Nairobi — At 400,000 hectares, the Mau Complex forms the largest forest block in the country. It is also the largest single block of closed-canopy forest in East Africa. Forests that constitute the complex include Transmara, Ol Posimoru, Maasai Mau, Eastern Mau, Mau Narok, South West Mau, Western Mau, Mt Londiani, Eburru, Molo and South Molo.

The northern part comprises Tinderet, Northern Tinderet, Timboroa, Nabkoi, Kilombe Hill, Metkei, Maji Mazuri, Chemorogok and Lembus forests.

Almost the entire Maasai Mau Forest forms the upper catchment for the Ewaso Ngiro River, while most of the western part of the forest is part of the upper catchment of the Mara River. The Ewaso Ngiro River flows into Lake Natron, the main breeding ground for flamingos in the Rift Valley.

World famous

The Mara River crosses the Maasai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park, both world famous for big game. Both are also important bird areas, with 450 and 540 species, respectively. The Ewaso Ngiro and Mara rivers provide much-needed water for pastoral communities, agriculture and urban areas in Narok and Kajiado districts.

The Mau Forest Complex is one of the five water towers in Kenya, providing the upper catchments of 13 rivers - Nzoia, Yala, Nyando, Sondu, Mara, Kerio, Molo, Ewaso Ngiro, Njoro, Nderit, Makalia, and Naishi. These rivers, in turn, feed lakes Natron, Victoria, Turkana, Baringo and Nakuru.

The Mara River is one of the most important ones as it runs through the Masai Mara Game Reserve, which has made Kenya famous for the annual crossings of wildebeest into Tanzania before emptying into Lake Victoria. The crossings have become a tourist attraction that has been dubbed the Eighth Wonder of the World.