Lake Nakuru National Park: Home to millions of pink flamingos
Lake Nakuru National Park is located in the southwestern part of Kenya -just northwest of Nairobi city. The Lake Nakuru National Park is a famous safari destination in Kenya especially for bird lovers. This amazing safari park covers a total land area of about of 73 square miles (188 sq km). Lake Nakuru National Park is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site celebrating the flamingos and abundant wildlife in the area. For any bird-watching tour in Kenya, a visit to Lake Nakuru National Park is a must for the ultimate birding experience.
The National Park is a great place to view wildlife and birdlife as well. Lake Nakuru is the major birding area in the park because of its large numbers of pink flamingoes. The maximum depth of this lake is only 6 feet (1.8 m) with an average depth of 1 foot (.30 m) hence attracting a lot of birds and wildlife. Lake Nakuru is located within the Rift Valley region and is one of the famous of the Rift Valley. The lake seats at an elevation of 5,755 feet (1,754 m) above sea level.
Nakuru is an alkaline lake, which is what further draws birds and wildlife to its shores. This Park is famous for tens of thousands of flamingos (usually reach over a million during the peak season) which can be seen on safaris in the Park. For those interested in viewing flamingos, the Baboon Cliff is the perfect site to view this beautiful birds in great numbers.
The National Park has a serene landscape include grasslands, marsh, outcrops, rocky cliffs, and sedge. Yellow-barked acacia trees add to the traditional African wilderness experience and give shade for animals to rest during hot hours.
The National Park is a great place to visit for wildlife safaris in Kenya since its great conservation efforts have seen wildlife populations flourish in the region in the past few years. There is an area of about 116 miles (188 km) that has been fenced off to for protection of the endangered black and white rhinoceroses as well as giraffes. Lake Nakuru National Park is home to about 70 white rhinos and 25 eastern black rhinos. You will grab opportunities to view these massive mammals on Safaris in Lake Nakuru National Park.
Wildlife is bountiful with a populous predator presence to reflect the abundance of prey. Predator species include lion, cheetah, leopard, and hyenas. Large pythons might be found as well. Giraffe and the two species of rhino are mammalian highlights however there are several other species. The waterbuck is more common than in other parks.
The other large species in the park are the hippos however appear in less numbers and can be found along the reeds of the lake. The other species here include the waterbuck, Reedbuck and Bushbuck that usually hang around the lake areas.
The National Park is also home to other birdlife on top of the flamingos – expect to see the African fish eagle, Verreaux’s eagle, Goliath heron, kingfisher, and many other species. The National Park is a spectacular place for bird-watching Tours in Kenya with over 400 species recorded in the park. There are over a dozen different predator bird species. The large flamingo population has earned the lake and National Park the fame and apparently known as, “the greatest bird spectacle on earth.”
Lake Nakuru National Park is famous for day excursions as it is just located 102 miles (164 km) away from Nairobi.
TheLake Nakuru National Park also offers other forms of wildlife that can be spotted on safaris which include; warthogs, baboons, Cape buffalo, African wild dog, zebra, eland, waterbuck and lion. Lake Nakuru National Park had more black rhinoceros in the Kenya, (25) by 2009 and has one of the highest concentrations in the country.