Ithala Game Reserve is situated in 290 km2 of rugged, mountainous thornveld, about 400 km north of Durban, in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is one of the youngest game parks in South Africa. The altitude varies from 400 m along the Phongolo River to 1,450 m along the Ngotshe Mountain escarpment. The reserve consequently encompasses a great variation of terrain, from densely vegetated river valleys and lowveld to sourveld, high-lying grassland plateaus, mountain ridges and cliff faces.
| Ithala Game Reserve | |
|---|---|
 Giraffe amid mountainous terrain in Ithala | |
  Location of the reserve in KwaZulu-Natal | |
| Location | KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
| Nearest city | Durban, South Africa |
| Coordinates | 27°32′48″S 31°18′49″E / 27.546705°S 31.313532°E |
| Area | 290 km2 (110 sq mi) |
| Established | 1973 |
| Governing body | Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife |
Game
editGrazers include impala, red hartebeest, tsessebe, blue wildebeest, eland and reedbuck. With the exception of reedbuck, these species have been observed to produce young seasonally around November to December in Ithala, when ample green forage is available.[1] The browsers include duiker, bushbuck, nyala, kudu, giraffe and zebra, which deliver their young at any time of the year.[1]
Reintroductions
editAll the big game species have been re-established with the exception of lion. Locally extinct red-billed oxpeckers were reintroduced from the Kruger Park, c. 1994, when 175 birds were released.[1]
Plants
editThis reserve is likely the only place in KwaZulu-Natal where the rare tree Protea comptonii grows.[2]
History
edit- In the late 1800s land was given by King Dinizulu to boer farmers.
- In 1973 the then Natal Parks Board started buying up farms in this area to make up this Reserve.
Trivia
edit- There are two abandoned gold mines in Ithala.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Dames, Koos (2013). Bykans 70 jaar se onthou... pp. 25, 50.
- ^ Rebelo, A.G.; Mtshali, H.; von Staden, L. (19 August 2019). "Saddleback Sugarbush". Red List of South African Plants. version 2020.1. South African National Biodiversity Institute. Retrieved 14 September 2020.