Kruger National Park is the largest game reserve in South Africa. It covers 18,989 square km (7,332 sq mi) and extends 350 km (217 mi) from north to south and 60 km (37 mi) from east to west.

To the west and south of the Kruger National Park are the two South African provinces of Mpumalanga and Limpopo. In the north is Zimbabwe, and to the east is Mozambique. It is now part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, a peace park that links Kruger National Park with the Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe, and with the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique.

The park is part of the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere, an area designated by the United Nations Education and Scientific Organisation (UNESCO) as an International Man and Biosphere Reserve (the “Biosphere”).

Plants
The Kruger National Park is divided into six eco-systems: Baobab sandveld, Mopane scrub, Lebombo knobthorn-marula bushveld, mixed acacia thicket, Combretum-silver clusterleaf woodland on granite and riverine forest. Altogether it has 1,982 species of plants.
Birds
Out of the 517 species of birds found at Kruger, 253 are residents, 117 non-breeding migrants, and 147 nomads. Also, eagles can be found there.

All the Big Five game animals are found at Kruger National Park, which has more species of mammals than any other African Game Reserve (at 147 species). There are webcams set up to observe the wild life.

As of 2007, the park has counted approximately:

25,150 African Buffalo
200 African Hunting Dogs
350 Black Rhinoceros
32,000 Burchell’s Zebras
500 Bushbucks
200 Cheetahs
300 Common Eland
9,000 Giraffes
5,000 Greater Kudus
3,000 Hippopotamus

The park stopped culling elephants in 1989 and tried translocating them, but by 2004 the population had increased to 11,670 elephants (2006: approximately 13,500). The park’s habitats can only sustain about 8,000 elephants. The park started using annual contraception in 1995, but has stopped that due to problems with delivering the contraceptives and upsetting the herds.

The Kruger National Park holds over 48 tons of ivory in storage. According to Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), it is allowed to sell 30 tons.

Reptiles, fish, and amphibians
There are 120098 species of reptile, including approximately 5,283 Nile Crocodile, 5237 species of fish, and 350 species of amphibians.

Accommodation
The Kruger National Park has 21 rest camps, as well as 7 private lodge concessions, and 11 designated private safari lodges. The concessions are parcels of land operated by private companies in partnership with communities, who outsource the operation of private lodges.

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This entry was posted on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 9:37 am and is filed under Kruger Park news and Facts. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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