Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

Wildlife & Animals

Expert

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

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is home to all of the Big Five. It has good populations of black rhino and white rhino and sightings are very common. Elephant and buffalo are plentiful, and there is a good variety of predators including cheetah, lion, leopard and wild dog. Antelopes include eland, impala, defassa waterbuck and Grant's gazelle.

ElephantCommon

GiraffeCommon

HippoOccasional

BuffaloCommon

ZebraCommon

WildebeestOccasional

White RhinoCommon

Black RhinoCommon

LionOccasional

LeopardRare

CheetahOccasional

HyenaRare

Wild DogRare

Wildlife Highlights

Lewa is home to the northern specials, which are found only north of the equator and have the ability to live in arid conditions. All five species (sometimes called the Samburu or Laikipia Five) occur here: Grevy's zebra, reticulated giraffe, Beisa oryx, gerenuk and the Somali ostrich. The forest is home to the black-and-white colobus monkey, and a few hippos spend their days in Lewa swamp.

Best Time for Wildlife Viewing

Wildlife viewing is at its best from July to September, but also very good from December to February. Most of Lewa's lodges close in April and November due to rain. The black cotton soil commonly found in the region becomes very difficult to negotiate after heavy rain. One advantage of the rains is that sightings of baby animals are more likely during the early Wet season (October to May).