For six or seven weeks the short-grass plains around Ndutu and the southern Serengeti hold the greatest concentration of newborn animals on earth. Roughly half a million wildebeest calves are born in a tight window, at a rate of about eight thousand a day, because synchronised birthing overwhelms the predators.
It is the most intense wildlife spectacle in Tanzania and, oddly, the least crowded — most visitors come in August. The predator action is extraordinary: lion, cheetah, hyena and wild dog all concentrate here, and cheetah in particular hunt in daylight on open ground where you can actually watch a chase from start to finish.
The plains are green, the light is dramatic, rates are lower than peak season, and calves that were unable to stand yesterday are running today. Short afternoon showers are likely and the roads can get sticky, but this is a serious contender for the best time of year to come.