In 2019 Tanzania’s National Park Authority, TANAPA, announced an identity change for the northern sector of the Selous to Nyerere National Park, in honor of Tanzania’s first president Julius Nyerere (1922-1999). While the boundaries of Nyerere National Park are still being established, we understands it will encompass the photographic sector of the Selous and extend into the wilderness zone south of the Rufiji River. This looks set to be a positive change for the region, bringing increased investment and additional wildlife protection.
Covering 45,000km² of wilderness, with grassy plains, open woodland, mountains and forests, the Selous Game Reserve (pronounced ‘seloo’, and named after the great explorer and hunter, Frederick Courtney Selous) is Africa’s largest game reserve. It’s about three times the size of South Africa’s Kruger National Park, and twice the size of the Serengeti National Park. In a fitting tribute, it is also one of Tanzania’s three World Heritage Sites.
Selous is named in honour of the Englishman Frederick Courtney Selous, who lived and hunted in the region from 1871 for around forty years. He gained the reputation as the most accomplished hunter of his age and was also known for his writing, most notably he was the author of ‘A Hunter’s Wanderings in Africa’. Selous was the right-hand man to Cecil John Rhodes in his campaign to annex present-day Zimbabwe to the British Empire, he also achieved brief notoriety in 1899 for speaking out against England’s war on the Boer Republics of South Africa.
When the First World War broke out Selous, at the age of 60, was made Captain of the 25th Royal Fusiliers, winning a DSO in 1916. With his detailed knowledge of the bush, Selous led the chase after the German guerrilla army that presided in southern Tanzania. On New Year’s Day in 1917, Selous was shot dead by a sniper close to the banks of the Beho Beho River where he remains buried today, near Beho Beho Safari Camp.
Five years after Frederick Courtney Selous’ death, the British colonists incorporated a number of existing game reserves south of the river to extend the plains of the aptly named Selous. The Game Reserve reached its present size and shape in the 1940s, when the colonial government moved the remaining tribes out of the area to combat a sleeping sickness epidemic. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982.
Attractions of the Selous is the variety of game viewing activities available here. They all offer trips through the reserve by boat, vehicle and on foot. Boat safaris allow you to drift on the lakes and channels, approaching birds and animals closely, including crocodile and hippo.
Best time is during the June to October dry season, when game clusters around the dwindling waterholes and temperatures are less searing than in the southern summer.
The rains fall in southern Tanzania from Nov-May, dispersing wildlife and blocking access, which means that most accommodation closes for this season. If you do fancy an out of season exploration, keep the short dry season (Jan-Feb) in mind; the landscape is still lush and green with blooming flowers – it’s a wonderful time for photography. Whenever you travel to Selous, though, you won’t be battling with crowds – its sheer size and remoteness gives it a wilderness feel year-round.
