Why visit Tsavo West National Park? Tsavo West National Park is wetter than Tsavo East and has more varied terrain. Dense vegetation covers much of the park due to the many rivers and streams in the area. The Galana and Athi rivers are vital parts of the ecosystem and excellent places to see wildlife.
The park covers about 9,000 square kilometers of the 21,000 square kilometers in the Tsavo Conservation Area. Its landscapes include riverine vegetation, grasslands, acacia woodlands, rocky outcrops, and semi-arid shrubland. These habitats support both northern and southern species of wildlife.
The park is home to the Big Five, which can often be seen on the open plains. With luck, visitors may also witness predators hunting. Over 400 bird species have been recorded here, including both resident and migratory birds. The landscape includes open plains, swamps, rocky outcrops, volcanic craters, and acacia woodlands where wildlife can often be seen resting or moving between feeding areas.
The Tsavo area lies at an elevation between 180 and 1,000 meters above sea level. It is located in the southwestern region of Kenya, about 240 kilometers from Nairobi. The eastern part of the Tsavo Conservation Area is dry, as it falls within the Taru Desert.
The ecosystem supports the Big Five: lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino, and African elephant. Tsavo is home to about 12,000 elephants, which is more than 35 percent of Kenya’s total elephant population.
Other notable endangered species found here include the black rhino, hirola (Africa’s rarest antelope), reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, and African wild dog. The area is also a good habitat for the pangolin, one of the most targeted animals in the illegal wildlife trade. Other mammals include cheetah, zebra, gazelle, impala, lesser kudu, and oryx.
The Tsavo ecosystem is rich in birdlife, with over 300 species recorded. Endemic species include the endangered Taita white-eye and the critically endangered Taita thrush and Taita apalis, with only about 150 individuals left in the world.
Vegetation in the Tsavo area includes savanna grasslands, palms, fig trees, woodlands, and riverine vegetation. There are over 1,000 plant species, including about 40 forest species and around 20 plants found only in this region, such as the endangered African violet. The green Taita Hills in eastern Tsavo form part of the Eastern Arc Mountains.
