​Wildlife & Animals – Nairobi NP

Anthony Ham
Expert
By Anthony Ham

Anthony is a renowned Africa expert and author of many Lonely Planet guidebooks, including the guide to Kenya.

Anthony is a renowned Africa expert and author of the Lonely Planet guide to Kenya.

Anthony is the author of the Lonely Planet guide to Kenya.

Nairobi National Park has a good variety of wildlife. Apart from elephants, most big safari animals are present. There is a very good chance of seeing rhino. White rhino are easiest to spot as they graze on the open plains, but the park is one of Kenya’s most successful sanctuaries for black rhino, which like to keep hidden in the thickets.

Abundant
Common
Occasional
Rare
None
ElephantNone
GiraffeCommon
HippoOccasional
BuffaloOccasional
ZebraCommon
WildebeestCommon
White RhinoOccasional
Black RhinoRare
LionOccasional
LeopardVery Rare
CheetahRare
HyenaOccasional
Wild DogNone

Wildlife Highlights

Lion, cheetah, Masai giraffe and buffalo are just some of the animals you can encounter on a half-day trip in Nairobi NP. It is also a good place to see some of the more unusual antelope species including oribi, a grassland special. Coke's hartebeest is quite common and if lucky, a herd of shy eland will come into view. Pairs of little kirk's dik-dik can be spotted as well.

Best Time for Wildlife Viewing

The best time to visit Nairobi National Park is in the Dry season (from June to September) when animals gather around remaining water sources, although it can be visited throughout the year. The long rains (March to May) and short rains (October to November) usually make animal spotting more difficult. Rain can interfere with your game drive and the vegetation tends to be very high.

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