World Heritage Identification Number: 39
World Heritage since: 1979
Category: Mixed Cultural Heritage and Natural Heritage
Transboundary Heritage: No
Endangered Heritage: No
Country: 🇹🇿 United Republic of Tanzania
Continent: Africa
UNESCO World Region: Africa
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Ngorongoro Conservation Area: A Unique Blend of Wildlife, Culture, and History
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area, located in the Crater Highlands region of northeastern Tanzania, is a remarkable testament to the harmonious coexistence of diverse ecosystems, abundant wildlife, rich cultural heritage, and significant historical artifacts. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, this expansive protected area offers a unique blend of natural beauty, wildlife spectacles, and human history that captivates visitors from around the globe.
More to come…UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area spans vast expanses of highland plains, savanna, savanna woodlands and forests. Established in 1959 as a multiple land use area, with wildlife coexisting with semi-nomadic Maasai pastoralists practicing traditional livestock grazing, it includes the spectacular Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest caldera. The property has global importance for biodiversity conservation due to the presence of globally threatened species, the density of wildlife inhabiting the area, and the annual migration of wildebeest, zebra, gazelles and other animals into the northern plains. Extensive archaeological research has also yielded a long sequence of evidence of human evolution and human-environment dynamics, including early hominid footprints dating back 3.6 million years.
Encyclopedia Record: Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Ngorongoro Conservation Area is a protected area and a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Ngorongoro District, 180 km (110 mi) west of Arusha City in Arusha Region, within the Crater Highlands geological area of northeastern Tanzania. The area is named after Ngorongoro Crater, a large volcanic caldera within the area. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA), which administers the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), is an arm of the Tanzanian government and its boundaries follow the boundary of the Ngorongoro District in the Arusha Region. The western portion of the park abuts the Serengeti National Park (SNP). The area comprising the NCA, SNP, and Kenya's Maasai Mara game reserve is home to Great Migration, a massive annual migration of millions of wildebeest, zebras, gazelles, and other animals. The NCA also contains Olduvai Gorge, one of the most important paleoanthropological sites in the world.Additional Site Details
Area: 809,440 hectares
(vii) — Contains superlative natural phenomena or beauty
(viii) — Outstanding example representing major earth stages
(ix) — Outstanding example representing ecological and biological processes
(x) — Contains most important habitats for biodiversity
Coordinates: -3.18722 , 35.54083
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© Jantjeerkamp at Dutch Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 Resized from original. (This derivative is under the same CC BY-SA license.)
