New hope for flamingo birds in Lake Nakuru
The famous Flamingo birds on the shoreline of Lake Nakuru on October 5, 2022. The birds have migrated to other Rift Valley lakes due to a sharp rise in water levels in the lake.
What you need to know:
- According to Mwinami, the destruction of the food that the flamingos feed on has contributed to a decline in the number of flamingos. But all is not lost.
- There is hope the flamingo population will rise again on the horizon as WRTI has launched a project to revive the spirulina population in the lake.
As he enjoys game viewing on the shores of the famous Lake Nakuru, which is endowed with scenic ridges, he abruptly makes a brief stopover. He picks a pink feather plucked off from a flamingo bird fleeing a seemingly fatal brew of environmental threats in the expanding lake, the home that has sheltered them for centuries.
“In the 1980s, the shores of Lake Nakuru were a marvellous attraction of clouds of pink rising on a million wings; with the famous flamingos birds dotting the shoreline,” says Nicholas Rioba.
“I wish something could be done about the deteriorating quality of water in Lake Nakuru so that flamingos can return to their original habitat. I miss the days when I spent a great deal of my time on weekends viewing flamingos and taking memorable videos,” adds Rioba.
Since 2011, the flamingo population in Lake Nakuru has massively dwindled as the birds continue to migrate.According to data from the National Museums of Kenya, Kenya Wildlife Service and Nature Kenya, there has been a declining trend of the Lesser flamingo species in the lake.
The species depends on blue-green algae spilurina for survival. By January 2021, there were just 6,000 flamingos in Lake Nakuru, a sharp decline from a record one million birds in 2000.
“Last October we did a head count of the birds, and there were less than 100 flamingos,” says Jared Lumbasi, a senior research scientist at Wildlife Research and Training Institute (WRTI) in Naivasha.
In 2017, the Status of Key Biodiversity Areas report observed that Lake Nakuru was among the 38 major flamingo feeding sites that were unfavourable.
The exodus of these birds to nearby Rift Valley lakes like Lake Bogoria and Lake Natron was attributed to a sharp rise in water levels in the lake. Experts have attributed this rise to seasonal variations in weather conditions.
“Over the past decade, the ecosystem in Lake Nakuru has massively changed due to climate change and inflow of fresh water from River Njoro,” explained Lumbasi. Bird experts and conservationists say the increase in water levels was interfering with the habitat of these birds.
“The rising water volumes in the lake have led to significant dilution of water, affecting the propagation of the green algae spirulina in Lake Nakuru System. Spirulina is the main food for flamingos," explains Timothy Mwinami, a bird researcher at the National Museums of Kenya.
Ponds that have been put in place for the purpose of breeding spirulina, the main food for flamingos.
According to Mwinami, the destruction of the food that the flamingos feed on has contributed to a decline in the number of flamingos. But all is not lost. There is hope the flamingo population will rise again on the horizon as WRTI has launched a project to revive the spirulina population in the lake.
The WRTI is planning to cultivate specific species of blue-green algae spirulina belonging to the cyanobacteria family at its institute and introduce them into the lake to attract flamingos.
“We are in the process of breeding spirulina in ponds. We’ll reintroduce the cultured spirulina into Lake Nakuru, creating an inviting environment for the flamingos to return,” explains Lumbasi.
“We have two ponds ready to receive the spirulina and the seeds are the in labs as we strive to look for the best strain.” It takes one week to grow the spirulina and once the institute starts multiplying it in the ponds, they will be harvesting the algae once a week before dumping it in Lake Nakuru.
“One pond can feed over 50 flamingos, but there are plans to enhance the growth rate by working with high-producing strains.” But even as they continue with these plans, some experts are pessimistic about just how sustainable this project is.
“It takes very few hours for the bacteria to collapse in an unfavourable environment, which means it could be a challenge to support the survival of this bacteria,” says Mwinami. But Lumbasi argues that this could be the only affordable alternative to bring back the glory of Lake Nakuru.
“The other alternative is to improve the PH of the lake water by introducing salts such as sodium bicarbonate or chloride, which is expensive and might cause more damage to the lake water, which might become too salty to support any kind of life,” he adds.
