The flamingos of Lake Natron feed with the lake’s Spirulina algae. They build their nests using the soda flats between August and October. Some activities at Lake Natron are swimming, a visit to Maasai boma, or a simple trek to the Ngorongoro Crater Highlands with numerous craters.Ī lake is a breeding place for thousands of Rift Valley Flamingos. Among the most prominent attractions of Lake Natron is the Gelai Volcano, a 2,942 m (9,652 feet) high volcano in the southeastern part, and the archeological site of Peninj, where archeologists discovered the Peninj Mandible – the fossilized teeth of Australopithecus boisei. The area around the lake offers different attractions such as many volcanic implosion craters, numerous waterfalls, and ravines with nesting places for Rüppell’s Griffon Vultures. The surface of Lake Natron, which has high salt, magnesite, and sodium carbonate concentration, is covered with a pinkish-white soda crust. The shallow and alkaline lake has different springs, the Ewaso Ng’iro River, and different hot springs.

Lake Natron covers an area 56 km (35 miles) long and 24 km (15 miles) wide, but the water level changes due to evaporation.

The lake is in the vicinity of Ol Doinyo Lengai, which is visible in the southern part. Lake Natron is situated in northern Tanzania on the border with Kenya, close to the Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

Natron salt