At a glance

Altitude: 850-1,230 meters above sea level.

Area: 131 sq km. 

Location: Eastern Province, Isiolo District. 

Distance from Nairobi: 340 km north-east of Nairobi. 

Gazetted: presently managed by Isiolo County Council, the reserve was established in 1948 as part of the Samburu-Isiolo Game Reserve. The present boundaries were formed in 1985. 

Climate: hot, dry and semi-arid.

Vegetation: varies between acacia woodland, bushland and scrubland and riverine woodlands. 

Wildlife: includes plentiful elephant, and features such rarities as reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra and Beisa oryx. 

Birds: over 320 species have been recorded.

Roads: 4WD is recommended for the journey to and within the reserve although 2WD vehicles with good ground clearance can be used outside the rainy seasons. 

Overview

Buffalo Springs takes its name from the pools and springs of fresh clear water, which The rugged, hot and arid ‘badlands’ of north-eastern Kenya are vast, magnificent and still largely unexplored. Constituting more than a third of Kenya’s total land area, they are home to less than five per cent of her people; most of whom are hardy nomads. Buffalo Springs takes its name from the pools and springs of fresh clear water, which bubble in its midst, and act as a magnet for large congregations of wild life, especially during the dry season (June to October and December to April).  A favourite watering hole for the reserve’s buffaloes, the springs also act as a draw to literally thousands of sand grouse and doves. The reserve has a couple of seasonal rivers, the Isiolo and the Ngare Mara which flow into the Ewaso Ng’iro.

Characteristics of the reserve

The reserve is characterized by large tracts of Commiphora-dominated bushland, open areas of lava rock with scattered grass and shrubs and alkaline grasslands dotted with springs and swamps. There is also extensive Acacia tortilis woodland, and a narrow band of riverine forest with magnificent Acacia elatior, Tana River Poplar (Populus ilicifolia) and Doum Palm (Hyphaene compressa) along the Ewaso Ng’iro River. The uniform khaki of the shrub is also enlivened by the occasional bulbous trunk and brilliant pink bloom of the indigenous succulent known as the ‘Desert Rose’ (Adenium obesum) while the Salvadora persica (tooth-brush tree) shrub is a favourite both with browsing elephants, and with the nomadic Samburu people, who break off twigs to use as toothbrushes. 

About the wildlife

As is the case with most dry country ecosystems, wildlife watching varies greatly as the animal populations move about in search of water and pasture. Large herds of elephant roam the reserve and are best seen crossing the river, or returning to its banks at dusk to bathe. The lifeblood of this dust-dry desert region, the Ewaso Ng’iro river is home to plentiful pods of snorting hippos, while on its raised sandbanks immense Nile crocodiles bask. The reserve’s wildlife also includes a number of rare and localized races and species, such as the increasingly uncommon reticulated giraffe, with its beautiful jigsaw marking. It is also one of the few areas in Kenya to host the Grevy’s zebra, which with its rounded ‘Mickey Mouse’ ears is notably different from its more common cousin, the Burchell’s zebra. Gerenuks (meaning ‘camel head’ in Somali) can also often be seen standing on their hind legs and using their long necks to reach the choicest foliage. Other browsers of the thorny shrub include elands, both lesser and greater kudus, impalas, Bright’s gazelles (the pale northern species of Grant’s gazelle), warthogs and Kirk’s and Guenther’s dik-diks. Buffalo, leopard, cheetah and lion are also present.

Birdwatching

So abundant is this area’s birdlife that it is possible to notch up over 100 species in a day, the most noteworthy being the rare blue-shanked Somali ostrich. Secretary birds are plentiful, as are bands of bustling helmeted and vulturine guinea fowls, while along the river storks feed and sand grouse congregate at dusk. Both red-billed and Von der Decken’s hornbills are common.  The rugged nature of the reserve also provides an ideal raptor habitat; common sightings include; pygmy falcons, martial eagles and Verreaux’s eagle owls.