There are a number of campsites near the Lake Natron, which is also the base for trekking mount Ol Doinyo Lengai. Walking around the Lake Natron and to the streams and waterfalls along the nearby escarpment make for am excellent adventure off the beaten track. This has allowed the Lake Natron to concentrate into a caustic alkaline brine The lavas have significant amounts of carbonate but lowest calcium and magnesium levels. The alkalinity of the lake can reach a pH of greater than 12.1, the surrounding bedrock is composed of alkaline and the sodium – dominated trachyte lavas that were laid down during the Pleistocene period. High levels of evaporation have left behind Lake Latron (sodium carbonate decahydrate) and trona (sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate). The lake and its ecosystem provides a source of livelihoods to the Masai communities. It is a remote place, 7 hours of car far from. Brandt postulates that the highly reflective, chemical condensed waters appear as a glass door, making the birds think they’re flying over a space. Food is plentiful, nesting sites abound – and most importantly, the Lake Natron is isolated and undisturbed. Lake Natron is located in the African Rift Valley at about 600 meters above sea level, near the Kenya border. It is famed for the massive flocks of these pink birds and the amazing. It’s the most important breeding site for Lesser Flamingos in the world.Įast Africa has millions of Lesser Flamingos and this numbers representing three-quarters of the whole world population and most of them are hatched at the Lake Natron. Lake Natron is the main breeding ground in East Africa for millions of Lesser Flamingos. Nearest towns to Lake Natron are Arusha in Tanzania and in Kenya is Magadi town. The shallow waters stretch over 58km and are. The Lake Natron is located Tanzania at the northern circuit. Located close to the sun scorched Kenyan border, Lake Natron can be found in the Arusha Region of Tanzania. Lake Natron is a soda lake at the base of the active volcano of Ol Donyo Lengai, area around the Lake is often explained as having a desolate and almost lunar beauty. As isolated as the lake is (it wasn't even discovered by Europeans until 1954), there are no protections in place for the lake or its threatened flamingo population.įollow Marc Lallanilla on Twitter and Google+. The serenity of Lake Natron - and its flamingo population - are threatened by a proposed hydroelectric power plant on the Ewaso Ngiro River, the main river feeding the lake. As shallow lakes in a hot climate, their water temperatures can reach as high as 106 degrees Fahrenheit (41 degrees Celsius). Both are terminal lakes that do not drain out to any river or sea they are fed by hot springs and small rivers. Algae and zooplankton thrive in this water, which in turn supports great numbers of flamingos. Here the water evaporates leaving behind very high concentrations of soda. Lake Natron is one of two alkaline lakes in that area of East Africa the other is Lake Bahi. Lake Natron sits at the lowest point of the valley in East Africa at an altitude of 600m or 2000feet above sea level. Visitors to the lake will see firsthand the fragility of the lakes ecosystem. The flamingos' nests are built on small islands that form in the lake during the dry season. During breeding season, more than 2 million lesser flamingos ( Phoenicopterus minor) use the shallow lake as their primary breeding ground in Africa.
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