The Great White Pelicans some landing on the Island to join the Flock on Lake Elmenteita the only breeding ground in East Africa.
Tag Archives: flamingos
SOYSAMBU BIODIVERSITY
The Lesser Flamingos (Phoenicopterus minor) on the shores of Lake Elmenteita.
Black and white Colobus (Colobus guereza) in the Acacia xanhtopholea (Yellow Barked Acacia)Forest.
Soysambu conservancy is a privately owned land and declared as wildlife conservancy way back in the year 2007.It is a non-profit making organization with Diverse Fauna (Mammals) and Avifauna (Bird life). The avifauna comprise of both Terrestrial and the Wetland birds found in the 75% portion of Elmenteita within the Conservancy.
The recent animal census indicated that there is an increase in the number of animal species like the Eland ,Grant’s Gazelle, water Bucks,Warthogs,Bush Bucks,Reed Bucks,Vervet Monkey,Rock Hyrax and the Baboon, the population of the Semi-Endangered Ruth’s child Giraffe is quite promising.
The Conservancy has over 40 Mammal specie and over 450 Avifauna or Birds species. The total number of animals counted on 7th May .2011 for the wet season census was 8,615.Thanks to all who joined us in the Census Exercise.
Shared by: Community Education and Awareness Department(Beaty)
LAKE ELMENTEITA FULL OF LIFE
Lake Elmenteita is now blossoming!! It’s amazing that in a short span of the rainy season there is a great difference with waterfowls celebrating the new lease of life. Infact, if you were to be given a photo shot in December 2009 and May 2010, you cannot tell it is the same place.
The Lake has been known to be a stopover site for migratory birds from Asia, South Africa, USA and Europe. Furthermore, it is a breeding site for the Great White Pelican! the Lesser and Greater Flamingo mingle with the Great White Pelican and other waterfowls.
Did you know that the Lesser Flamingo is recorded as a Threatened species? Thus the great need to conserve and preserve Lake Elmenteita, which is almost three quarter within Soysambu Conservancy. I have never heard of a Conservancy, which has a Lake within it except Soysambu Conservancy. Do you know of any? You will then agree with me it’s a very unique feature.
As Kenya pushes for the three lakes to join the World Heritage Site, we are glad that Lake Elmenteita is nominated among them as it’s a place with ecological significance.
Pelican breeding Site
Help us secure the fragile ecosystem for Flamingo, breeding grounds for the Great White, Pink backed Pelicans and other aquatic life. This will ensure the ecosystem is protected from destructive human activities such as diversion of river water at the catchment area, cultivating up to riverbeds, destruction of trees around the Riparian area etc.
Support us to put up a Research Centre where students can carry out research activities, have veterinary services to cater for sick and injured wildlife, monitor zoonotic diseases e.t.c.
Soysambu Conservancy- Here are the Rains: Better late than never
Written by Zurijanne Kelley, Soysambu Volunteer
The past two weeks there have been rains. Not your average rains that roll around for about a day or two and then disperses. No. These rains have been so frequent that Lake Elmentaita can now be seen glistening in the distance with waves of pink clustered throughout the lake from the flamingos. Before the rains, the flamingos refused to be seen on the far shores of the once dried portion of the lake. Even the two rivers that join together to flow into the lake are once again filled with flowing water!
As I move about Soysambu, I can see the difference that the rains have brought. The roads display track stories of vehicles and wildlife that have passed through, the grass is visibly greener and crisp with life and everyone and everything is happy that the rains have come. Even so, I think the rains forgot to remind the Great White Pelicans that he was coming and that they too should return to their islands on Lake Elmentaita so that their white bodies may be intermixed with the pink of the flamingos like a wondrous sunset. I hope that they will come soon as this lake which is 3/4 kept by Soysambu is an important breeding ground for these birds.
Why we established the Conservancy
Thank you for visiting this site. This is my first blog (ever) after setting this up with the help of my friend, Emma. Soysambu is the only area of open land left in this part of Kenya’s Great Rift Valley where the wildlife have come to take refuge from expanding human development. The soil is fragile and can only sustain grasses which provide food for the wild animals and cattle. Once an area successfully utilized only for livestock and hay cultivation it now has around 12,000 wildlife competing for the same resources. Lake Elmenteita which Soysambu borders on 3 sides was named a Wetland of International importance by the Ramsar Convention in 2005. This lake now hosts the only breeding colony of Great White Pelican in East Africa. Many populations of lesser and greater flamingo also occupy the lake. It is a birders paradise. You can’t imagine how important this is to the whole string of Rift Valley Lakes! Semi endangered Rothschild giraffe are happily reproducing here along with the Colobus monkeys, cape buffalo, eland, gazelles, impala and just about everything else. The Acacia woodlands, the Euporbia groves, the leleshwa bush all add up to areas in need of forestry preservation when everything around us is getting flattened. I could go on forever… How can we preserve this amazing array of flora and fauna and operate in a sustainable way utilizing all the resources available and to help the surrounding communities benefit from their wildlife heritage by developing programmes for poverty reduction and education? These were the questions facing us then and now as we are building the Conservancy. I am not an expert on these things, but learning fast, and looking for every way possible to protect the land, the wildlife and the culture. Any suggestions and comments are greatly welcomed and appreciated. Many thanks, Kat
pelicans are breeding on Lake Elmenteita