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| On
our recent remarkable visit to Kenya in November
2011, we were primarily looking for birds and
animals but always on the look-out for
interesting plants. It is hard to realize, when
you are there, that, while the Equator runs
through the middle of Kenya, much of the central
region is from 6 to 8,000ft, with Mt Kenya up to
17,000 ft. |
| Thus
we did see some “alpines”, particularly one
of the two species of Giant Lobelia, Lobelia
telekii,
on the slopes of Mt Kenya at 11,000
ft. |
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| Lobelia
telekii is a member of the campanulacea. It grows only
on Mount Kenya and two other high mountain ranges in
East Africa, at 11.000 - 16.000 ft. Its flowering
spike reaches up to 10 feet in height, and the
plant dies after flowering. It is named after the
Hungarian aristocrat and explorer, Count Sámuel Teleki,
who was the first explorer to set foot on Mount Kenya. |
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We
saw many other plants species but also, during our trip,
some 400 species of birds, remarkable views of all the
“Big Game” and a lot of smaller animals, mostly from
the safety of our Land Cruiser! |
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