Nyerere National Park (formerly: Selous, pronunciation: “saluu”) is the largest national park in Tanzania, also one of the world’s largest wildlife sanctuaries. The total area of the park is 30,893 km² (11,928 sq mi)The area is larger than 70 countries in the world and is estimated to be twice the size of Costa Rica (Central America) and about twice the size of Belgium (Europe). Much of the area is in a natural state without being disturbed by human activities.The original name recognises Frederick Selous, a British hunter during the colonial establishment of South and East Africa, who was killed as a soldier during the First World War. Since 1982 it has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Nyerere National Park is home to several species of wildlife: lions, wildebeests, giraffes, zebras, hippopotamuses, Wild dogs, antelopes, hyenas, African wolves, and a large number of crocodiles in the Rufiji River. Previously the Selous game reserve was home to a large number of elephants but due to extreme poaching, the numbers have dropped dramatically.

Ruaha National Park has a high diversity of plants and animals including elephants, buffalos, antelopes and some of rare and endangered species like wild dogs. The park serves as water shade both for wildlife and human being. This makes it to be economically significant as it supports agricultural activities down stream and contributes to hydro- electric power (HEP) for the country at Mtera and Kidatu dams.
The park is one of the Tanzania birds’ paradise with more than 571species and some of them are known to be migrants from within and outside Africa. Migrating species from Europe, Asia, Australian rim and Madagascar have been recorded in the park. Species of interest in the park include Ruaha red-billed hornbill (Tokus ruahae) which is dominant in the area. The recently annexed wetland, the Usangu basin is one of the country’s important bird area (IBA) as recognized by Birdlife International. Though birds can be seen all the year around, the best time for bird watching is during the wet season.

Mikumi National Park borders Selous Game Reserve on the south, the two areas forming a unique ecosystem. Two other natural areas bordering the national park are the Udzungwa Mountains and Uluguru Mountains. Malundwe Mountain is within the park, the highest of a belt of hills that run east and west through the park, connecting the Uluguru Mountains to the northeast with the Uvidunda and Udzungwa mountains to the west.

The landscape of Mikumi is often compared to that of the Serengeti.The fauna includes many species characteristic of the African savannah, chances of seeing a lion who climbs a tree trunk is larger than in Manyara (famous for being one of the few places where the lions exhibit this behavior). The park contains a subspecies of giraffe that biologists consider the link between the Masai giraffe and the reticulated or Somali giraffe. Other animals in the park are elephants, zebras, impala, eland, kudu, black antelope, baboons, wildebeests and buffaloes.More than 400 different species of birds also inhabit the park.