subject: Lake Nakuru National Park [print this page] Lake Nakuru National Park is located in the Great Rift Valley. It encloses the famous Lake Nakuru which is part of the Rift Valley Soda Lakes. The park covers 188km2 and was created in 1961. It's famous for flamingos that flock around the shores of the lake. The birds cover the entire lake with pink and they are best observed from a vantage point known as Baboon Cliff. The park is home to the endangered Rothschild giraffes, black and white rhinos.
Lake Nakuru National Park is fully fenced to ensure that poachers and other human movements are restricted. There over 30 Black Rhinos and more than 70 White ones. There are also a vast number of Rothschild giraffes that were taken to the park in 1977. The park is dominated by predators like lions, cheetahs and leopards. Reptiles also inhabit the park and they are fully represented by the pythons that nest around the dense woodlands. They can often be seen crossing roads and dangling from the trees.
Lake Nakuru Nakuru National Park has myriad other birds species that inhabit the lake and the surrounding areas. They include verreaux eagle, fish eagle, pied kingfisher, goliath heron and hamerkop. Most birds like the flamingos feed on algae from the lake and planktons. The area around the lake is also frequented by two large fish eating birds; pelican and cormorants. There are other small birds that are thousands in numbers like the grebes, stilts, avocets, ducks, and others. Research conducted around the area show that there are over 400 resident bird species.
