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A variety of game animals and
birds, which are not so easily seen, inhabit the fenced area. Each has a
function in Nature Trail's ecosystem, and almost all of them utilize a
different feeding niche.
The mammal species seen are hippos, giraffes, buffalos,
zebras, waterbucks, elands and Oryx. The bushbuck, suni and duiker are
not easily seen as tend to scamper away upon hearing any sounds. The
animals most active at night are: bush pig, marsh mongoose and serval
cat.
Below are profiles of famous animals at the wildlife
sanctuary:
Sally
and Potty, The Hippos
Sally was reared as an orphan by wildlife filmmakers and Joan
Root in Naivasha. In 1976, when she was 4 years old, she was brought to
Haller Parkure Trail. She is now around 20+ years old and weighs
probably 1 - 1.5 tons.
Potty was confiscated from a German zoo, because he was not
kept properly, and transferred to Nature Trail in November 1986. He
probably weighs between 1.5 - 2 tons.
Cape Buffalo
Cape Buffalos are African buffalos, and not water buffalos.
There are 2 females, one who is fully grown, and the other who was born
in Nature Trail in May 1990.
 Waterbuck
There are at present, group of 7 animals, 1 adult male, 4
adult females, 1 male and 1 female calf.
Eland
There are at present a group of 1 male, 2 adult females, 2
calves. Herd of 20 - 25 elands are domesticated at Bamburi Forestry.
They are herded and culled for meat
Oryx
There are at present a group of 1 male, 1 adult female, and 1
calf. Herd of 50 - 60 Oryxs' are domesticated at Bamburi Forestry. They
are herded and culled for meat. Oryxs' are extremely adapted to life in
dry, poor rainfall areas.
Birds
There are more than 160 bird species recorded to date. Some
species that were introduced to Nature Trail are:
 Crested crane, marabou
stork, yellow billed stork, pelican, Egyptian geese.
Bird species frequently seen in the Game Sanctuary: Gray
heron, black heron, great white egret, little egret yellow-billed egret,
sacred ibis plovers, white-faced tree ducks (seasonal), African fish
eagle and pied kingfisher and malachite kingfisher.
Weaver Birds
The are 3 main types of weaver birds: the Taveta golden
weaver, black-headed weaver and golden palm weaver
Porcupine
The South African Crested Porcupines are active at night, and
are rarely seen during the day. They hide in burrows, rock cavities, and
boulder heaps. When threatened, they stamp with their hind feet and hurl
quills.
Crocodiles
The crocodiles are the original parent stock of the crocodile
farm, which consisted of 6 females and 1 male. These crocodiles were
introduced from Lake Turkana and Tana River as eggs and hatchlings in
1975. There started laying eggs in 1984. At Nature Trail, crocodile eggs
are collected right after they are laid and are incubated artificially.
Thus, there are better hatching rates and minimal loss; sex ratio of
hatchlings can be controlled by incubation temperatures and hatchlings
can be looked after optimally
 Aldabra Tortoises
The tortoises at Haller Park trail are from Aldabra atoll in
the Indian Ocean. They were collected from people who kept them as pets.
Some were washed ashore.
Monkeys
The monkeys found at Nature Trail are from an orphan group
and their offspring are from hybrids. These species are: Green Vervet
Monkey, Sykes Monkey, Mona Monkey
Reforestation Project
Before the Reforestation project, the vegetation and soil
were in terrible condition. There was bare coral rock with almost no
soil and no shade. The ground water was mostly saline. Salinity has
decreased over the years since the ground is covered with soil and
vegetation that absorbs the heat; the soil also holds back the moisture.
The following vegetation can now be found in plenty:
Casuarina
They come originally from Australia, but occur naturally
along the East African coast. They can tolerate saline water and are
well adapted to dry areas. Their leaves, which look like pine needles,
are adapted t o minimize water loss. The "needles" are actually green
branches, with a very thick skin, and the leaves themselves, are reduced
to small scales arranged in a row at each node of the "needles".
The Casuarinas are well adapted to live on poor substrate:
microorganisms living in its roots that help the Casuarina utilize
nitrogen from the air. Other microorganisms dissolve other nutrients
from the surrounding rocks, and make them available to the Casuarina
tree as nutrients.
Casuarina needles decompose very slowly. Due to their high
tannin content, they are difficult for bacteria to break down.
Red-legged millipedes were introduced, because they feed on dead
Casuarina needles, and bacteria much easily break down their droppings.
The millipedes speed up humus formation. Thus far a humus layer of over
4 inches has been built up on the coral rock.
Conocarpus
The Conocarpus' were introduced from Somalia. They tolerate
saline ground-water and are drought tolerant. They need some soil to
start, and were most successful when interplanted with Casuarinas.
Algaroba
The Algaroba was introduced from South America. They are
drought tolerant and, also tolerate some salinity in the water. The
microorganisms in the root system help provide nutrients. They are
planted mainly on the quarry slopes.
 Neem
Fruit bats distribute the neem tree seeds. Neem is used as
medicines for the treatment against malaria and skin diseases. They can
be used as an insect repellant and insecticide.
Fig
Fruit bats and monkeys distribute the fig tree seeds. The
four fig species are common, the most common one being Ficus Sycomorus,
in Kiswahili called the mkuyu tree.
Fig tree often germinate at quite impossible places, like on
rocks or on other trees. They produce long air-roots, growing down
towards the soil and becoming proper roots once they reach the soil.
They grow so vigorously once they reach the soil, that they strangle and
kill their host tree on which they germinated.
Indigenous Species
Many species of indigenous coastal forest and timber trees
are being planted to find the ones most suitable and to eventually
replace the Casuarina and Cornacapus trees. These trees are Mvule,
Mbambakofi, Mgurure.
Source: Website
African
Mecca (2009)
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