Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania

In Lake Manyara National Park, the hauntingly beautiful soda lake sprawls on the Rift Valley floor, below the sheer red cliffs of the escarpment. Sometimes pink-tinged with the wings of migratory flamingos, Lake Manyara is home to pelicans and many other bird species. With 380 species recorded, this is one of the most rewarding birding regions in Tanzania.

Hippo, monkey, leopard and bushbuck are found in the unique groundwater forest. The park was originally established to protect the large numbers of elephant occurring here and researcher Iain Douglas-Hamilton brought the Manyara herds world-renown with his book 'Among the Elephants'. Numbers are now growing again after heavy poaching in the 1970s and 80s and good size herds are regularly seen. Another notable sighting for Manyara are the baboons in huge numbers; with troops of up to 200 individuals all playing and interacting with each other, they make a great sighting.

Closer to the vast lake, flat-topped acacia trees and open grassland are host to plains species and to the fabled (but seldom seen) tree-climbing Manyara lions.

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