Tsavo East National Park

National Park · Kenya

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Photo © Łukasz Ciesielski - kontakt: Facebook

Photo © Łukasz Ciesielski - kontakt: Facebook — CC BY-SA 4.0 — Source: Wikimedia Commons

Across the semi-arid lowlands of southeastern Kenya, where acacia woodland fragments into scrubland and the landscape rolls toward the Indian Ocean horizon, lies one of Africa's most expansive savanna ecosystems. The terrain here is defined by open grasslands interspersed with thorny thickets, isolated granite outcrops, and seasonal watercourses that animate the dry season ecology. This habitat mosaic, shaped by low and erratic rainfall, supports a wealth of large herbivores—buffalo, zebra, antelope of multiple species—alongside the predators that pursue them across the park's 13,747 square kilometers. Birds of prey quarter these thermals above the acacia canopy, while ground-nesting birds and small mammals exploit the scattered cover. The ecosystem is fundamentally shaped by aridity; water sources concentrate wildlife seasonally, creating dynamic assemblages that shift with the rains and the annual migration patterns of nomadic herds.

For wildlife photographers and birders, the appeal lies in this landscape's honest drama: vast vistas, intense light, and the genuine unpredictability of wildlife encounters in truly wild country. The dry season compresses animals around permanent water, offering closer views and more reliable sightings, while the rains transform the grasslands into verdant pasture and trigger movement across the park. Predators and birds of prey are most active during the cooler hours, and the shallow angles of dawn and dusk light—especially during the dry months—create the luminous conditions that define East African wildlife photography at its most compelling. Access via rough park roads demands patience and a genuine spirit of adventure, but the reward is an unfiltered glimpse of savanna ecology where the old rules of predator and prey still govern the day.

Sagittarius serpentarius

Northern Red-billed Hornbill

Tockus erythrorhynchus

Superb Starling

Lamprotornis superbus

Yellow-necked Spurfowl

Pternistis leucoscepus

Struthio molybdophanes

Vulturine Guineafowl

Acryllium vulturinum

Lilac-breasted Roller

Coracias caudatus

White-browed Sparrow-Weaver

Plocepasser mahali

Leptoptilos crumenifer

Von der Decken's Hornbill

Crested Francolin

Ortygornis sephaena

Ring-necked Dove

Streptopelia capicola

Pied Kingfisher

Buff-crested Bustard

Lophotis gindiana

Verreaux's Eagle-Owl

Northern White-crowned Shrike

Eurocephalus ruppelli

Southern Ground Hornbill

Bucorvus leadbeateri

Helmeted Guineafowl

Numida meleagris

Rosy-patched Bushshrike

Rhodophoneus cruentus

Spilopelia senegalensis

Parrot-billed Sparrow

Passer gongonensis

Black-winged Kite

Elanus caeruleus

White-bellied Go-away-bird

Crinifer leucogaster

Long-tailed Fiscal

Lanius cabanisi

Cursorius somalensis

Tringa glareola

Black-winged Stilt

Himantopus himantopus

Aquila nipalensis

Yellow-billed Oxpecker

Buphagus africanus

Cut-throat Finch

Amadina fasciata

Red-tailed Shrike

Lanius phoenicuroides

Ploceus cucullatus

White-headed Vulture

Trigonoceps occipitalis

Black-chested Snake Eagle

Circaetus pectoralis

Montagu's Harrier

Circus pygargus

Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse

Pterocles exustus

African Spoonbill

White-backed Vulture

Western Cattle Egret

Speckled Pigeon

Red-and-yellow Barbet

Trachyphonus erythrocephalus

Nubian Woodpecker

Campethera nubica

Slate-colored Boubou

Laniarius funebris

Red-backed Shrike

Lanius collurio

Mourning Collared Dove

Streptopelia decipiens

Common Greenshank

Tringa nebularia

African Sacred Ibis

Threskiornis aethiopicus

Micronisus gabar

African Pied Wagtail

Motacilla aguimp

Heuglin's Bustard

Neotis heuglinii

Red-winged Starling

Onychognathus morio

Passer domesticus

White-faced Whistling Duck

Dendrocygna viduata

Pycnonotus barbatus

Grey Crowned Crane

Balearica regulorum

Speckled Mousebird

Colius striatus

Red-bellied Parrot

Poicephalus rufiventris

African Grey Hornbill

Lophoceros nasutus

Hartlaub's Bustard

Lissotis hartlaubii

D'Arnaud's Barbet

Trachyphonus darnaudii

Common Sandpiper

Actitis hypoleucos

Blue-naped Mousebird

Urocolius macrourus

African Palm Swift

Cypsiurus parvus

Emerald-spotted Wood Dove

Turtur chalcospilos

Wahlberg's Eagle

Hieraaetus wahlbergi

Grey Wren-Warbler

Calamonastes simplex

Southern Red-billed Hornbill

Tockus rufirostris

Hunter's Sunbird

Chalcomitra hunteri

Spotted Palm Thrush

Cichladusa guttata

Yellow-spotted Bush Sparrow

Gymnoris pyrgita

Red-billed Oxpecker

Buphagus erythroryncha

Fischer's Starling

Lamprotornis fischeri

Black-headed Heron

Ardea melanocephala

Golden-breasted Starling

Lamprotornis regius

Terathopius ecaudatus

White-headed Buffalo Weaver

Dinemellia dinemelli

Eastern Chanting Goshawk

Melierax poliopterus

Black-faced Sandgrouse

Pterocles decoratus

Red-winged Lark

Corypha hypermetra

Grey-headed Kingfisher

Halcyon leucocephala

Alopochen aegyptiaca

Spur-winged Lapwing

Vanellus spinosus

Lanius dorsalis

Red-billed Quelea

Crowned Lapwing

Vanellus coronatus

White-browed Coucal

Centropus superciliosus

Fork-tailed Drongo

Dicrurus adsimilis

Brown Snake Eagle

Circaetus cinereus

Lesser Masked Weaver

Ploceus intermedius

White-bellied Bustard

Eupodotis senegalensis

Red-billed Buffalo Weaver

Bubalornis niger

Pink-breasted Lark

Calendulauda poecilosterna

Black-headed Lapwing

Vanellus tectus

Yellow-billed Stork

Polemaetus bellicosus

European Roller

Coracias garrulus

Tmetothylacus tenellus

Wire-tailed Swallow

Hirundo smithii

Long-tailed Paradise Whydah

Vidua paradisaea

Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Chestnut-headed Sparrow-Lark

Eremopterix signatus

African Woolly-necked Stork

Ciconia microscelis

Northern Wheatear

Oenanthe oenanthe

Spotted Flycatcher

Muscicapa striata

Clamator jacobinus

Common Rock Thrush

Monticola saxatilis

White-throated Bee-eater

Merops albicollis

Lesser Striped Swallow

Cecropis abyssinica

Little Bee-eater

Merops pusillus

Wattled Starling

Creatophora cinerea

Polihierax semitorquatus

African Openbill

Anastomus lamelligerus

Grasshopper Buzzard

Butastur rufipennis

Isabelline Wheatear

Oenanthe isabellina

African Hawk-Eagle

Aquila spilogaster

Scopus umbretta

Hirundo rustica

Long-crested Eagle

Lophaetus occipitalis

African Fish Eagle

Icthyophaga vocifer

Bostrychia hagedash

Struthio camelus

Knob-billed Duck

Sarkidiornis melanotos

Harlequin Quail

Coturnix delegorguei

Donaldson Smith's Nightjar

Caprimulgus donaldsoni

Great Spotted Cuckoo

Clamator glandarius

Diederik Cuckoo

Chrysococcyx caprius

Chrysococcyx klaas

Cuculus canorus

Streptopelia semitorquata

Greater Flamingo

Phoenicopterus roseus

Spotted Thick-knee

Burhinus capensis

Water Thick-knee

Burhinus vermiculatus

Common Ringed Plover

Charadrius hiaticula

Blacksmith Lapwing

Vanellus armatus

Anarhynchus asiaticus

Greater Painted-snipe

Rostratula benghalensis

Green Sandpiper

Tringa ochropus

Calidris pugnax

Calidris minuta

Three-banded Courser

Rhinoptilus cinctus

Collared Pratincole

Glareola pratincola

Ciconia abdimii

Egretta garzetta

Ardeola ralloides

Yellow-billed Egret

Ardea brachyrhyncha

African Harrier-Hawk

Polyboroides typus

Lesser Spotted Eagle

Clanga pomarina

Hieraaetus pennatus

Western Marsh Harrier

Circus aeruginosus

Pearl-spotted Owlet

Glaucidium perlatum

African Scops Owl

Otus senegalensis

Apaloderma narina

Eastern Yellow-billed Hornbill

Tockus flavirostris

Coracias naevius

Broad-billed Roller

Eurystomus glaucurus

Brown-hooded Kingfisher

Halcyon albiventris

Somali Bee-eater

Merops revoilii

Olive Bee-eater

Merops superciliosus

Bearded Woodpecker

Chloropicus namaquus

Cardinal Woodpecker

Dendropicos fuscescens

Falco tinnunculus

Red-necked Falcon

Falco chicquera

Falco biarmicus

Peregrine Falcon

Falco peregrinus

White-crested Helmetshrike

Prionops plumatus

African Paradise Flycatcher

Terpsiphone viridis

Lesser Grey Shrike

Isabelline Shrike

Lanius isabellinus

Corvus splendens

Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Lark

Eremopterix leucotis

Fischer's Sparrow-Lark

Eremopterix leucopareia

Singing Bush Lark

Mirafra javanica

Red-throated Rock Martin

Ptyonoprogne rufigula

Eastern Olivaceous Warbler

Cisticola cinereolus

Desert Cisticola

Cisticola aridulus

Rufous Chatterer

Argya rubiginosa

Hildebrandt's Starling

Lamprotornis hildebrandti

Magpie Starling

Speculipastor bicolor

Bare-eyed Thrush

Turdus tephronotus

Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin

Cercotrichas galactotes

African Grey Flycatcher

Bradornis microrhynchus

Mocking Cliff Chat

Thamnolaea cinnamomeiventris

Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird

Anthreptes orientalis

Amethyst Sunbird

Chalcomitra amethystina

Black-bellied Sunbird

Cinnyris nectarinioides

Northern Grey-headed Sparrow

Black-capped Social Weaver

Pseudonigrita cabanisi

Eastern Golden Weaver

Ploceus subaureus

Chestnut Weaver

Ploceus rubiginosus

Cardinal Quelea

Quelea cardinalis

Zanzibar Red Bishop

Euplectes nigroventris

White-winged Widowbird

Euplectes albonotatus

African Silverbill

Euodice cantans

Estrilda astrild

Crimson-rumped Waxbill

Estrilda rhodopyga

Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu

Uraeginthus bengalus

Green-winged Pytilia

Pin-tailed Whydah

Straw-tailed Whydah

Pangani Longclaw

Macronyx aurantiigula

Anthus cinnamomeus

Emberiza poliopleura

Violet Wood Hoopoe

Phoeniculus damarensis

Banded Parisoma

Fulvous Whistling Duck

Dendrocygna bicolor

Spur-winged Goose

Plectropterus gambensis

Spatula querquedula

Blue-billed Teal

Spatula hottentota

Red-billed Teal

Anas erythrorhyncha

Southern Pochard

Netta erythrophthalma

Eastern Crested Guineafowl

Guttera pucherani

Coqui Francolin

Campocolinus coqui

Coturnix coturnix

Hildebrandt's Spurfowl

Pternistis hildebrandti

European Nightjar

Caprimulgus europaeus

Sombre Nightjar

Caprimulgus fraenatus

Fiery-necked Nightjar

Caprimulgus pectoralis

Caprimulgus inornatus

Freckled Nightjar

Caprimulgus tristigma

Slender-tailed Nightjar

Caprimulgus clarus

Square-tailed Nightjar

Caprimulgus fossii

Mottled Spinetail

Telacanthura ussheri

Böhm's Spinetail

Neafrapus boehmi

Tachymarptis melba

African Black Swift

White-rumped Swift

Centropus grillii

Ceuthmochares australis

Levaillant's Cuckoo

Clamator levaillantii

Cuculus clamosus

Red-chested Cuckoo

Cuculus solitarius

Cuculus gularis

Yellow-throated Sandgrouse

Pterocles gutturalis

Tambourine Dove

Turtur tympanistria

African Green Pigeon

Gallinula chloropus

Red-knobbed Coot

Fulica cristata

Zapornia flavirostra

Tachybaptus ruficollis

Lesser Flamingo

Phoeniconaias minor

Common Buttonquail

Turnix sylvaticus

Recurvirostra avosetta

Pluvialis squatarola

Senegal Lapwing

Vanellus lugubris

Actophilornis africanus

Black-tailed Godwit

Gallinago gallinago

Marsh Sandpiper

Tringa stagnatilis

Spotted Redshank

Tringa erythropus

Curlew Sandpiper

Calidris ferruginea

Double-banded Courser

Smutsornis africanus

Bronze-winged Courser

Rhinoptilus chalcopterus

Temminck's Courser

Cursorius temminckii

Madagascar Pratincole

Glareola ocularis

Gull-billed Tern

Gelochelidon nilotica

Chlidonias hybrida

White-winged Tern

Chlidonias leucopterus

Black-headed Gull

Chroicocephalus ridibundus

Saddle-billed Stork

Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis

Microcarbo africanus

Great Cormorant

Phalacrocorax carbo

Plegadis falcinellus

Black-crowned Night Heron

Nycticorax nycticorax

Egretta ardesiaca

Great White Pelican

Pelecanus onocrotalus

Pink-backed Pelican

Pelecanus rufescens

Scissor-tailed Kite

Chelictinia riocourii

Palm-nut Vulture

Gypohierax angolensis

Egyptian Vulture

Neophron percnopterus

African Cuckoo-Hawk

Aviceda cuculoides

European Honey Buzzard

Pernis apivorus

Necrosyrtes monachus

Ayres's Hawk-Eagle

Hieraaetus ayresii

Verreaux's Eagle

Aquila verreauxii

Kaupifalco monogrammicus

Circus macrourus

African Marsh Harrier

Circus ranivorus

Western Barn Owl

Greyish Eagle-Owl

Bubo cinerascens

Spotted Eagle-Owl

White-headed Mousebird

Colius leucocephalus

Green Wood Hoopoe

Phoeniculus purpureus

Common Scimitarbill

Rhinopomastus cyanomelas

Abyssinian Scimitarbill

Rhinopomastus minor

Crowned Hornbill

Lophoceros alboterminatus

Striped Kingfisher

Halcyon chelicuti

African Pygmy Kingfisher

Malachite Kingfisher

Corythornis cristatus

Giant Kingfisher

Megaceryle maxima

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

Merops persicus

European Bee-eater

Merops apiaster

Spot-flanked Barbet

Tricholaema lacrymosa

Black-throated Barbet

Tricholaema melanocephala

White-headed Barbet

Lybius leucocephalus

Brown-breasted Barbet

Pogonornis melanopterus

Brown-backed Honeybird

Prodotiscus regulus

Lesser Honeyguide

Indicator minor

Scaly-throated Honeyguide

Indicator variegatus

Greater Honeyguide

Indicator indicator

Falco amurensis

Eastern Black-headed Batis

Grey-headed Bushshrike

Malaconotus blanchoti

Orange-breasted Bushshrike

Chlorophoneus sulfureopectus

Brown-crowned Tchagra

Tchagra australis

Three-streaked Tchagra

Black-crowned Tchagra

Tchagra senegalus

Black-backed Puffback

Dryoscopus cubla

Pringle's Puffback

Dryoscopus pringlii

Red-naped Bushshrike

Laniarius ruficeps

Tropical Boubou

Laniarius major

Retz's Helmetshrike

Prionops retzii

Black Cuckooshrike

Campephaga flava

Black-headed Oriole

Oriolus larvatus

African Golden Oriole

Oriolus auratus

Eurasian Golden Oriole

Oriolus oriolus

White-necked Raven

Corvus albicollis

White-bellied Tit

Melaniparus albiventris

Mouse-colored Penduline Tit

Anthoscopus musculus

Fawn-colored Lark

Calendulauda africanoides

Yellow-bellied Greenbul

Chlorocichla flaviventris

Northern Brownbul

Phyllastrephus strepitans

Neophedina cincta

Brown-throated Martin

Riparia paludicola

Riparia riparia

Western House Martin

Delichon urbicum

Cecropis senegalensis

South African Cliff Swallow

Petrochelidon spilodera

Northern Crombec

Sylvietta brachyura

Red-faced Crombec

Sylvietta whytii

Sylvietta isabellina

Phylloscopus trochilus

Basra Reed Warbler

Acrocephalus griseldis

Great Reed Warbler

Acrocephalus arundinaceus

Acrocephalus schoenobaenus

Common Reed Warbler

Acrocephalus scirpaceus

Acrocephalus palustris

Upcher's Warbler

Hippolais languida

Olive-tree Warbler

Hippolais olivetorum

Rattling Cisticola

Cisticola chiniana

Winding Cisticola

Cisticola marginatus

Zitting Cisticola

Cisticola juncidis

Tawny-flanked Prinia

Prinia subflava

Red-fronted Prinia

Prinia rufifrons

Buff-bellied Warbler

Phyllolais pulchella

Yellow-breasted Apalis

Green-backed Camaroptera

Camaroptera brachyura

Yellow-bellied Eremomela

Eremomela icteropygialis

Eurasian Blackcap

Sylvia atricapilla

Curruca nisoria

Common Whitethroat

Curruca communis

Zosterops flavilateralis

Scaly Chatterer

Greater Blue-eared Starling

Lamprotornis chalybaeus

Rüppell's Starling

Lamprotornis purpuroptera

Shelley's Starling

Lamprotornis shelleyi

Violet-backed Starling

Cinnyricinclus leucogaster

Bearded Scrub Robin

Tychaedon quadrivirgata

White-browed Scrub Robin

Cercotrichas leucophrys

Pale Flycatcher

Agricola pallidus

Southern Black Flycatcher

Melaenornis pammelaina

Gambaga Flycatcher

Muscicapa gambagae

White-browed Robin-Chat

Cossypha heuglini

Red-capped Robin-Chat

Cossypha natalensis

White-throated Robin

Irania gutturalis

Thrush Nightingale

Luscinia luscinia

Common Nightingale

Luscinia megarhynchos

Saxicola rubetra

Capped Wheatear

Oenanthe pileata

Oenanthe pleschanka

Collared Sunbird

Hedydipna collaris

Scarlet-chested Sunbird

Chalcomitra senegalensis

Cinnyris tsavoensis

Variable Sunbird

Cinnyris venustus

Chestnut Sparrow

Passer eminibey

Passer rufocinctus

Grey-capped Social Weaver

Pseudonigrita arnaudi

Speckle-fronted Weaver

Sporopipes frontalis

Thick-billed Weaver

Amblyospiza albifrons

Spectacled Weaver

Ploceus ocularis

Black-necked Weaver

Ploceus nigricollis

Golden Palm Weaver

Vitelline Masked Weaver

Ploceus vitellinus

Golden-backed Weaver

Ploceus jacksoni

Red-headed Weaver

Anaplectes rubriceps

Yellow-crowned Bishop

Black-winged Red Bishop

Euplectes hordeaceus

Euplectes capensis

Fan-tailed Widowbird

Euplectes axillaris

Grey-headed Silverbill

Spermestes griseicapilla

Bronze Mannikin

Spermestes cucullata

Black-cheeked Waxbill

Brunhilda charmosyna

Purple Grenadier

Granatina ianthinogaster

Blue-capped Cordon-bleu

Uraeginthus cyanocephalus

Red-billed Firefinch

Lagonosticta senegala

Jameson's Firefinch

Lagonosticta rhodopareia

Village Indigobird

Vidua chalybeata

Steel-blue Whydah

Vidua hypocherina

Western Yellow Wagtail

Motacilla flava

Anthus trivialis

Red-throated Pipit

Anthus cervinus

Reichenow's Seedeater

Crithagra reichenowi

White-bellied Canary

Crithagra dorsostriata

Cinnamon-breasted Bunting

Emberiza tahapisi

Nubian Nightjar

Caprimulgus nubicus

Black-bellied Bustard

Lissotis melanogaster

African Emerald Cuckoo

Chrysococcyx cupreus

Black-winged Lapwing

Vanellus melanopterus

Asian Woolly-necked Stork

Ciconia episcopus

Butorides striata

Black-shouldered Kite

Elanus axillaris

Pale Chanting Goshawk

Melierax canorus

Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird

Pogoniulus bilineatus

Southern Red-fronted Tinkerbird

Pogoniulus pusillus

Ethiopian Boubou

Laniarius aethiopicus

Southern White-crowned Shrike

Eurocephalus anguitimens

Grey-backed Fiscal

Lanius excubitoroides

Northern Fiscal

Lanius humeralis

Large Rock Martin

Ptyonoprogne fuligula

African Dusky Flycatcher

Muscicapa adusta

African Stonechat

Saxicola torquatus

Cinnyris mariquensis

Purple-banded Sunbird

Cinnyris bifasciatus

White-billed Buffalo Weaver

Bubalornis albirostris

Baglafecht Weaver

Ploceus baglafecht

Southern Masked Weaver

Ploceus velatus

Black-headed Weaver

Ploceus melanocephalus

African Firefinch

Lagonosticta rubricata

Yellow-throated Longclaw

Macronyx croceus

Golden-breasted Bunting

Emberiza flaviventris

Panthera pardus

Acinonyx jubatus

African Savanna Elephant

Loxodonta africana

Giraffa tippelskirchi

Grant's Gazelle

Kobus ellipsiprymnus

Syncerus caffer

Common Dwarf Mongoose

Helogale parvula

Banded Mongoose

Beatragus hunteri

Ochre Bush Squirrel

Paraxerus ochraceus

Aepyceros melampus

Alcelaphus buselaphus

Litocranius walleri

Tragelaphus imberbis

Common Hippopotamus

Hippopotamus amphibius

Heterohyrax brucei

Phacochoerus aethiopicus

Unstriped Ground Squirrel

Black-backed Jackal

Lupulella mesomelas

Crocuta crocuta

Tragelaphus oryx

Phacochoerus africanus

Procavia capensis

Crested Porcupine

Hystrix cristata

Four-toed Hedgehog

Atelerix albiventris

Heart-nosed False-vampire

Cardioderma cor

Yellow-winged False-vampire

Otocyon megalotis

Common Slender Mongoose

Herpestes sanguineus

Ethiopian Dwarf Mongoose

Helogale hirtula

Eastern Aardwolf

Proteles septentrionalis

Genetta genetta

Blue Wildebeest

Connochaetes taurinus

Raphicerus campestris

Oreotragus oreotragus

Northern Lesser Galago

Galago senegalensis

Egyptian Mongoose

Herpestes ichneumon

Thomson's Gazelle

Eudorcas thomsonii

Northern Giraffe

Giraffa camelopardalis

Reticulated Giraffe

Giraffa reticulata

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