Aircraft are essential for surveillance of the Serengeti ecosystem. They are used for monitoring, aerial patrols and wildlife censuses.

Serengeti National Park covers about 15.000 square kilometres. Regular low-flying aerial patrols are necessary to observe the full expanse of the park including the park borders. The aircraft also allow for quick responses. In case security threats or poaching incidents are observed, they are reported back to the park authorities Serengeti National Park. Staff on the ground can then respond accordingly.

Wildlife censuses are animal counts according to scientific standards. Accurate data about animal populations and distributions inform long-term conservation management decisions. Together with our partners Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) and the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI) we conduct regular censuses. And we supported the Paul G. Allen Foundation in the biggest elephant census in Africa to date: The Great Elephant Census.

In 1964, Frankfurt Zoological Society supplied the first aircraft to TANAPA, a Cessna. Since then, we made sure that the Serengeti Park management has always been equipped with wings for conservation. Today, aerial support to the Serengeti includes an Aviat Husky as a dedicated spotter plane, which can operate at low heights and slow speeds, providing patrols and reports to the Park authorities. The second aircraft, a Cessna 182, provides logistical support.

For animal surveys aircraft follow a regular flying pattern of parallel straight lines, called transects. The survey crews usually consist of four individuals: the pilot navigates the aircraft following the survey map. A front seat observer records metadata including the beginning and end points of each transect, height, vegetation, water and burnt areas.

Two rear seat observers, looking out the left and right rear windows, perform the actual counting. They count all the animals they can see within a sample area. This area is defined by streamers attached on the wing strut on each side of the aircraft. On the ground, the sample area is about 150 metres wide. The rear seat observers record their observations on a voice recorder. To accurately count larger groups of more than ten animals, photos are taken.

Constant height and speed are essential for consistency of the data. Survey teams can use one or more aircraft, each flying at a height of about 350 feet (ca. 100 metres) above ground and at a speed of 110 miles (175 kilometres) per hour.

A range of larger animals can be counted in this way: from wildebeest and other antelopes to elephants or even warthogs, baboons and crocodiles. The teams usually also record human activities including settlements or grazing of livestock.

In the late 1950s, Bernhard and Michael Grzimek set out from Germany to count the wildebeest of the Serengeti and they documented the extent of the Great Migration for the first time. Their quest is well documented in the academy award-winning film ‘Serengeti shall not die’ (1959).

For Bernhard Grzimek, former director of Frankfurt Zoological Society, the triumph of making Serengeti and threats to the ecosystem world-famous over-night was preceded by the tragedy of losing his son. Michael, at 24 years of age, died flying the Grzimeks’ famous zebra-striped Dornier aircraft over Serengeti when it collided with a vulture and crashed.