Grooming Habits and Other Random Observations From the Serengeti

BROMANCES, GROOMING HABITS, AND OTHER RANDOM OBSERVATIONS FROM THE SERENGETI

Who goes on safari to learn stuff? I mean, it's all about watching exotic animals hunt each other down in fierce (fierce in the traditional sense, not the Tyra Banks one), grisly, slow-mo death matches isn't it? Wait, that may be National Geographic channel. In an honest-to-goodness, hand-to-God, real-life safari, there is nothing slow-mo, but you learn a heckuva lot more than you would in an hour or two on the telly.

Any unlikely pair, zebras and wildebeests are African BFFs. In between LOL'ing and tweeting about the Beibs, zebras and wildebeests are there for each other through the hard times. Since zebras have better eyesight and wildebeests have better hearing, they stick together to warn each other of impending predators. It's bromance at its finest.

Sadly, there are no giraffes in the Ngorongoro Crater - it's too steep for them to get down into the actual crater. There are plenty of them elsewhere in the Serengeti though.The Ngorongoro Crater isn't home to any cheetahs either. According to our guide Timo, it's because they are 'polite animals'.With one lion and four hyenas per square mile (Ngorongoro Crater is 102 square miles) there's just too much competition for food, so they gracefully bow out and let the others have at it.

If you've ever seen baboons picking the fleas off each other and eating them, you know what I'm talking about. Turns out it's more than just a light snack. It's called 'social grooming' and baboons, among other animals, use it as a means to bond, reinforce social structures, and build relationships. Humans do it too, although usually not with fleas. But if you've ever seen your Mom picking your Dad's zits, now you know why.

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