KnowKi

Learn the wildlife of national parks

Learn the wildlife of Meru National Park

Kenya

327 species have research-grade observations inside Meru National Park on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, so you know what you're looking at before you go.

Start this trip in KnowKi →
Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. White-headed Buffalo-Weaver Dinemellia dinemelli31
  2. Eastern Chanting-Goshawk Melierax poliopterus30
  3. Black-faced Sandgrouse Pterocles decoratus29
  4. Gray-headed Kingfisher Halcyon leucocephala26
  5. Yellow-necked Spurfowl Pternistis leucoscepus25
  6. White-browed Coucal Centropus superciliosus23
  7. Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax23
  8. Northern Red-billed Hornbill Tockus erythrorhynchus23
  9. Lilac-breasted Roller Coracias caudatus22
  10. White-throated Bee-eater Merops albicollis20

Plants

  1. African baobab Adansonia digitata10
  2. East African doum palm Hyphaene compressa6
  3. Sausage tree Kigelia africana3
  4. Giant milkweed Calotropis procera3
  5. Tridax Daisy Tridax procumbens2
  6. Teasel Gourd Cucumis dipsaceus1
  7. Bloodlily Scadoxus multiflorus1
  8. Rat's-ear Commelina forskaolii1
  9. Painted spurge Euphorbia heterophylla1
  10. Fan-Leaved Fern Actiniopteris radiata1

Mammals

  1. Waterbuck Kobus ellipsiprymnus47
  2. Kirk's Dik-dik Madoqua kirkii38
  3. Grant's Gazelle Nanger granti38
  4. Olive Baboon Papio anubis32
  5. Vervet Monkey Chlorocebus pygerythrus22
  6. Impala Aepyceros melampus19
  7. Bush Hyrax Heterohyrax brucei18
  8. Reticulated Giraffe Giraffa reticulata15
  9. Black-backed Jackal Lupulella mesomelas13
  10. Common Eland Tragelaphus oryx12

Insects

  1. Spotted Joker Byblia ilithyia9
  2. Violet Dropwing Trithemis annulata8
  3. Orange-winged Dropwing Trithemis kirbyi5
  4. Plain Tiger Butterfly Danaus chrysippus4
  5. Yellow Pansy Junonia hierta4
  6. Eastern Blacktail Nesciothemis farinosa4
  7. Spotted Brown Pansy Junonia natalica3
  8. Red-veined Dropwing Trithemis arteriosa3
  9. Convolvulus Hawkmoth Agrius convolvuli3
  10. Guineafowl Butterfly Hamanumida daedalus2

Spiders and kin

  1. Pallid Thicktail Scorpion Parabuthus pallidus10
  2. Pandinurus gregoryi4
  3. Uroplectes fischeri3
  4. Black-Tipped Thicktail Scorpion Parabuthus maximus3
  5. Red-legged Golden Orb-web Spider Trichonephila sumptuosa3
  6. Eastern Nomad Scorpion Hottentotta trilineatus2
  7. Lychas obsti2
  8. Eastern Ridge-back Scorpion Hottentotta eminii2
  9. Zebra Tick Rhipicephalus pulchellus2
  10. Eusparassus vestigator2

Reptiles

  1. Nile Crocodile Crocodylus niloticus22
  2. Kenyan Rock Agama Agama lionotus19
  3. Nile Monitor Varanus niloticus9
  4. African Five-lined Skink Trachylepis quinquetaeniata6
  5. Rock Monitor Varanus albigularis4
  6. Serrated Hinged Terrapin Pelusios sinuatus4
  7. Kenyan Bark Snake Hemirhagerrhis hildebrandtii4
  8. West African House Gecko Hemidactylus angulatus3
  9. Ashe's Spitting Cobra Naja ashei3
  10. Rough-scaled Plated Lizard Broadleysaurus major3

Amphibians

  1. Mountain Reed Frog Hyperolius montanus2
  2. Subdesert Toad Sclerophrys xeros2
  3. Senegal Running Frog Kassina senegalensis1
  4. Anchieta's Ridged Frog Ptychadena anchietae1

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

Start this trip in KnowKi →

Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. Parks outside the U.S. are from the World Database on Protected Areas (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, Protected Planet). KnowKi is not affiliated with the National Park Service or any park's managers. Free, with no ads, no account, and no purchases.