A great way to spend the morning - meandering amongst the St Lucia wetlands in the "Spirit of St Lucia", with binoculars & cameras in hand, searching for hippos, crocodiles & birdlife. Lots of wildlife in view & plenty of photo opportunities.
The iSimangaliso Wetland Park, previously known as Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park, was listed as South Africa's first World Heritage Site in December 1999 in recognition of its superlative natural beauty and unique global values.
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| ISSCT ladies - time to check out the hippos, crocodiles & birdlife of the Wetlands. |
The 332 000 hectare Park contains three major lake systems, eight interlinking ecosystems, 700 year old fishing traditions, most of South Africa’s remaining swamp forests, Africa’s largest estuarine system, 526 bird species and 25 000 year-old coastal dunes – among the highest in the world. The name iSimangaliso means miracle and wonder, which aptly describes this unique place.
Ref: http://isimangaliso.com
The park is also home to 1,200 Nile crocodiles and 800 hippopotami.
Hippopotamuses are found in Africa, and are generally considered the third largest land mammal (after the White rhinoceros and elephant). Hippopotamuses spend a large amount of time in water and are found in rivers, lakes and swamps. Resting in water helps keep the hippopotamuses temperature down. The word ‘hippopotamus’ means ‘river horse’, and is often shortened to ‘hippo’. Hippopotamuses give birth in water, are herbivores and eat mostly grass.
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| Hippo swim time! |
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| A Hippo wink :-) |
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| Hippos enjoying the sunshine |
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This hippo calf was enjoying the sun & chomping noisily on the grass
near the river. |
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| African fish eagle - Haliaeetus vocifer |
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Woollynecked stork - Ciconia episcopus
This stork was wandering through the grasses near to a bloat of hippos. |
Until tomorrow ...
when I'll share with you some of my experiences in adjacent Cape Vidal area.
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