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The global cheetah population has declined just over the past century by a staggering 90% to 7,500. However, this number was simply a guess, given the difficulty of taking an accurate census of the cheetah. The recent estimate puts the number at 6,600. During the last 18 years alone the numbers have plummeted by 30%. Occupying only 17% of their historic range, they are now extinct in 20 countries. In Kenya, there are only about 1,500 cheetahs. But a new study has found that this number is actually lower than previously thought. Even worse, the population will continue to decline.
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The spots in Kenya where people discover rare birds cover a vast ecological area from the south to the coast of the country. The species such spotted are the Waxbills, the Sandpipers and the Gulls and Terns. Often gregarious in nature and colonial seedeaters, waxbills have thick, short but pointed bills. A large, diverse family of shorebirds includes the Sandpipers whose identification is not so easy as they resemble very closely with the other ocean residents. The feathers of Gulls and Terns are either gray or white with black markings on the head. They go with the order of Charadriiformes.
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Nature plays a prominent role in locating and relocating the birds in the world. Many such birds have wandered into the territories of Kenya. Ornithologists and bird lovers accidentally stumble upon them and record their findings after careful research. They are the Red-footed booby, the Egyptian plover, the Northern lapwing, the Black-winged Pranticole, the European turtledove, the Short-eared owl, the Long-tailed Nightjar, the Blue-breasted Kingfisher, and the Lowland sooty boubou. Literature about these exotic and rare birds of Kenya is so scant that serious learners would have to visit a library or the museum in the country for more information.
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Kenya is a birder’s paradise. The twittering of the birds is music to their ears. It is where nature turns into a school to teach the birds’ language. Observing the nesting and feeding mannerisms of these birds is a fascination that brings unexplainable delight to experts. And it is how ornithologists detect the behavioral patterns for research and academic purposes. But very often in the midst of this melody melee and theatrics, they fail to distinguish between the birds that are indigenous but rare and the ones that are foreign to Kenya brought on by direct or indirect human intervention.
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Kenya has a range of more than 1,000 species of birds. It attracts biologists and field researchers who have taken ornithology as an academic study. Although Kenyan endemic birds found exclusively in the region are few and far between, there are credible documents of the sightings of each of the species. Such reports provide detailed information on important recognition features, some behavioral traits as well as distributional points of each of the species. The endemic birds of Kenya are Jackson’s Francolin, William’s Lark, Hinde’s Pied Babbler, Taita Thrush, Sharpe’s Longclaw, Clarke’s Weaver, Tana River Cisticola, Aberdare Cisticola and Sokoke Scope-Owl.
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It is said that Kenya is a birder’s paradise. However, it has lost many birds at the species level as part of evolution. Some migrate, but others just go extinct due to various external threats. Many such birds belong to the category of Hawks, Cranes, Jaegers, and Frigatebirds. But thanks to the recent attempts made to photograph and preserve the findings of the remains of the birds, people interested in the study of birds have been able to peruse the documented records. Such publications are scarce just as the birds are; however, they are readily accessible in the public domain.
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Top 12 Safaris In Africa are Mara, Serengeti, Kruger, Okavango, Ngorongoro, Luangwa, Etosha, Amboseli, Hwange, and Bwindi. From the vast savannahs of Kenya to the pristine wilderness of Tanzania, the continent is home to some of the world’s top safari destinations.
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Lake Nakuru of Kenya is in the province of Rift Valley. An incredible feature of the lake is the large gathering of long-necked, long-legged Greater and Lesser Flamingos. The lake is situated in Nakuru National Park and is a flamingo par excellence. Freshwater streams from the mountain surround the magnificent Lake Nakuru. They trickle through moss-covered rocks, nourishing the green leaves and long grasses sweeping low to the ground. The flamingos love to bathe and frolic in the mountain water of the streams. Then they rinse off the salt that would otherwise harden their feathers, rendering them unable to fly.
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Shearwaters, Flycatchers, And Ducks Of Kenya Some of the birds in Kenya that was once abundant suddenly become nomadic due to various reasons. But people do come across them accidentally. A few species belonging to shearwaters, old world flycatchers and ducks are among them. Shearwaters Belonging to the order of…
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The ostrich is closely related to the New Zealand kiwi and the Australian emu. It is the largest bird with the male growing 2 meters tall. An ostrich weighs around 200lb or 100 kg and measures 7-9ft in length. Hence, it is too heavy to fly and remains a flightless bird. But the flightless ostrich has the biggest eye of any animal. It measures 5 cm across, allowing them to see predators at very long distances. The ostrich’s wings reach 2 meters and are used to shade chicks, in mating displays, and to cover the skin of the upper legs.
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Serious birders, while wandering around the Kenya’s vast outdoors have encountered birds that have been forgotten for the longest time. These nature lovers described the birds in great detail and have created accounts for subsequent research. Such birds are the Storm petrels, the Bee-eaters, the Waxbills, and other such sundry rare birds. Storm-petrels are the smallest seabirds in the world. Bee-eaters are the near passerine birds belonging to the Meropidae family. Most of the accounts on these birds are shallow descriptions about their identification features, behavior and ecology. Much research is needed to study and understand these birds in detail.
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The Vulturine guinea fowl inhabits much of Somalia, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Kenya. It lives in flocks of 30 individuals in the savanna, dry bush, scrubs, acacia woodland, forest edges, and grassland with trees. Guinea fowls are hardy birds and are suitable for a range of climatic conditions. At night, the birds roost in trees. The call of the guinea fowl is a high-pitched song. What gave the bird its name is the appearance of bluish-gray colored skin of the upper neck and a head that is similar to vultures. The International Union for Conservation lists it as a low risk.
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Enjoying Kenya safari in a hot air balloon is one of the most thrilling experiences. It gives a bird’s eye view of the wildlife and the vast savannah of the game parks. After about an hour, just about the time of descent of the balloon, along with the exhilaration, some people feel a slight discomfort or stuffiness in the ear. But it almost always goes away on landing. This uneasiness is ear barotrauma. People who suffer from congested nose due to common cold are more likely than others to feel such awkwardness. Detection of ear barotrauma requires a physical examination.
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Alan Eustace was Google’s vice president of engineering and search. Before that, he worked on chip design and architecture projects. He is also a skydiver and has completed 500 jumps. Eustace exudes a mild demeanor, but beneath that is an engineer who likes challenges. Hence, his love and passion for space travel led him in 2014 to be the highest skydiver. He ascended via balloon to 136,000 feet and returned with a parachute and a spacesuit. It did not garner the same press attention that, Felix Baumgartner, the former record holder got because Eustace’s motives were not prestige or fame.
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The most elegant way to experience a Kenya wildlife safari is in a hot-air balloon. After the balloon wildlife safari over the vast plains and savannahs of Kenya, the crew and the passengers of the hot air balloon flight will toast and enjoy a champagne reception. An elaborate breakfast accompanies the champagne toast at the landing place. There is a reason behind this celebration that dates back to the time when the pioneers and innovators staged the first few hot air balloon flights in the late 1780s. For engagements and weddings, additional accompaniments are provided to make the experience special.
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Maasai Mara is Kenya’s most frequented wildlife reserve. And while some animals are easy to spot, other animals like the black rhino are not. With an estimate of 25 black rhinos remaining, poaching has further decimated their population. Also, rhinos mainly tend to live away from the tracks traversed by vehicles. Thus, due to their scarcity and shyness, encountering them is more difficult. Balloon flights offer the opportunity to spot some of the elusive creatures. Although game drives provide a sense of the wonder of the Reserve, it is from above ground that the grandeur of this spectacle truly appreciated.
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The fact no one knows is that hot air balloons are not only used for wildlife safaris in Kenya but also as weapons of a duel to settle disputes. However, the critical difference to note is that when using it for safaris, hot air balloons are the safest mode of transportation but when used in battles, it can end up taking people’s lives. As in the famous case of the two Frenchmen who fought themselves to death in the early 19th century, very often, such feud between two people is the result of colossal ego clashes more than anything else.
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The international event of the Lorraine Mondial Hot Air Balloon Festival has been gathering in a former NATO airfield in eastern France at the Chambley-Bussieres Aerodrome ever since the establishment in 1989. Hundreds of balloons of different colors, shades and hues soar to new heights at this balloon gathering. For many years, the balloon festival has offered the aligned takeoff of balloons that is already a global premiere. Philippe Buron Pilatre, a descendant of Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier who was an aeronautics pioneer, is the organizer of the event. Philippe who has been piloting since 1979 is also its founder.
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A boating stunt saw Sir Richard Branson successfully cross the Atlantic Ocean and beat the world record. When the furor of that feat naturally died down in a few years, Branson tried something more adventurous. He set his sights on a dangerous pursuit of crossing the ocean, this time not on a boat but a hot air balloon, and was determined to win. Three such crossings were previously made but in helium balloons. As planned, Branson and Lindstrand victoriously achieved the ocean-crossing record in a hot air balloon. They cruised for 37 hours in a record-breaking distance of 2,900 miles.
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After many years of intense training to be a hot air balloon pilot, Richard Branson went through a harrowing experience during the tail end of the trans-Atlantic ballooning. Despite it, he refused to budge. After arriving home from the hospital, Branson’s restless thoughts soon turned to other conquerable adventures. The great crew of Per Lindstrand and Richard Branson paired up again to cross the Pacific Ocean in a hot air balloon. In 1991, they traveled from Japan to Canada at a speed of 245 mph covering a distance of 6,700 miles. The pair broke the world record the second time.