Bisanadi National Reserve is an untamed wildlife sanctuary in Isiolo County. Positioned just north of Meru National Park, it is a vast land with thorn bush, thickets of bush willows and savannah grasslands that stretch over 606 square kilometres. In this wilderness, lions, rhinos, cheetahs, African elephants and buffalos range free.
Mornings and evenings are bird lovers’ paradise as over 400 species of birds fly as they perch on the low canopy bushes of the reserve. The reserve is even merrier with birdsong during the wet months of April, May, November, and December. During these months, migratory birds from North Africa and Europe touch down at the reserve as resident fowls are nestling.
The Greater Meru Conservation Area
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) established Bisanadi National Reserve in 1979 to protect a vast array of wildlife species. It was meant to be the ark where animals would exist without threat, and since its establishment, it has been an absolute haven for wildlife to range free around Mount Meru National Park without human encroachment.
While it is a standalone reserve, Bisanadi is part of the greater Meru Conservation Area, which is a complex of protected areas along the Tana River. The area consists of 4 national parks and reserves: the Meru National Park, Kora National Park, and Mwingi National Reserve alongside Bisanadi. Sitting at the centre of this complex, Bisanadi National Reserve is a wildlife dispersal point for these parks and reserves, which enhances its wildlife diversity. So, besides the mammals that call this reserve home, wild beasts, elands, giraffes, hartebeests, and even impalas have their footprints on the Bisanadi soil.
A Haven of Ecstasy
While the reserve is hot and dry, amidst Bisanadi’s arid savannah are temporary streams and riverine swamps that quench the reserve’s hot earth. The Tana and the Rojewero rivers flowing by also offer an aquatic relief to the wildlife that call this reserve home and add onto the wild adventure tourists can experience on their visit to this hidden gem. As a reserve bordering two counties inhabited by different communities, Bisanadi is a place of cultural ecstasy. Tourists get to experience the rich culture of the Meru and Borana communities living around the national reserve.
At day, Bisanadi National Reserve is a sojourners place of wonder and amazement, and at night its starry skies offer a dreamy escape from the reality of life. Truly, Bisanadi National Reserve is a ‘Paradise Unspoiled.’ It’s the truest definition of an eco-centred world where humans and nature co-exist in perfect peace.
Have you ever been to this wildlife paradise? We’d like to know how your experience was.