Greater Mapungubwe(formerly Limpopo-Shashe) TFCA
The Limpopo/Shashe Transfrontier Conservation Area
spanning the international borders of Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe will become a unique conservation initiative.
The dream of a transfrontier park is one that dates back to 1922. Jan Smuts, then South African prime minister and a conservationist of note, declared some of the farms along the Limpopo border as the Dongola Botanical Reserve.
In 1947, when he was again prime minister, he had it declared as the Dongola Wildlife Sanctuary, with visions of establishing a transfrontier reserve across the Limpopo and Sashe rivers.
This was not to be and the park was subsequently shut down. |
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Viable populations of lion, leopard, cheetah and spotted hyena still occur, apart from the well-know Tuli elephants. |
Features
South of the Limpopo River the landscape is flat mopane veld with sandstone.
Nearer the Limpopo, the flat landscape changes into rugged, hilly terrain with the altitude varying from 300 to 780 m above sea level.
In the Tuli Circle Safari Area, the relatively flat basalt landscape gives way to the Shashe River basin running north-south to join the Limpopo River.
Other major rivers that cross the proposed TFCA are the Tune and Motloutse rivers in Botswana, and the Mogalakwena River in South Africa.
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There are also significant populations of eland, gemsbok, duiker, impala, zebra, Sharpe’s grysbok, steenbok and blue wildebeest.
The habitat is also suitable for both white and black rhino.
The permanent pools in the Limpopo River offer refuge to crocodiles and hippos as well as a variety of indigenous fish species.
De Beers recently reintroduced wild dogs, roan, tsessebe and elephant into the Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve.
This area also has a great diversity of birdlife and over 350 species have been recorded to date.
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At least eight black eagle breeding pairs have been recorded in the sandstone hills. |
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Tourism Prospects
The Limpopo/Shashe TFCA with its wealth of wildlife, beautiful scenery and unique cultural assets has the potential to become a major tourist destination in southern Africa.
Existing tourist facilities are a number of privately run lodges in Botswana and a growing number in South Africa.
The recently launched Mapungubwe National Park has added 100 beds to the region in the form of a rest camp with chalets, a tented camp, wilderness trails and various game-viewing facilities like a tree-top walk, hides and access roads
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