Lake Nakuru National Park
Nakuru gets its name from the Masai for "dusty place", and Lake Nakuru National Park has grown to include the lake, the mountains, and a large portion of the savannah. Lake Nakuru is a small, shallow and alkaline lake that sits on the edge of Nakuru town, which is over 160 km north from Nairobi. You can visit the park on a day trip from the capital, or as part of a tour of Mount Kenya, Masai Mara, and Samburu. The lake itself is famous for its thousands of pink flamingos, which feed on the algae that populate the lake's warm waters.
Scientists believe that the park's flamingos eat about a quarter of a million kilograms of algae per hectare, per year. The two flamingo species can easily be told apart; the lesser flamingo has a scarlet bill and pink feathers, and the greater flamingo has a black-tipped bill. Most of the flamingos you would see in a documentary are of the lesser variety, simply because their numbers are larger, and the total number of flamingos in the park is on the rise again. The population declined because the lake was flooded, changing the alkalinity of the lake.
Flamingos are not the only birds you will see on a trip through Lake Nakuru National Park- you will see pelicans, cormorants and other fish-eating birds. The waters are warm and alkaline, but tilapia have grown in numbers since they were introduced during the 1960s. There are over four hundred bird species in the park and the surrounding area. The park surrounds the lake, and in recent years, the park area was expanded in order to provide more habitat for black rhino. The expansion meant adding a fence that would keep poachers out while allowing the wildlife to roam freely.
There are almost thirty black rhino in the park, so there's a strong likelihood you will see one on a trip through the park. If you are lucky, you may glimpse a Rothschild's giraffe; these were moved from the western part of Kenya back in the 1970s. Predators abound in the park as well- there are leopards, lions, and large pythons that dangle from trees. If you want to see the wildlife that Africa is known for, then a trip to Lake Nakuru National Park is a great idea indeed.