Mzima: Portrait of a Spring

, Mzima Springs in the arid land of Kenya's Tsavo National Park is home to abundant animal and marine life which depend on each other in a complex ecosystem. Seventy hippos provide the ecological basis for all, each consuming two hundred pounds of vegetation daily, and enriching the springs with their bulk of undigested matter. The plentiful fish are food for such diving birds as the cormorant and the darter, which can outswim them underwater. Mischievous otter pursue fish underwater. The predator's discarded bits of fish are consumed by scavengers like the terrapins and eels. At the top of the biological pyramid are the crocodiles that will eat anything. Above water, snakes search out birds or frogs. Zebras, baboons and warthogs drink warily. Only the elephant drinks without fear.
, Examines a detailed description of Kenya's Mzima Springs, a unique ecosystem, and the life forms that depend on it. Stresses the interdependence of the hippos, fish, diving birds, otters, crocodiles, and other animals upon each other and the spring., NOTE: Two (or more) records have been merged together to create this data.