Lake Nakuru was once home to millions of flamingos, a pink spectacle visible from space. Then they disappeared. Pollution from Nakuru town, agricultural runoff, and changing water chemistry made the lake inhospitable. The flamingos moved to lakes Bogoria and Elementaita. Nakuru's ecosystem collapsed, recovered partially, and remains fragile. The flamingos occasionally return, but never in the numbers they once did. The lake is a reminder that ecosystems can be lost quickly, and recovering them is slow, uncertain work.