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Amboseli Serena Safari...
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Address
Amboseli, Kenya
Description
Inspired by local...
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Kenya: Nature & Wildlife
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Amboseli National Reserve
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Amboseli National Reserve, at the foot of Africa's highest mountain, 5895 m Kilimanjaro, is one of Kenya's most popular parks. Gazetted as a national park in 1974 it covers only 392 sq. km but despite its small size and its fragile ecosystem it supports a wide range of mammals and birds. Amboseli is a very fragile ecosystem, submitted to great seasonal variations. The overall sensation is of a dry land, in fact annual rainfalls are scarce, in the range of 350-400 mm. The northwestern area is occupied by the dry bed of the Amboseli Lake, which for a large part of the year is nothing but a huge frying pan covered with shattered saline. Despite the first impression of a dusty and arid land, actually Amboseli is overflowing with water all the year round, but under the ground. The snows of Kilimanjaro melt and flow downhill, soaking the porous subsoil layers of volcanic rocks. Waters converge into various underground streams that rise into clear water springs in the center of the reserve. Though, this plentiful water does not sustain a rich vegetal variety, the cause is the high salt deposits in the lake bed, which the flood dilute and disperse hindering plant growth. For this reason few trees grow in the reserve. The combination of wildlife, tourist vehicles and Masaai cattle are destroying the delicate but precious grassland. Park rules now insist that vehicles stick to roads and tracks.
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