This pre-trip has been planned to net approximately 100 additional species of Kenyan birds, including some of the most beautiful and sought-after species in Africa.  Among these are Crab-Plover, Collared Pratincole, Sokoke Scops-Owl, Trumpeter Hornbill, Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Taveta Golden-Weaver, and Zanzibar (Red) Bishop.  Some mammals--Lesser Kudu, Striped Hyena, and Giant Golden-rumped Elephant-Shrew for example--are far more apt to be seen in the southeast or coastal regions than any other area of Kenya.  Plants such as the the baobab, whose amazing girth qualifies it as one of the greatest plants on earth, grow exclusively in the lowlands and the coastal district of Kenya.  Add the warm, crystal blue waters of the Indian Ocean, the crumbling ruins of Gedi, the spectacle of 19,341-foot-high Mt. Kilimanjaro, snowfields shimmering above the acacia at Amboseli and Tsavo, as a herd of elephants marches across a molten gold sunset to water:  these are the magnificent images of Africa we’re sure to take with us this first week in Kenya.