TRAVEL | Into Africa
In the remote and visually dramatic landscapes of northern Tanzania, just north-east of the Ngorongoro Crater, lies the mystical, captivating Lake Natron. Fed by natural springs, its waters are a rich mix of salts and minerals known as ‘natron’ — hence the name. In the dry season, the alkalinity of the water can be almost that of pure ammonia and water temperatures can reach a scalding 60°C. As its water level drops, the lake's salts and minerals form a crimson crust over the surface. An incredible, inhospitable, alien landscape.
Just 3 m deep but 22 km wide, Lake Natron is the breeding site for 2.5 million lesser flamingos who, along with greater flamingos, make their nests here, on mounds of salty mud, from August to October each year, protected from predators by the lake's toxic water. Amazingly, 75% of the world's lesser flamingos are bom here, and it's the algae, cyanobacteria, and salt-loving phytoplankton that flourish in the lake's waters and that the flamingos feed on that
