The Nairobi National Park is only a short drive from Nairobi’s downtown. A great diversity of fauna can be seen in the open grasslands with the city skyscrapers in the background and the scattered acacia bush. Picnic areas, three campsites, and hiking paths are available for guests to enjoy.
Attractions in Nairobi National Park
Wildlife
The Nairobi National Park is home to more than 400 bird species and 100 different mammal species. Just four of the big five—buffaloes, lions, leopards, and rhinos—as well as elephants are present in the park. The wildebeest and zebra migration in Nairobi National Park is stunning, and the lion, leopard, hyena, and cheetah are among the park’s major predators. Only Nairobi National Park, which is a part of a capital city is home to wild animals.
Bird Species
Kenya’s Nairobi National Park is a sanctuary for birders on safari; there are over 400 bird species documented there, 20 of which are transient migrants from Europe. The best birding trip has ever been made possible by the park, which perhaps has the world’s longest bird list of any city. For species like the Jackson’s widowbird, which breeds here frequently after good rains and has a restricted range, the park’s vast amount of undeveloped grassland is extremely important.
Vegetation
On the western side of Nairobi National Park, there is a severely dry forest, and to the south, there is riverine forest and a perennial river. The park also contains large stretches of open grass plains with scattered acacia bush. The vegetation is of the open picturesque savanna type, which is dry and transitional enables east spotting and observation of various animal species.
Kifaru Ark
The Nairobi National Park is one of the few parks where visitors can be certain of seeing a black rhinoceros in its natural habitat, and it is known as Kifaru Ark, which means Rhinoceros Sanctuary for its successful role in rhino conservation. Kifaru means rhino in Swahili. It is one of Kenya’s most successful rhinoceros sanctuaries.
Ivory Burning Site monument
The ivory burning monument is a symbol of wildlife conservation that marks the precise location where Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi burned ivory to tell all poachers to stop killing and kidnapping animals and stop trading in their ivory.
Walking trails at hippo pools
Starting from a picnic spot, there are walking paths in Nairobi National Park that follow the banks of the Athi river. One of the few places in the Nairobi National Park where trekking is permitted without a guide is along the trail, which is patrolled by rangers from the Kenya Wildlife Service.
Nairobi Animal Orphanage
Another significant feature in the park that visitors can do and visit while in the park is Nairobi Animal Orphanage, which is located inside Nairobi National Park. When injured, perhaps by poachers, wild animals including cheetahs, lions, monkeys, and others are taken to the Nairobi Animal Orphanage for care and rehabilitation. In contrast to a game drive, the Nairobi Wildlife Orphanage is a terrific spot to watch wildlife up close.
Black Rhinos
In Nairobi National Park, there are the most black rhinos. These intelligent, lovable animals have lived on the world for 60 million years as the Eastern Browse (Black) Rhino (Diceros bicorni micheali). In Kenya, Nairobi National Park is another fantastic location to see rhinos. The world’s densest population of severely endangered black rhinos, 50 live in the park. Just 700 eastern black rhinos remain today due to rampant poaching, making Nairobi National Park the most convenient and almost certain place to see them.
