Hwange National Park
Hwange National Park is the largest game reserve in Zimbabwe and is some 14 650 square kilometres in extent. It lies to the west of the country, on the main road between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. Travelling time from Victoria Falls to the Park is approximately two hours by road, making it a very popular addition to a visit to the Falls.. Hwange was founded in 1928 as a Reserve, with National Park status being given in 1961. and is presently being considered for inclusion in the five nations Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area.The park is close to the edge of the Kalahari Desert, a region with little water and very sparse vegetation.
Hwange is environmentally diverse, with the southern two thirds of the Park being defined by deep Kalahari sands, which support impressive forests of Zambezi teak and other hardwoods. Scattered within these woodlands are ancient fossil lake beds and drainage lines, which are now large savannah grasslands ringed by Acacia and Leadwood trees. This combination provides habitats for both grazers and browsers, which in turn attract the predators - lion, leopard, African wild dog, spotted and brown hyena (the latter being quite rare).
During the rainy season (generally December to March), the ancient lake systems still fill with water; and the open grasslands are flooded, attracting migratory birds from Eurasia and other parts of Africa.
Northern Hwange is distinctly different from the south. It is drained by the Lukosi and Deka Sand Rivers, dominated by Mopane woodlands, and has a number of kopjes (hills). A fascinating and unique feature of the North West are the natural seeps such as Nehimba and Shakwanki where Elephant and other animals still dig for water.
The grasslands of the Shumba area add further diversity and the dams such as Masumo and Mandavu make for interesting seasonal visits.
The Park hosts over 100 mammal and 400 bird species, including 19 large herbivores and eight large carnivores. All Zimbabwe's specially protected animals are to be found in Hwange and it is the only protected area where oryx and brown hyena occur in reasonable numbers. Grazing herbivores are more common in the Main Camp Wild Area and Linkwasha Concession Area, with mixed feeders more common in the Robins and Sinamatella Wild Areas, which are more heavily wooded. Distribution fluctuates seasonally, with large herbivores concentrating in areas where intensive water pumping is maintained during the dry season.
The elephant population is large, having doubled in the five years following the end of culling during 1986. The north and north-west of the park are drained by the Deka and Lukosi Rivers and their tributaries, and the far south of the park is drained by the Gwabadzabuya River, a tributary of the Nata River. In the areas without rivers, grassy pan depressions and pans have formed. Some of these pans, such as many of the pans in the Shumba area, fill with rainwater, while others, such as Ngweshla, Shakwanki and Nehimba, are fed by natural groundwater seeps. Many of the pans are additionally supplied by water pumped from underground by park authorities.
A fascinating all day game drive in northern Hwange includes a visit to the ancient archaeological sites at places such as Bumbuzi and the Mtoa Ruins, important to the history of Chief Hwange and the Nambya people resident north of the Park.
Hwange's waterholes are famous and during the dry season months from June to November the wildlife including the magnificent elephant herd congregate in a daily cycle that runs from morning until well into the night.
Hwange is environmentally diverse, with the southern two thirds of the Park being defined by deep Kalahari sands, which support impressive forests of Zambezi teak and other hardwoods. Scattered within these woodlands are ancient fossil lake beds and drainage lines, which are now large savannah grasslands ringed by Acacia and Leadwood trees. This combination provides habitats for both grazers and browsers, which in turn attract the predators - lion, leopard, African wild dog, spotted and brown hyena (the latter being quite rare).
During the rainy season (generally December to March), the ancient lake systems still fill with water; and the open grasslands are flooded, attracting migratory birds from Eurasia and other parts of Africa.
Northern Hwange is distinctly different from the south. It is drained by the Lukosi and Deka Sand Rivers, dominated by Mopane woodlands, and has a number of kopjes (hills). A fascinating and unique feature of the North West are the natural seeps such as Nehimba and Shakwanki where Elephant and other animals still dig for water.
The grasslands of the Shumba area add further diversity and the dams such as Masumo and Mandavu make for interesting seasonal visits.
The Park hosts over 100 mammal and 400 bird species, including 19 large herbivores and eight large carnivores. All Zimbabwe's specially protected animals are to be found in Hwange and it is the only protected area where oryx and brown hyena occur in reasonable numbers. Grazing herbivores are more common in the Main Camp Wild Area and Linkwasha Concession Area, with mixed feeders more common in the Robins and Sinamatella Wild Areas, which are more heavily wooded. Distribution fluctuates seasonally, with large herbivores concentrating in areas where intensive water pumping is maintained during the dry season.
The elephant population is large, having doubled in the five years following the end of culling during 1986. The north and north-west of the park are drained by the Deka and Lukosi Rivers and their tributaries, and the far south of the park is drained by the Gwabadzabuya River, a tributary of the Nata River. In the areas without rivers, grassy pan depressions and pans have formed. Some of these pans, such as many of the pans in the Shumba area, fill with rainwater, while others, such as Ngweshla, Shakwanki and Nehimba, are fed by natural groundwater seeps. Many of the pans are additionally supplied by water pumped from underground by park authorities.
A fascinating all day game drive in northern Hwange includes a visit to the ancient archaeological sites at places such as Bumbuzi and the Mtoa Ruins, important to the history of Chief Hwange and the Nambya people resident north of the Park.
Hwange's waterholes are famous and during the dry season months from June to November the wildlife including the magnificent elephant herd congregate in a daily cycle that runs from morning until well into the night.
