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Kenya. Encompassing 224,960 sq mile (582,646 sq km), Kenya straddles the equator between Lake Victoria and the Indian Ocean. It harbours a rich diversity of habitats: grassy plains, rock-strewn deserts, fresh and saline lakes, forested mountains, palm-fringed beaches, and coral reefs. A green highland plateau, crowned by snow-capped Mount Kenya and cleaved by the arid eastern rift valley, covers much of the country. There are usually two rainey seasons, the long rains from March through May and the short rains in November and December. Temperatures in the highlands are pleasantly cool, despite their location on the equator. Kenya has done a remarkable job establishing wildlife sanctuaries. Its 18 national parks, 4 marine national parks, 4 nature reserves, 23 national reserves, and 5 marine national reserves are the focus of the greatest wildlife tourism industry in the world.
Nairobi, the capital, lies at the transition zone between the lower, drier plains to the south and east and the higher, greener highlands to the north and west. It receives 37" (925mm) of rain annually. The average high is 70°F (21°C) in July, 79°F (26°C) in February.
Nairobi National Park (28,951 acres/11,721 ha), just south of the city, has many water holes and a network of tracks. Primarilly rolling grassland, the park borders the forest-fringed Athi River, home to hippos and crocodiles. Heavily protected, black rhinos roam the park. Common grazers include zebras, giraffes, Thomson's and Grants gazelles, hartebeests, wildebeests, bushbucks, elands, and osteriches. There are many lions, and fewer leopards and cheetahs.
The central highlands lie to the north and west of Nairobi. Rainfall averages 50"(1,250 mm) a year and is much highr on some slopes. Often cold and drizzly between June and September, the area is sunniest from December through March. There are superb safari hotels between the Aberdare Mountains (west of the town of Nyeri) and Mount Kenya (east of the town of Nanyuki). Nearby highland grasslands have long-tailed widowbirds. Private ranches near Lewa Downs and at Sweetwaters, west of Nanyuki, offer camel and horsback safaris into animal-rich country. The region's other facilities include a mountain lodge on the southwestern slope of Mount Kenya, and two (Treetops and the Ark) in the eastern Aberdares. Each has a water hole and salt licks that attract elephants, buffalos, waterbucks, bushbucks, and sometimes bongos.
Mount Kenya National Park (177,245 acres/71,759 ha) protects most of the land above 10,500' (3,200 m) on Africa's second-tallest mountain (after Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro). On clear days one can see the permanent snowfields on its twin glacial peaks, which reach 17,058' (5,199 m). There are lodges at the base of the Naro Moru trail on the west and Simiron trail on the drier northwestern side. The trails pass by deep gorges and cut through dense mountane forest hosting black-fronted duikers, sunis, blue monkeys, giant forest hogs, black-and-white colobus monkeys, and Hartlaub's turacos. Above 11,000' (3,340 m) the forest yields to open moorland with giant heather and tall colums of lobelia and groundsel where the rock hyrax, several raptors, and scarlet-tufted malachite sunbird are found.
Aberdare National Park (189,249 acres/76,619 ha) sits at the eastern edge of the rift valley. Soaring to 13,100' (4,000 m) elevation, it has heavy montane forest and moorland. Wildlife, difficult to see in such lush vegetation, is plentiful. there are more than 200 bird species, plus elephants, buffalos, bongos, lions, and black rhinos. Armed ranger guides are required when hiking.
To the north of verdant Mount Kenya lies an austere semi- desert of thornbush flats, dry grassland, open acacia woodland, and rugged ranges that averages only 14" (350 mm) of rain a year. These hot, sun-baked landscapes, home to red-robed goat and camel herders, extend north to Ethiopia and east to Somalia. At the southern edge of this arid region stands a trio of contiguous national reserves with varied lodging and good access by road from Nairobi, 200 mile (325 km) to the south.
Samburu National Reserve (40,800 acres/16,500 ha), Shaba National Reserve (59,058 acres/23,910 ha), and Buffalo Springs National Reserve (32,400 acres/13,100 ha) line the perennial Ewaso Ng'iro River, rimmed with towering river acacias and doum palms. The river and several springs attract much wildlife, especially in dry periods. Mammals restricted to the Somali-Masai arid zone are found here, such as Grevy's zebra, the reticulated giraffe, the beisa oryx, Guenther's dik-dik, and the gerenuk. Also present are lesser kudus, elephants, Grant's gazelles, lions, cheetahs, leopards, and 350 bird species, including the blue-flushed Somali ostrich and bristle-crowned starling.
Meru National Park (214,999 acres/87,044 ha) lies southeast of Samburu and borders the Tana River, along with Kora National Park (441,587 acres/178,780 ha). Meru, well watered by streams flowing eastward from the Nyambeni Hills and Mount Kenya, hosts many mammals: elephants, buffalos, plains zebras, Grant's gazelles, leopards, servals, and hippos, plus arid-zone mammals, such as beisa oryx, reticulated giraffe, and Guenther's dik-dik. Birds include the vulturine guineafowl, golden pipit, and golden breasted starling.
North of Meru, in a scrubby and stony semi-desert, Marsabit Mountain rises to 5,594' (1,705 m). Protected in the little-visited Marsabit National Reserve (515,700 acres/208,800 ha), this sky-high oasis is pocked with volcanic craters, including Paradise Lake, with its lush montane forest necklace. Marsabit's once abundant population of elephants, and its wildlife in general, has plummeted due to poaching and human encroachment. Still, more than 300 bird species and many mammals live here, including greater kudus.
Kenya's rift valley runs north-south and is generally hot and arid. It is bordered by tall cliffs in some ares and relatively shallow steps in others. Numerous lakes line the valley. Some are fresh and others alkaline, with salinity levels varying relative to rainfall. The most northerly, salty Lake Turkana, is the largest and lowest in elevation at 1,230' (375 m). Sibiloi National Park (388,000 acres/157,085 ha), on its eatern shore, embraces a petrified forest and abuts fossil beds that harbour early hominid remains. Thousands of crocodiles breed on Central Island, west of the park.
In west-central Kenya, Lake Baringo, reached by paved road north of the town of Nakuru, is freshwater and has lodging and boat trips. Baringo is known for its density and variety of birds: Hundreds of species, including endemics, throng its shores and the surrounding woodlands and cliffs. Lake Bogoria National Reserve (26,441 acres/10,705 ha), east of the Baringo road, is a scenic soda lake with hot springs that erupt in boiling geysers. Its shores are often busy with flamingos.
Lake Nakuru National Park (46,400 acres/18,800 ha) is a jewel in this chain of lakes, located south of the town of Nakuru on the main highway west from Nairobi. It is framed by tall cliffs and yellow fever trees, and encircled by a dirt track. The park is fenced to protect black and white rhinos that have been relocated here for sanctuary. Notable mammals include the Rothschild's giraffe, hippos, defassa waterbucks, bohor reedbucks, bushbucks, and leopards. Birds are the true highlight; birder Roger Tory Peterson proclaimed Nakuru "the most fabulous bird spectacle in the world." Most years its shores and shallow alkaline waters are jammed with birds: millions of lesser flamingos, thousands of greater flamingos, and vast numbers of pelicans, cormorants, herons, storks, ibises, ducks, geese, plovers, sandpipers, gulls, and terns
Nearby Lake Naivasha, a freshwater lake fringed with papyrus, supports fish-eagles, little grebes, red-knobbed coots, malachite kingfishers, and an array of other birds. Black-and-white colobus monkeys live in lakeside woods, while hippos graze ashore at night. Shoreside lodgings and boating are offered. Hell's Gate National Park (16,800 acres/6,800 ha), 8 mile (13 km) southeast of Naivasha, features a gorge with towering cliffs where Verreaux's eagles and Rüppell's griffon vultures nest.
West of the rift valley Kenya is highly diverse, with hot semi-desert in the north, large areas of cool highlands, vast grasslands rich in game in the south, humid rain forest in the west, and papyrus beds on an island sea. Masai Mara National Reserve (373,000 acres/151,000 ha) is the northern extension of Tanzania's famous Serengeti Plains and is usually called "the Mara." Reachable by road or air from Nairobi, the Mara is Kenya's premier place for seeing wildlife. It features many excellent game lodges and camps, and rolling grassland and wooded savanna. Two sizeable rivers, the Mara and Talek, wind through the landscape, flanked by gallery forests and seasonal marshes. The reserve is most extraordinary between July and October, when well over 1 million migrant herbivores (especially wildebeests and zebras) settle in for the dry-season grazing. Besides migrants, the Mara hosts resident population of elephants, hippos, topis, hartebeest, buffalos, giraffes, Thompson's and Grant's gazelles, impalas, Kirk's dik-diks, and a few black rhinos. Predators are plentiful, notably cheetahs, leopards, and unusually large prides of lions. Birding is excellent around the lodges and from vehicles; 450 species have been recorded, including 45 raptors. The gallery forests host Primates and a number of birds usually found farther west. The Pastoral Masai (Maasai) people lead a semi-nomadic life just outside the reserve.
Northward, Kisumu is the main Kenyan port on Lake Victoria. With an elevation of 3,725' (1,135 m), Kisumu has rain all year, with the annual accumulation of 45" (1,125 mm) mainly concentrated between March and May. Average highs are 81-84°F (27-29°C). The lake, not part of either the eatern or the western rift valley, is banked with papyrus beds that attract many waterbirds and a number of songbirds not found elsewhere in Kenya.
Kakamega Forest Nationl Park (11,036 acres/4,468 ha) is located east of the town of Kakamega, 32 mile (51 km) north of Kisumu. It is a relict of a larger tract of wet tropical forest that once covered the area. Some of its wildlife and many of its 125 species of trees are those of the Congo Basin and are not found farther east. Kenya's only true "jungle," this area is overlooked by most tourists. Mammals of note include the red-tailed monkey, blue monkey, and duikers by day, and the potto, tree pangolin, and giant flying squirrel at night. Highlights among the 320 birds species are the grey parrot, great blue turaco,Narina's trogon, black-and-white casqued hornbill, African broadbill, and many barbetts, wattle-eyes, sunbirds, and weavers. There are fine walking trails and a rest camp.
Mount Elgon National Park (41,800 acres/16,923 ha) covers a flank of this 14,178' (4,321-m) peak on the Uganda border northwest of the town of Kitale. It has a lodge and features a cave that elephants enter for mineral salts, plus trails through montane forest and moorlands dotted with giant groundels and lobelias. Tiny Saiwa Swamp National Park (470 acres/190 ha) is located 11 mile (18 km) southeast of Kitale. Sitatungas inhabit its marshes, while De Brazza's monkeys and Ross's turacos live in nearby woodland. Descending the highlands north over the Kongolia Escarpment takes one into dry woodland, home to the stone partridge, the yellow-billed shrike, and the curly-crested race of the white helmet-shrike.
Between Nairobi and the Kenya coast sprawl three superb national parks, Masai herders inhabit nearby grasslands studded with baobab trees and open acacia woodland.
Amboseli National Park (96,838 acres/39,206 ha), reached via air or road 150 mile (240 km) south of Nairobi, is Kenya's most visted game park, offering fine lodging, abundant mammal and bird life, and the dramatic backdrop of snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro, just across the Tanzania border. Its saline lake is usually dry, but the park embraces two large, spring-fed swamps that provide permanent water to a region that receives only 12" (300 mm) of rain a year. This is a splendid place to view elephants. Some 55 other mammal species roam the land, including lions, leopards, cheetahs, impalas, Grant's gazelles, elands, fringe-eared oryxes, gerenuks, buffalo, and a few black rhinos. Many wildebeest, zebras, and Thompson's gazelles leave the park during the rains but return to be near the swamps in the dry months. More than 425 species of birds live here, with Teveta golden weaver a highlight, and ostriches, vultures, eagles, bustards, sandgrouse, hornbills, and larks common in the grasslands.
Tsavo East National Park (2,901,500 acres/1,174,700ha) and Tsavo West National Park (2,239,100 acres/906,500 ha) flank both the highway and the railroad that link Nairobi to coastal Mombasa (roughly 200 mile/335 km southeast). There are excellent lodges, most with water holes to attract animals, and some (in Tsavo West), with views of Kilimanjaro. The Galena River, with its attendant gallery forests and seasonal swamps, snakes through both parks. Enormous baobabs provide nesting sites for many parrots, rollers, and barbets. Giraffes, buffalos, elands, gazelles, waterbucks, gerenuks, lesser kudus, and elephants browse the bushed terrain; lions are numerous. Tsavo West has recent volcanic craters and lava flows, as well as Mzima Springs, a lush oasis where hippos breed. More than 400 species of birds have been recorded, including Eurasian migrants and relatively local "east of the rift" species such as the vulturine guineafowl, golden pipit, and Fischer's and golden-breasted starlings. Freshwater Lake Jipe, on the Tanzania border, draws many waterbirds, including the black heron.
At Mombasa, Kenya's chief port, the airport serves direct flights to and from Europe and Nairobi. The city gets 47" (1,175 mm) of rain, spread throughout the year with a peak between April and June. Average highs are 81-88°F (27-31°C). Kenya's 300-mile (480-km) shorline on the Indian Ocean is endowed with sublime white sand beaches and a colourful chain of fringing coral. Onshore breezes temper the heat and humidity. Portions of the shore and coastal waters are protected as marine national parks and reserves, most with fine acommodations nearby, including Kiunga (in the north), Ras Tenewi, Malindi/Watamu, Mombasa, and Kisite/Mpunguti (in the south). Carmine bee-eaters roost on mangrove islands above the town of Kilifi, while crabplovers and myriad waders throng the flats of Mida Creek in Watamu reserve. Inland, Shimba Hills National Reserve (47,550 acres/19,251 ha), 35 mile (56 km) southwest of Mombasa, is home to sable and roan antelopes. Coastal woodlands such as Shimba Hills host birds not found elsewhere in Kenya, including Fischer's turaco. Many very rare birds and the yellow-rumped elephant-shrew live in the dense woodlands of Arabuko Sokoke Nature Reserve (10,700 acres/4,332 ha),between Kilifi and Waramu. Tana River Primate Reserve (41,700 acres/16,900 ha), which lies 74 mile (120 km) north of Malindi, protects the Tana crested mangabey and red colobus. The very local Hunter's antelope lives in Arawale National Reserve (131,710 acres/53,324 ha), 25 mile (40 km) farther north.
Thanks to Collins Guide, African Wildlife for the above information.
Copyright Andrew Moseley of ADCM Web Design. andymuza@hotmail.com