Lake Nakuru Safaris in Kenya – Flamingo Haven – Visit the Rhino Sanctuary in Lake Nakuru
Lake Nakuru safaris in Kenya – Lake Nakuru is one of the Rift Valley lakes at an elevation of 1,754 meters above sea level. It lies to the south of Nakuru, in the Rift Valley of Kenya, and is protected by Lake Nakuru National Park. The lake’s abundance of algae used to attract a vast quantity of flamingos that famously lined the shore. Other bird species also flourish in the lake, as do warthogs, baboons, and other large mammals. Eastern Black Rhinos and Southern White Rhinos have also been introduced here as well.
The lake’s level dropped dramatically in the early 1990s but has since largely recovered. In 2013, the lake received an alarming increase in the water levels that led to the migration of flamingos to Lake Bogoria in search of food supply.
Nakuru means “Dust or Dusty Place” in the Masai language. Lake Nakuru National Park, close to Nakuru town, was established in 1961. It started small, only encompassing the famous lake and the surrounding mountainous vicinity, but has since been extended to include a large part of the savannahs.
Lake Nakuru National Park (188 km2), was created in 1961 around Lake Nakuru near Nakuru Town. It is best known for its thousands, sometimes millions of flamingos nesting along the shores. The surface of the shallow lake is often hardly recognizable due to the continually shifting mass of pink. The number of flamingos on the lake varies with water and food conditions and the best vantage point is from Baboon Cliff. Also of interest is an area of 188 km (116 mi) around the lake fenced off as a sanctuary to protect giraffes as well as both Black and White Rhinos.
The park has recently been enlarged partly to provide a sanctuary for the black rhinos. This undertaking has necessitated a fence – to keep out poachers rather than to restrict the movement of wildlife. The park marches for 12.1 km on the south-eastern boundary with the Soysambu conservancy which represents a possible future expansion of habitat for the rhinos and the only remaining wildlife corridor to Lake Naivasha.
Lake Nakuru National Park now (2009) has more than 25 Eastern Black Rhinoceros, one of the largest concentrations in the country, plus around 70 Southern White Rhinos. There are also several Rothschild’s giraffes, again relocated for safety from western Kenya beginning in 1977. Waterbucks are very common and both the Kenyan subspecies are found here. Among the predators found here are Lions, Cheetahs, and Leopards which are being seen much more frequently while in this national Park. The park also has large-sized pythons that inhabit the dense woodlands, and can often be seen crossing the roads or dangling from trees.
As well as flamingos, there are myriad other bird species that inhabit the lake and the area surrounding it, such as African fish eagle, Goliath heron, Hammerkop, Pied kingfisher, and Verreaux’s eagle among others of their kind.
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