Birding in Lake Nakuru National Park

Birding in Lake Nakuru National Park

Lake Nakuru National Park is truly a home to birds. It was first designated a bird sanctuary in 1960 to protect and conserve the birdlife that was blooming on Lake Nakuru.

Lake Nakuru is a famous Kenya safari destination both locally and internationally harboring millions of flamingos on its shores all around the year. However, its climate keeps changing and changes in the lake’s water levels.  It has caused the flamingo numbers to decrease from millions to thousands but still, they cover the Lake’s shores pink any day.

Lake Nakuru is known as a soda lake with a great deal of blue-green algae which is food for the flamingos and that’s one of the main reasons flamingos flock to the lake. Another bird specie that feeds endemically on the lake ‘’great white pelican’’ come along with other wading birds.

Birding

Birding in Lake Nakuru National Park is quite an exciting experience of seeing numerous beautiful birds live in this park. The park covers an area of about 118 square kilometers and is home to over 450species of birds which are both endemic and migratory to the park. It’s interesting to see a variety of pink flamingos covering Lake Nakuru’s shores all year round. The park is also home to endemic bird species like the pelican birds and four threatened bird species including; the Madagascar pond-heron, the Pallid Harrier, the Greater Spotted Eagle, and the Grey-creased Helmet-shrike.

Birding in the park is best either on the lake or various extended vegetation of bushy grasslands, acacia woodlands, and euphorbia forest including some species; African Spoonbill, Black-winged stilt, Red-capped lark, Rufous-throated wryneck, Yellow-billed stork, Ruppel’s vulture, Ruppel’s robin -chat, Black-necked Grebe, Long-tailed widowbird, Maccoa duck, Montane white -eye, Grey-headed Gull, Northern puff back, Pallid harrier, Gull-billed Tern, Little Grebe, Schawlow’s wheatear, Shining sunbird among others.

Best time to do birding

Any time in the day is a bird watching time in Lake Nakuru National Park, you will be sure to catch birds any time of the day though the best time of the day to do birding in any place is in the morning between 6 am and 11 am, this is when most birds are leaving their nests and going out to look for food so they are easy to see and enjoyed before they fly awake for the day, or sometimes the evenings when they returning to the nests is a good time but mornings beat any time of the day by far.

Also to note that though mornings are very good for birding, Lake Nakuru National Park has more than 400 bird species, and you cannot exhaust them all in one morning, so what is advisable when birding in Lake Nakuru National Park to spend at least 4 days exploring and experiencing the birds or have the specific birds you want to see and look out for those ones so that you don’t get overwhelmed by the too much variety the park has.

However the months just after the rains have the most birds in the park; because of the abundance of food that grows during the rains and the well-grown and groomed vegetation that supports the bird life, these months are January and July.

How it’s done

Birding in Lake Nakuru National Park is normally along the shores of Lake Nakuru as people sit in their cars or stand along the shores and observe the birds, on game drives people drive through the park or can view birds from the different park viewpoints that include lion hill, out of Africa lookout and baboon cliff; the baboon cliff being the best viewpoint for birding in the park.

The best time to visit Lake Nakuru National Park

Birdwatching in Lake Nakuru National Park is all year round, however, the month just after the rain has the most birds in the park. During the rainy season food can be plenty and vegetation can be groomed that supports the bird life, this tends to happen in January and July.

Birding in Lake Nakuru can be in at any time of the day, especially in the morning hours between 6 am and 11 am; this is the best time for birds to leave their nests and fly out to look for food and this is the most rewarding time to see them hovering around the sky and the ground of the park. Even the evening when they return to the nest is also a good time to watch birds in the park.

The best time to visit Lake Nakuru is during the dry season of the year which includes the months of January, February, December, June, July, August, and September. One can however visit any time of the year, during the dry seasons it is easier to spot the various species of wildlife and view the different birds.

Location

The park is located in central Kenya, northwest of the country’s capital Nairobi. Lake Nakuru National Park is within the Great Rift Valley and it encompasses Lake Nakuru. It is one of the five soda lakes in the Rift Valley. The park is home to around 50 mammal species that one can see during a visit to the park.

Accessibility

Accessing Lake Nakuru National Park is one of the frequently asked questions guests have as they plan their safari in Lake Nakuru National Park. Well, guests accessing Lake Nakuru National Park can access it through its three gates and various routes that connect to the park.

Lake Nakuru is located 166 km northwest of Nairobi city, so guests coming from Nairobi, will use the most used route of access from Nairobi which is the Nairobi- Nakuru Highway. This route is about a 3 to 4-hour drive on the highway to Lake Nakuru National Park.

The Nairobi- Nakuru highway takes you on a route with beautiful sights of vegetation and communities along the highway through Nakuru town and then to Lake Nakuru National Park. Nakuru Town is 4 km from Lake Nakuru National Park’s main gate. This means from Nakuru town you access Lake Nakuru National Park through the main gate.

From the Nairobi-Nakuru highway you can also access Lake Nakuru National Park through the Lanet gate, you branch off the highway to this which means you forsake going through Nakuru town. The time of arrival to the park is only a few minutes difference.

you can access the Lake Nakuru National Park through a couple of joining routes that lead you to the Nderit Gate of the park.  Persons getting to the park from Masai Mara and Elementaita use this gate because of the strategic location with the routes from those sites.

By air

If you are using air to access the Lake Nakuru National Park, you will fly from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to the park’s airstrip, Naishi airstrip. This airstrip is already inside the park so you don’t need to go through any gate to access the park, you just continue with your itinerary in the park.

Other tourist activities at Lake Nakuru

Boat cruise

This beautiful lake provides the opportunity of thrilling boat cruises that enable a tourist to view the beautiful landscapes, and the shimmering waters and get a moment to relax. The beauty is that these boat safaris can be in a group and while moving through the different parts of the lake one can listen to the various stories from the local tour guides. It is however important to note that tourists must put on life jackets while on a boat trip and carry out this activity with the aid of a local tour guide.

Cultural Tours

While on a safari at Lake Nakuru, one can take a walk around the neighboring community especially people living close to the shores of the lake who are the famous Maasai people. This group of people are pastoralists and have a very rich culture and beliefs, have interesting traditional songs and dances, and ways of living not forgetting that the Maasai make wonderful pieces of crafts and clothing. This cultural safari around Lake Nakuru would indeed be one of the best as one would be able to explore the different and rich Maasai culture.

Wildlife viewing

Guided game drives around Lake Nakuru National Park are one of the most popular means of exploring the park and spotting its diverse wildlife species. Safari Vehicles move tourists throughout the Parks networks of Roads and visitors get the opportunity to observe animals in their natural habitats some of the wildlife species at the park include; black and white rhinos, impalas, water bucks, lions, gazelles, leopards, giraffes, hippos, Columbus monkeys, hyenas, zebras to mention but a few. This shall indeed make one’s safari at Lake Nakuru National Park incredible

Rhino Tracking

Tourists can Visit Lake Nakuru National Park Rhino Sanctuary and view the beautiful wildlife species and also be able to learn about how these endangered species of wildlife are protected.

Guided nature walks

Guided walks around the lake and the national Park offer a bigger opportunity for a more intimate and close exploration of the lake and park’s landscapes, allowing tourists to appreciate the diverse plants and animals in life and also be able to connect with nature while relaxing.

Picnics and camping

Several designated Camps and picnic Sites within the park provide opportunities for tourists to spend time with nature and enjoy scenic views while dining al fresco, additionally to Camping facilities are available for those who wish to spend a night under the star in the heart of the wilderness.