Incredible diversity - South Africa's Maputaland

Incredible diversity - South Africa's Maputaland

Maputaland is defined as that area in the very north of South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal province extending into the south of Mozambique. It is the southernmost reach of the tropics and as such several birds, mammals, reptiles and frogs are at their southern distributional limit here. In addition to this, it is also classified as a Centre of Plant Endemism called the Maputaland Centre and high levels of plant and animal endemism are recorded. 230 plants are regarded as endemic or near endemic to the area. It is a country of ancient sand dunes left, over eons, by a receding Indian Ocean and now covered in a variety of vegetation from lush, evergreen dune forest, to coastal palmveld, acacia savanna, broad-leafed woodland, shimmering lakes and shallow, lily laden pans, rare sand forest, floodplains, grassland and even the southern tip of the Ubombo Mountains. This diversity of habitat and a tropical climate mean an abundance of life forms and seeing more than two hundred bird species in a single day is a not unreasonable target at certain times of the year.

Some of the creatures at the southern extreme of their tropical distribution are the diminutive and secretive Suni Antelope, the Red Squirrel and Red Duiker, Nyala, Yellow-spotted Nicator, Purple-banded Sunbird, African Broadbill, Southern Banded Snake Eagle, Tropical Platanna and Greater Leaf-folding Frog. Birds endemic to the region are Woodward's Batis, Rudd's Apalis, Neergaard's Sunbird and Pink-throated Twinspot while the Delicate Leaf-folding Frog and the Sand Onion Wood Cassipourea mossambicensis are the endemic frog and tree species. Many of these species are found in so-called Sand Forest, a tropical, dry forest dominated by huge epiphyte-strewn Lebombo Wattle Newtonia hildebrantii, False Tamboti Cleistanthus schlechteri and Greenthorn Balanites maughamii. This vegetation type is restricted to Maputaland and occurs only on the ancient sand dunes formed during the Pleistocene (0,01-1,6 million years ago) that run in a north-south direction inland from the sea. Because of these limits Sand Forest is extremely rare and at present is only formally protected in the Tembe Elephant Park, Ndumo, Mkhuze, the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park and Phinda Private Game Reserve. Aside from its rarity value Sand Forest is also valuable because of its unique species component. No less than 38 plant species for example occur nowhere else but in Sand Forest. Outside of protected areas this rare vegetation type is threatened by uncontrolled fires, used in clearing areas for agriculture, as well as selective species utilisation in traditional medicine, construction and fuel.

CC Africa's plays a major role in protecting between 700 and 1000 hectares of Sand Forest within its Phinda Private Game Reserve. The reserve is in many ways a microcosm of Maputaland and all the elements mentioned above are found in its hugely diverse 15 000 hectares. It is justifiably world famous and in 1998 won the British Airways ‘Tourism for Tomorrow' award and its story of converting marginal pineapple and game farms into an exceptional game reserve is well known.

Game viewing has gone from strength to strength in the reserve's 10-year history and while sightings of Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Buffalo and White Rhino are frequent and reliable it is perhaps Cheetah for which Phinda is best known. This species has been remarkably successful at Phinda and the viewing offered is amongst the best in Africa. Other mammal species that may be observed at Phinda and which are generally not seen in the continent's savanna reserves are Nyala, Red Duiker and Suni, but it is perhaps as a birding destination that Phinda comes into its own with many birders visiting for views of species like the Pink-throated Twinspot or the African Broadbill and other rare and vulnerable birds such as Pel's Fishing Owl, White-backed Night Heron and African Finfoot. The newly opened Phinda Walking Safaris allows you to experience all this on foot and, aside from the traditional game-viewing land rovers at the other camps, visitors may also be privileged enough to see seas turtles laying eggs on Maputaland's endless beaches or to join a White Rhino darting safari.

-Chris Roche-

Posted: Other by CC Africa, Date: 21 November 2006