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The Ngorongoro Crater floor and rim, Tanzania
Photo: Pavel.shyshkouski, CC BY-SA 4.0

Safari · Tanzania

Ngorongoro Crater Animal Checklist

The Ngorongoro Crater in northern Tanzania is a collapsed volcano about 19 km across, with around 260 square kilometres of grassland, swamp and forest on its floor. It is the most reliable place in Tanzania to see black rhino and one of few places where all of the Big Five share such a small area. This checklist covers 53 animals. Game is resident, so any month works.

The crater walls rise about 600 metres, and most animals live on the floor all year. It sits inside the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, where Maasai herders live alongside the wildlife, and most visitors combine it with the Serengeti.

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The Ngorongoro checklist in the Wilder app, started as a trip with the first animals ticked
Animals to find
53
Where
Tanzania
Best time
Year-round
Big Five
All five

The Big Five in the Ngorongoro Crater

  • Lion, one of the animals to look for in Ngorongoro

    Lion

    Several prides live on the crater floor and are seen on most visits, often resting near the Munge stream or on the open plains. Some crater males are famous for their dark manes.

    Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0

  • African Savanna Elephant, one of the animals to look for in Ngorongoro

    African Savanna Elephant

    Mostly big old bulls that feed on the crater floor. Breeding herds tend to stay up in the highland forest on the rim.

    Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0

  • Cape Buffalo, one of the animals to look for in Ngorongoro

    Cape Buffalo

    Herds graze across the floor, with lone bulls in the Mandusi and Gorigor swamps. They are easy to find on a single visit.

    Photo: Bärbel Miemietz, CC BY-SA 4.0

  • Black Rhinoceros

    A small, closely protected population grazes the open grassland of the crater floor. They are often far out, so bring binoculars and ask your guide to scan the open plains.

  • Leopard

    The hardest of the five here. Leopards live mainly in the forest on the crater rim and are seen more often on the drive in and out than on the floor.

  • Serval

    The crater is one of the best places in Africa to see this long-legged cat. Look in the long grass near the swamps in the early morning.

  • Lesser Flamingo

    Gathers on the shallow soda water of Lake Magadi. Numbers change a lot with water levels, from thousands to almost none.

  • Grey Crowned Crane

    Pairs walk and dance on the grassland. Their golden crests are easy to pick out from a vehicle.

All 53 animals to spot in Ngorongoro

Grouped the way you'll meet them. Tips show where to look.

The Big Five 5

Grazers 10

Hunters 6

Smaller mammals 3

Water birds 11

Grassland birds 12

Birds of prey 6

  • Last reviewed September 2026.
  • Sources are listed below the questions.
  • Wild animals only. Please give them space.

Best time to see wildlife in Ngorongoro

Most animals live on the crater floor all year, so there is no bad time to visit. The dry season, June to October, has short grass and easier viewing, but it is also the busiest time, with many vehicles at popular sightings. The short rains (November and December) and the long rains (March to May) bring green grass, fewer visitors and sometimes muddy tracks. January and February fall between the rains and are a good compromise, especially if you are also visiting the Serengeti for calving season. Flamingo numbers on Lake Magadi depend on water levels rather than the month. The crater rim sits at about 2,300 metres and can be cold and misty at dawn in any season, so bring a warm layer.

  • Jan-FebShort dry spell; good light, pairs well with Serengeti calving
  • Mar-MayLong rains; green, quiet, some muddy tracks
  • Jun-OctDry season; short grass, easy viewing, busiest months
  • Nov-DecShort rains; fresh grass and fewer vehicles

Tips for spotting wildlife in Ngorongoro

  1. Go down at opening time

    The descent road opens at 06:00. Being among the first vehicles on the floor means cooler air, active predators and far fewer vehicles at each sighting.

  2. Plan around the time limit

    Visits to the crater floor are time-limited, currently six hours per vehicle, and there is a separate crater service fee. Pack a picnic and use the full window.

  3. Picnic with care

    The Ngoitokitok Springs picnic site has hippos in the pool, but birds of prey swoop on food. Eat inside the vehicle if they are circling.

  4. Scan the far grassland for rhino

    Rhinos are usually a grey shape a kilometre away. Stop, use binoculars, and check again an hour later, as they often move closer to the swamps.

  5. Look at the rim, too

    The forest on the rim is where leopards and many sunbirds live. The Golden-winged Sunbird feeds on flowering shrubs near the viewpoints.

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Visiting the Ngorongoro Crater? Take this list on your phone and tick off rhino, lions and flamingos as you find them, even offline. Wilder is free to start.

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The Ngorongoro checklist in the Wilder app, started as a trip with the first animals ticked

Ngorongoro wildlife FAQ

What animals live in the Ngorongoro Crater?

Around 25,000 large animals live in the Ngorongoro Crater, including black rhino, lions, elephants, buffalo, spotted hyenas, wildebeest, zebra, gazelles and hippos. This checklist covers 53 animals and birds, from rhino to flamingos and crowned cranes. Because the crater walls are steep, most animals stay on the floor all year, making sightings reliable in any season.

Can you see the Big Five in the Ngorongoro Crater?

Yes, all of the Big Five live in the Ngorongoro Crater, and many visitors see four in a single day. Lion, buffalo and elephant are almost certain, and black rhino is seen on most visits with binoculars. Leopard is the hard one, because it lives mostly in the forest on the crater rim rather than on the open floor.

Where can you see black rhino in Ngorongoro?

You see black rhino on the open grassland of the crater floor, usually as distant grey shapes. The population is small and protected by rangers. Rhinos are often far away, so binoculars make a big difference. The crater is the most reliable rhino sighting in northern Tanzania, far better than the Serengeti.

Are there giraffes in the Ngorongoro Crater?

No, there are no giraffes on the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater. The usual explanation is that the steep crater walls are hard for giraffes to climb down, and the floor has few of the acacia trees they browse on. You can see giraffes outside the crater elsewhere in the Conservation Area, and in the nearby Serengeti and Tarangire.

Sources

Last reviewed September 2026

Photo credits

All photo credits. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, resized.

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