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Climate, Flora and Fauna.?In its climate and vegetation British East Africa again shows an arrangement of zones parallel to the coast. The coast region is hot but is generally more healthy than the coast lands of other tropical countries, this being due to the constant breeze from the Indian Ocean and to the dryness of the soil. The rainfall on the coast is about 35 in. a year, the temperature tropical. The succeeding plains and the outer plateaus are more arid. Farther inland the highlands?in which term may be included all districts over 5000 ft. high?are very healthy, fever being almost unknown. The average temperature is about 66° F. in the cool season and 73° F. in the hot season. Over 7000 ft. the climate becomes distinctly colder and frosts are experienced. The average rainfall in the highlands is between 40 and 50 in. The country bordering Victoria Nyanza is typically tropical; the rainfall exceeds 60 in. in the year, and this region is quite unsuitable to Europeans. The hottest period throughout the protectorate is December to April, the coolest, July to September. The "greater rains" fall from March to June, the "smaller rains" in November and December. The rainfall is not, however, as regular as is usual in countries within the tropics, and severe droughts are occasionally experienced.
In the districts bordering Victoria Nyanza the flora resembles that of Uganda (q.v.). The characteristic trees of the coast regions are the mangrove and coco-nut palm. Ebony grows in the scrub-jungle. Vast forests of olives and junipers are found on the Mau escarpment; the cotton, fig and bamboo on the Kikuyu escarpment; and in several regions are dense forests of great trees whose lowest branches are 50 ft. from the ground. Two varieties of the valuable rubber-vine, Landolphia florida and Landolphia Kirkii, are found near the coast and in the forests. The higher mountains preserve distinct species, the surviving remnants of the flora of a cooler period.
The fauna is not abundant except in large mammals, which are very numerous on the drier steppes. They include the camel (confined to the arid northern regions), elephant (more and more restricted to unfrequented districts), rhinoceros, buffalo, many kinds of antelope, zebra, giraffe, hippopotamus, lion and other carnivora, and numerous monkeys. In many parts the rhinoceros is particularly abundant and dangerous. Crocodiles are common in the larger rivers and in Victoria Nyanza. Snakes are somewhat rare, the most dangerous being the puff-adder. Centipedes and scorpions, as well as mosquitoes and other insects, are also less common than in most tropical countries. In some districts bees are exceedingly numerous. The birds include the ostrich, stork, bustard and secretary-bird among the larger varieties, the guinea fowl, various kinds of spur fowl, and the lesser bustard, the wild pigeon, weaver and hornbill. By the banks of lakes and rivers are to be seen thousands of cranes, pelicans and flamingoes.
Inhabitants.?The white population is chiefly in the Kikuyu uplands, the rift-valley, and in the Kenya region. The whites are mostly agriculturists. There are also numbers of Indian settlers in the same districts. The African races include representatives of various stocks, as the country forms a borderland between the Negro and Hamitic peoples, and contains many tribes of doubtful affinities. The Bantu division of the negroes is represented chiefly in the south, the principal tribes being the Wakamba, Wakikuyu and Wanyika. By the north-east shores of Victoria Nyanza dwell the Kavirondo (q.v.), a race remarkable among the tribes of the protectorate for their nudity. Nilotic tribes, including the Nandi (q.v.), Lumbwa, Suk and Turkana, are found in the north-west. Of Hamitic strain are the Masai (q.v.), a race of cattle-rearers speaking a Nilotic language, who occupy part of the uplands bordering on the eastern rift-valley. A branch of the Masai which has adopted the settled life of agriculturists is known as the Wakuafi. The Galla section of the Hamites is represented, among others, by Borani living south of the Goro Escarpment (though the true Boran countries are Liban and Dirri in Abyssinian territory), while Somali occupy the country between the Tana and Juba rivers. Of the Somali tribes the Herti dwell near the coast and are more or less stationary. Further inland is the nomadic tribe of Ogaden Somali. The Gurre, another Somali tribe, occupy the country south of the lower Daua. Primitive hunting tribes are the Wandorobo in Masailand, and scattered tribes of small stature in various parts. The coast-land contains a mixed population of Swahili, Arab and Indian immigrants, and representatives of numerous interior tribes.
