The cleavage, known as the Great Rift Valley, can be identified from space as the most distinctive feature of the continent. The seam of this cleavage has developed a series of fascinating and beautiful lakes. Manyara is a fantastic big game park.
The variety of habitats parallels its exceptional scenery. Every imaginable East African animal is found here in abundance. There are great herds of buffalo, zebra, wildebeest and several varieties of gazelle. Mahogany, sausage tree and croton are alive with blue monkeys and vervet monkeys. Some of the most amazingly large pods of hippos congregate at the rivers emerging into the lake, and the birdlife are plentiful.
