Yatta Plateau is found along the Athi River near the northwestern boundary of Tsavo East National Park. It has several tented camps, campsites, and lodges with good views of the park. The plateau has thick bush, baobab trees, seasonal pools, swamps, and dams, but only a few permanent water sources. Vegetation is denser in the west, which receives about 450 mm of rainfall a year, while the drier east may get only 250 mm.
One important water point here is the Aruba Dam, built in 1952 across the Voi River. Yatta Plateau is the longest lava flow in the world. It was formed by lava from Mount Ol Doinyo when it erupted, stretching across the Athi River from the western edge of Tsavo East National Park.
The Tsavo Conservation Area has the largest elephant population in the region, and possibly in all of Africa. About 40 percent of Kenya’s elephants live here. It is also home to more than 18 percent of the rare and endangered black rhinos, most of them found in the Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary inside Tsavo National Park.
The elephant population is slowly increasing at a growth rate of about 4 to 5 percent per year, even though poaching is still a concern. Poaching is illegal, but cases of illegal wildlife trade have been reported. The worst year in recent times was 2011. The conservation area also protects other rare species, such as the critically endangered Hirola and the endangered Grevy’s zebra. Strong efforts are being made to improve conservation for these animals.
The Tsavo Conservation Area is one of the most visited in Kenya. Many visitors go to Tsavo East National Park, Tsavo West National Park, and Amboseli National Park. Tsavo National Park is made up of Tsavo East and Tsavo West, divided by the Nairobi–Mombasa Highway, the Uganda Railway, and the new Mombasa–Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway.
Underground tunnels have been built under this infrastructure to help wildlife move between the two parks. However, there has been a drop in the number of elephants crossing between them. It is believed that the movement of wildlife will be further affected by the newly built Nairobi Expressway.
