The Masai Mara (often referred to as 'The Mara') takes its name from the Maasai word 'mara' meaning 'mottled' (in reference to the patchy landscape).
The two main rivers in the Mara are the Mara river and the Talek river, which are home to a large amount of Hippopotami and crocodiles, which is very unfortunate for the 2 million animals that cross the rivers during the migration.
The Mara itself is a continuation of the Serengeti across the border in Tanzania. It is famous for its exceptional population of game and the annual migration of the wildebeest every September and October, a migration so immense to be called the Great Migration. Around July of each year Wildebeest, Zebra and Gazelle migrate in a vast ensemble north from the Serengeti plains in search of fresh pasture, and return to the south around October. The Great Migration is one of the most impressive natural events worldwide, involving an immensity of hervibores: some 1,500,000 Wildebeest, 360,000 Thomson's Gazelle, and 200,000 Zebra. These numerous migrants are followed along their annual, circular route by a block of hungry predators, most notably lions and hyena.
The Mara is also home to the Maasai tribe people who live within the reserve with their cattle.