Shaba National Reserve
Shaba National Reserve | |
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Location of Shaba National Reserve National Reserve in central Kenya | |
Location | Kenya, Eastern Province, Isiolo District |
Coordinates | 0°38′24″N 37°49′48″E / 0.640037°N 37.830005°E |
Area | 23,910 hectares (59,100 acres) |
Established | 1974 |
Shaba National Reserve is a protected area in Isiolo County in northern Kenya to the east of the Samburu and Buffalo Springs national reserves. Together, the three reserves form a large protected area.[1]
The Shaba reserve has dramatic scenery including river-side forests, scattered woodlands and dry grasslands dominated by the Shaba Hill volcano. The plentiful wildlife relies on waterholes and marshes scattered throughout the reserve. Shaba is home to the endangered
The reserve is a popular destination for tourists, which presents a risk of excess numbers of visitors and growth of the local population around the reserve placing stress on the environment.[1][2]
Location
Shaba National Reserve was gazetted in 1974. It is administered by the Isiolo County Council.
Fauna
Although Shaba is greener than Samburu, game species such as Masai giraffes and Grant's zebras are less common. There are many klipspringer and hyrax in the hills.[4] Aardvarks, warthogs and bat-eared foxes make their homes in domed termite mounds in the shrubland.
Bird life is plentiful in Shaba, and similar to that of the Samburu and Buffalo Springs National Reserves. The near-threatened and poorly known Williams's lark is found in the reserve in regions of rocky lava semi-desert with low Barleria shrubs. It has not been observed in any other protected area. The reserve lies on the migration route from the
Media use
The park was made famous by Joy Adamson and the lioness Elsa, subjects of the 1966 film Born Free.[1] In January 1980, Adamson was murdered in the reserve, where there is a monument to her.[6]
The film Out of Africa was shot in part within the reserve, as were various other TV shows and commercials that take advantage of the wildlife and dramatic scenery.[1]
In 2001, two thirds of the park was sealed off for four months while a CBS crew shot episodes of Survivor: Africa, the third season of the American reality television competition series Survivor. The local people, who survive there from year to year, complained that CBS had not given them work during the filming.[2]
Ecological concerns
Shaba is valuable for its diverse fauna of the Somali–Masai biome, and is important as a home for the poorly known Williams's lark. Neither the reserve, nor the lark's habitat are immediately threatened. Military training in the region to the north of the reserve causes considerable environmental disruption. Levels of grazing, hunting and firewood collection are rising in the areas around the reserve, and sometimes this activity intrudes into the reserve itself. There is no management plan for tourism, and there is a risk that numbers of visitors may rise to unsustainable levels.[3]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "Shaba National Park - "Born Free" Country". And Beyond Africa. Retrieved 2011-10-21.
- ^ a b MARC LACEY (August 13, 2001). "Shaba National Reserve Journal; TV Adventure Show Ignores the Real Survivors". New York Times. Retrieved 2011-10-21.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Shaba National Reserve". Birdlife International. Retrieved 2011-10-21.
- ^ a b c "Shaba National Reserve". Shoor Safaris. Retrieved 2011-10-21.
- ISBN 978-1-74104-208-5.
- ^ "Kenyan Is Convicted In Death of Joy Adamson". New York Times. August 29, 1981. Retrieved 2011-10-21.