AMBOSELI NATIONAL PARK

Amboseli is justly famous both for its big game – elephants, lions and cheetahs are the main attractions 0 and for its great scenic beauty, Amboseli may be reached from Nairobi by two main routes.  The first is to Athi River and hence along the main Kajiado-Namanga-Arusha road, turning  left through the National Park main gate at Namanaga to OL Tukai Lodge, 75km on.
The main game – viewing area of Amboseli lies in the eastern half of the Park, in the vicinity of Ol Tukai Lodge and Lakes Engoni Naibor and Loginya. Here a network of roads and tracks opens up a wild life paradise.
Elephant, Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Masai Giraffe and Buffalo may all be encountered during a single morning's drive of about 90km, together with plains game such as Common Zebra, Eland, Coke's Hartebeest, White-bearded Gnu, Common Waterbuck, Thomson's and Grant's Gazelles and Impala.  Black Rhino can still be seen occasionally although they are now rare due to poaching in the mid- 1970s. 
In the bush country towards Namanga, and the arid area en route to Emali, two especially interesting antelopes may be found: the long – necked Gerenuk-often called the “Giraffe-
Necked antelope”- and the fringe-eared Oryx.  Smaller mammals always in evidence include Black-faced vervet Monkey and Yellow Baboon, Black-backed Jackals, spotted Hyena and Bat-eared foxes.  The last may often be seen basking in the outside their dens on the open plains.
Bird life is equally abundant, especially in the vicinity of the lakes and swamps where a great variety of water birds may be seen.  That rarity in East Africa, the Madagascar Squacco Heron. Turns up at fairly regular intervals and plover with the habits of a lily-trotter, the long –toed Lapwing, is a resident in small numbers. Sandgrouse of three species, Yellow – throated, Chestnut-Bellied and Black- faced, water in their hundreds during the dry season, announcing their arrival at their favorite drinking place with far-carrying gutteral sounding flock calls.
Birds of prey are very well represented.  Including the six species of vultures no less than 47 different kinds have been recorded from Amboseli, amongst which are two great rarities, the Taita Falcon and the Southern Banded Harrier Eagle.
Around the lodges and tented camp, visitors will see flocks of a yellow weaver – bird with a patch of chestnut on the nape. This is the extremely local Taveta Golden Weaver, which outside of Amboseli may rightly be considered a rare bird.  But the bird which quickly draws attention to itself on account of its brilliant plumage and fearless behavior- it will alight on your table and partake of bread and cake crumbs – is the Superb Starling.