Flamingo

Some 600 species have been spotted at Lake Manyara, and its mixed environment makes it an ideal place for observing such a representative collection of African bird life. It is also an amazing spot for flamingoes and pelicans. Sometimes there are a million of these two species living on that stretch of water, sometimes even more.

The lake was swollen from all the rain of the recent months, and was probably 30 miles long and 10 miles wide. No one knew exactly. The heavy rains had also drowned the traditional points

of access, and even we from our camp site had been unable to get at it. Besides, if someone had been able to survey its dimensions, the next bout of rain would have added a mile here, half a mile there, and confounded the calculations. People agreed it was probably about 300 square miles in extent, and were content to leave it at that. However, its swollen size did mean it was inadvisable for us to come down either in it or on its shores. It was normally possible to drive, or at least to progress, through the forest and the stretches of mud-flat beneath the Rift Valley's western wall; but now that was out of the question. The track had been passable for a mere 7 miles when we arrived, but the sudden and amazing flooding of the Marera River had knocked another 2 miles off even that diminutive journey.

About 20 miles from Ngorongoro lies the third of the areas' tourist attractions, the 123 square mile Lake Manyara National Park. The park lies on the North-Eastern shores of Lake Manyara, one of the great saline rift lakes of East Africa. The lake, which is fed by springs coming from the foot of the Great Rift Wall, shrinks to a few square miles during the dry season. It supports hundreds of thousands of flamingos, pelicans and water birds of many species and is fascinating for the ornithologist.

The Park also boasts a large variety of wild animals. Buffalo are plentiful and there are numerous herds of elephant. Lions in the area have a habit of climbing trees to escape from tormenting flies.

Lake Manyara is reached easily from Arusha - a 75 mile trip, 50 miles on tarmac to Makuyuni and thence on an all-weather gravel road running Westwards to the village of Mto-wa-Mbu immediately below the Western wall of the Great Rift Valley.

The entrance to the Park is li miles beyond the village, and is open to visitors from 6 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. The park area includes about two-thirds of the lake and all the land on its western shore as far up as the top of the Rift Wall.

The main all-weather track goes South from the entrance gate until it reaches the hot springs called Maji Moto at the Southern end of the Park. These springs are a favourite feeding ground for many water birds.

There are several circuit tracks branching off from the main track taking visitors into the principal wild life areas. These tracks may be closed in wet weather. On the lake shore there are swampy patches of fresh water which are also frequented by many birds.

Within this glorious setting can often be found leopard and rhino as well as large herds of elephants and buffalo. Lion keep up with the various herds of wildebeeste and should be looked for amongst the acacia trees along the lake shore.

The best way to spend a day in the Park is to enter in the early morning and drive slowly down to the Hot Springs at Maji Moto, where you may see klipspringer standing on the rock outcrops and reedbuck in the marshes. After lunch drive back by way of some of the circuit tracks, to arrive at the gate by 6.30 p.m. Visitors may enter and leave the Park only at the Mto-wa-Mbu gate.

Entry fees are: Residents of East Africa, 5/- per day per adult. Nonresidents of East Africa, 20/- per day per adult. Children between the ages of 3 and 16 are admitted at half-price; children under 3 are admitted free. Vehicle charges are 10/- per entry for vehicles under 40 cwt. Tw. and 60/- for vehicles over 40 cwt Tw. Guides are available at 5/- per day or part of a day.

Many visitors to the Park stay at the luxurious Lake Manyara Hotel situated on the Rift Wall overlooking the lake which has now been included in the National Park, and six miles from the Park gate. (For details of tariff etc, see Hotels Section).

Going down to the bowels of the earth

Down to the alkaline Malakat lake

The depression, the caldera

Nearer the colourful flamingos

The "big five"

Rhinos and lioness, the hunter

The hunters and the hunted

The coward hyena with iron teeth

The fat hippos, fearful of the scotching sun

What a treasure

What a gift to mankind

The amazing fauna

The virgin flora

The deep forest of variety

The beaded trees!

With long faces like

Of hidden eyes of

The Creator, the Maker

The stupid Rhino

Of the erotic love fantasies in Oriental

Of the magical armoury value

For the rich Arabs of the Emirates

With sickly memory

The splashing urinator

The black rhino, what an awesome sight!

What a heap of life

For admiration and wonder

Ngorongoro amazing

May you live and flourish

Conquering eternity

Stirring humanity to sense

For respect and perfect harmony

The cloud , the mist

The singing thorn birds

The deafening silence

The chilly morning

Of fog and darkness

Ngorongoro a marvel

The unparalleled wonder

The" GARDEN OF EDEN"

The cradle of mankind

The stunning climax of creation

Where man and nature co-exist

With restrain and respect

The Maasai of flamboyant atire

Of relic, the jumping music and folklore

Ngorongoro unique

Ngorongoro amazing

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By Kaaya Shilia

AICC-ARUSHA

kaayashilia@hotmail.com

INTRODUCTION

Mass deaths of water birds, mainly Lesser Flamingo, Phoeniconias minor, but also few Greater Flamingo, Maccoa duck and Egyptian geese began in mid June 2004.This is the first massive deaths of birds ever recorded in this lake. Clinical signs of the birds showed staggering and uncoordinated movements before death. Deaths occurred on the wet sandy lakeshore out of water. Currently, Lake Manyara hosts an estimated population of over 3 million Flamingos probably as a result of drying off of other neighboring soda lake.

ACTION TAKEN

Veterinary Doctors from Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI), Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) and Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA), together with experts from Veterinary Investigation Centre (VIS) and Tropical Pesticide Research Institute (TPRI) joined to investigate the problem.

TAWIRI,VIC, and TPRI took water and dead Lesser Flamingo tissue samples for analysis at their respective laboratories. In addition, TAWIRI sent replicates of the samples to Berlin, Germany.

TPRI analyses tissue, fish and water sample to test for chemical residues. The results indicated trace of Fenvelerate (derivative of summithion, used for cotton pesticide) at insignificant levels.

These findings currently do not support the possibility of pesticide poisoning of the birds. VIC analyses for bacteria infection of bird's organ and water. No pathogenic bacteria were isolated in the samples examined. Results from Berlin Germany have not yet been received.

SUSPECTED CAUSE OF DEATH

Following similar incidences that have occurred over the past decade in Kenya's alkaline lakes, that is Nakuru, Bogoria and Elmentaita and in Tanzania in Lake Natron and Embakai in 2002 a toxin from cynobacteria was found. Deaths were again observed in Lake Embakai in September 2003.

Analysis of Lesser Flamingo carcass samples from Lake Bogoria and Nakuru carried out at both Leibniz Institute of Fresh water Ecology and Inland Fisheries in Berlin, found cynobacteria toxins in dead Lesser Flamingo livers. Two hepatoxins (mocrocystin-LR and RR) and the neurotoxin, anatoxin-a were found at estimated harmful concentrations.

The only sources of these toxins are cynobacteria. Cynobacteria is the main diet of the Lesser Flamingo. Anotoxin-a being neurotoxin, is consistent with opisthotonus observed at post mortem.