Armchair Safaris: Serengeti Migration/Amboseli Elephants

Except for the corny framing device which has narrator George Plimpton sitting in a "camp" which is obviously a soundstage (replete with painted backdrops and chirping crickets on the soundtrack) this "armchair safari" is quite entertaining. This original home video production takes viewers first to the Serengeti Plains in Tanzania, Africa where the cameras follow the annual migrations of wildebeest, zebra, and Thomson's gazelle on their intricately patterned feeding hunt around the 10,000 square miles of the world's largest national park. Historical footage of big game hunter Teddy Roosevelt, and big game photographer George Eastman (Kodak) are used to place the area in a historical context. But the real wonder comes from the animals-whose lifestyles are examined from several angles. In the second part of the program, viewers travel to the foot of Kilimanjaro, where the Amboselli elephants, magnificent creatures, eat their 300 lbs. of food each day. Although ivory poachers have drastically reduced the elephant population, these elephants, as residents of Amboselli National Park, are protected. Fun, interesting, and affordable, this program is recommended. (Available from: EcoVentures, Ltd., 801 Devon Place, Alexandria, VA 22314;1-800862-8900.)