Online Web platform HerdTracker has been updated to include crowd-sourced data from anyone sharing sightings of the wildebeest migration in Kenya and Tanzania using #HerdTracker and the location of the herds at the time of the sighting.
Initially launched in 2014 by boutique online tourism agency Discover Africa Group, the platform at the time was a collection of content from the company's partners on the ground.
"We only had content from rangers, pilots, lodge managers and anti-poach units and such. This was very successful but it meant a broken chain of updates from the source," says Andre van Kets, HerdTracker co-founder and co-owner of Discover Africa.
"That's why we decided to open up the platform to society through the Twitter API. The next phase is Facebook and Instagram so that anyone can become a citizen journalist around the migration."
He explains: "The inclusion of crowd-sourced data using the hashtag #HerdTracker will automatically pull through to the live feed and contribute to the overall accuracy, while the real-time movement can be viewed on the migratory map. Thousands of citizen journalists now become the eyes and ears of the would-be Mara or Serengeti visitor."
The company has partnered with SafariLive as primary content partner, which will film the migration live from the Serengeti and the Mara in July. SafariLive has furthermore partnered with National Geographic to supply content, which National Geographic will publish as it deems fit.
Van Kets says the app aims to reduce the amount of fear and uncertainty that travellers may experience when planning and booking a safari to watch the migration, which is not an exact science.
"We hope that using the app assists in eliminating the guesswork of where and when the best place and time is to view the migration. Thus far, the platform has seen just over 330 000 unique visitors who all have a keen interest as to where the migration is at a certain point."
The company previously partnered with the Kenyan government on #Maralive, a platform to showcase Kenya as a tourist destination and #Kenyalive which was about live migration during the evening when the lions hunt.
Van Kets says future plans include hooking into an accommodation API. "This will enable real-time book-ability which will basically guarantee that clients see one of the great wonders of the world."
Share