Meru National Park is the other setting for Joy Adamson’s book ‘’Born Free’’, which was later made into a successful film and which in turn brought the Park to public attention. The couple pioneered research in the park by associating with cheetahs and and lions, particularly ‘’Elsa’’ the lioness.
The park is characterized by many swamps and rivers lined with palms, as well as mountains and woodlands. As a result, Meru National park is home to beautiful flora and fauna. The park is home to a large pride of lions, herds of buffalos, hippos and crocodiles that populate the rivers. The location of the park gives visitors excellent views of the snow capped Mt Kenya, which is the highest mountain in Kenya.
The park is located right on the equator and sits at an altitude of between 1000-3400 feet (304 – 1036 metres) and covers 870 km squares in size. It is 348km from Nairobi, the capital of Kenya making it ideal for one day trips by those residing or on business in Nairobi.
The Parks’ ecosystem consists of wide open plains with many rivers, woodlands and swamps making it a haven for wild animals and birds. Common animals in the park that provide for good game viewing includes elephants, hippos, lions, leopards, cheetahs, rare antelopes, buffalos, giraffes, gazelles, hartebeests, the tiny African antelope, the lesser kudu, duiker and dik-dik
Meru National park is also a harven for bird watching with over 300 species of birds recorded. Common birds in the park include the Peters finfoot, the Pels Fishing owl, Kingfishers, rollers, bee-eaters, starlings, numerous weavers, hornbills, secretary birds, eagles and other smaller birds
Meru national park with its wildlife diversity provides excellent opportiunities for game viewing. The park is home to four of the ‘’Big Five’’ – elephants. lions, leopards and buffalo – as well as cheetahs, antelope, hippos and crocodiles. Meru national park is quitter than some of the other parks and has very good graded roads for game drives.
The park has over 300 species of birds recorded making it one of the best ecosystems for birding. Common birds in the park include; Peters finfoot, Pels fishing Owl, King fishers, Rollers, Bee-earters, Starlings and numerous weavers. Much larger birds include the Secretary bird, Ostriches and Hornbills.
