunted it, and can eat up to a quarter of their body weight! The main prey species in Tarangire are zebra and wildebeest.

If you find a kill with lions eating, do not disturb them.