Flamingos on show at Lake Elmenteita

By Aloise Garvey

The Great Rift Valley is a fantastic place with many habitats, such as wetlands, woodlands, shrublands, and lakes. The Rift Valley Lakes, stretching from Ethiopia to Malawi, are especially famous for their great concentrations of birds. In Kenya, there are eight Rift Valley lakes, both salty and freshwater, and they are home to many animals.

Lake Elmenteita, for example, is a shallow alkaline lake about 120 kilometres northwest of Nairobi and is fed by rivers, streams, runoffs, and a hot spring. It is interesting because even though water flows in, there's no way out, so the lake gets salty and full of minerals. This makes it perfect for a cyanobacterium formerly known as the blue-green alga Spirulina, the main food for Lesser Flamingos. Over at the nearby and famous Lake Nakuru, the water has risen and become less alkaline, and the flamingo population has declined, so Lake Elmenteita has become a hotspot for these pink birds.

This year, there was a sudden influx of Lesser Flamingos at Lake Elmenteita in June, and they have shown signs of breeding through their vivid plumage and by practising building nests. In early July 2024, the flamingos began building mud nests along the shores and on islands within the lake. Potential threats to the nesting flamingos include predators like hyenas and other carnivores and scavengers like Marabou Storks and Pied Crows. Additionally, many tourists visiting the lake can disturb the nesting birds. Protecting the nesting flamingos is essential because they are sensitive to environmental changes.

But it's not just flamingos; Lake Elmenteita is also home to many Great White Pelicans. When the water levels go down, the lake's 'islands' pop up, and the pelicans love using them as safe spots to build nests. Because of all the incredible species that rely on Lake Elmenteita, it is a critical area for biodiversity, a Key Biodiversity Area and a World Heritage Site.