Samburu National Reserve

IUCN Category II - National Park

BWf1

The Samburu National Reserve (English Samburu National Reserve ) is a 165 km ² large nature reserve in the dry north of Kenya.

It is located in the Rift Valley Province at the Ewaso Nyiro River, about 350 km north of Nairobi, and bordering the Buffalo Springs National Reserve, with which it forms a unit. The few kilometers to the east located Shaba National Reserve is part of the same ecological area. The Samburu National Reserve increases from 850 m in the west to 1250 m in the east.

It is characterized with an annual rainfall of less than 400 mm by drought. Dry bushland and open grassland are the dominant vegetation types. Only the Ewaso Nyeru is bordered by a narrow gallery forest. There are some overgrown bushes dry mountains.

Characteristic species are very dry habitats, such as oryx, Gerenuks, Grant gazelles, two Dikdikarten and Grevy's zebras. Also typical of the region, the reticulated giraffe, which differ by their high-contrast staining of other giraffe subspecies. Other ungulate species of the reserve are eland and waterbuck. Among the predators especially lion, leopard, cheetah and striped hyenas are emphasized. Especially the leopards are here less shy than elsewhere because they were attracted for a long time with baits. The bird species occur here, among other Geierperlhühner and ostriches. In addition, the park is characterized by large herds of elephants and many other wild species such as waterbuck and Nile crocodiles. However, elephant populations are no longer constant. Their number in Samburu, Buffalo Springs and Shaba National Reserve was 1973 yet 2500, 1976/1977 they had been reduced to 531. Occasionally from the north migrate herds that are much shyer than their local counterparts, who are accustomed to here particularly pronounced mass tourism. But the Ewaso Nyero, the formerly all year led water, dried since the late seventies from sometimes because upstream too much water is taken for agriculture. Should the annual amount of water continue to fall, the area for elephant will be disqualified.

East African Oryx

Grevy's zebras

Reticulated giraffes

Gerenuk

Lions at the waterhole

Nile crocodile

Impalas