kenya
Clockwise from left: A Maasai man dressed for a cultural event at his village near Aitong; zebras drinking at Maasai Mara National Reserve; a herd of wildebeest and Burchell’ s zebras at Sand River, close to the border of the Serengeti National Park and Maasai Mara National Reserve
wildlife. Conservancies provide a winwin situation. Wildlife benefits through habitat restoration and more rangers on the ground, while the community secures much-needed income from employment and lease fees paid by upmarket camps on their land. And visitors staying in the camps, limited to a small number on each conservancy, enjoy a richer, more varied and exclusive safari experience that directly gives back to local people.
Today, Kenya’ s conservancies collectively cover more of the country’ s wild habitats than all of its national parks put together, often protecting some of Africa’ s rarest species, including rhinoceroses, wild dogs and the little-known hirola antelope, of which only around 400 survive.
WHERE IN KENYA IS BEST FOR WILDLIFE?
Home to the Big Five, antelopes and big cats aplenty, the world-famous Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya’ s southwest is the go-to place for most visitors. This is especially so from July, when some two million wildebeest and zebras come thundering across from Tanzania’ s vast Serengeti plains in search of greener pastures. The action-packed Mara River crossings are a compelling if gruesome sight: braying beasts lured by the smell of rain risk crossing waters brimming with crocodiles. Should they survive, they’ ll find predators waiting for them on the opposite banks. spring 2025 • 35