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Van Stadens Wild Flower Reserve
The Van Stadens River Wild Flower Reserve ( af, Van Stadens-veldblomreservaat) near Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa, is one of the oldest nature reserves in the country. Location The park covers 600 hectares and lies 40 km west of Port Elizabeth, on an old stretch at the top of Van Stadens Pass. The Van Stadens River forms the western border, the N2 road runs through the area, and from here one has a good view of the gorge of the River, the Van Stadens Bridge, and northeast toward the Lady Slipper Trail. The reserve was founded in 1951 and is owned by the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. Uses The main purpose of the reserve is to grow unique, indigenous plants, but it is also used as a centre for environmental education. A traditional Xhosa hut, household articles, and a kraal with farm equipment give insight into Xhosa culture. There is also an arboretum and a plant nursery there. Walking, hiking, and mountain biking trails as well as picnic areas are availab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa's second-largest metropolitan district by area size. It is the sixth-most populous city in South Africa and is the cultural, economic and financial centre of the Eastern Cape. The city was founded as Port Elizabeth in 1820 by Sir Rufane Donkin, who was the governor of the Cape at the time. He named it after his late wife, Elizabeth, who had died in India. The Donkin memorial in the CBD of the city bears testament to this. Port Elizabeth was established by the government of the Cape Colony when 4,000 British colonists settled in Algoa Bay to strengthen the border region between the Cape Colony and the Xhosa. It is nicknamed "The Friendly City" or "The Windy City". In 2019, the Eastern Cape Geographical Names Committee recommende ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orchid
Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering plants. The Orchidaceae have about 28,000 currently accepted species, distributed in about 763 genera. (See ''External links'' below). The determination of which family is larger is still under debate, because verified data on the members of such enormous families are continually in flux. Regardless, the number of orchid species is nearly equal to the number of bony fishes, more than twice the number of bird species, and about four times the number of mammal species. The family encompasses about 6–11% of all species of seed plants. The largest genera are ''Bulbophyllum'' (2,000 species), ''Epidendrum'' (1,500 species), ''Dendrobium'' (1,400 species) and ''Pleurothallis'' (1,000 species). It also includes '' Vanilla'' (the genus of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality
Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality ( af, Nelson Mandelabaai Metropolitaanse Munisipaliteit; xh, uMasipala wase Nelson Mandela Bay or ''uMasipala waseBhayi'') is one of eight metropolitan municipalities (also called Category A municipalities) in South Africa. It is located on the shores of Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape Province and comprises the city of Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha), the nearby towns of Uitenhage and Despatch, and the surrounding rural area. The name "Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality" was chosen to honour former President Nelson Mandela. History Established on 5 December 2000, the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality was formed as an administrative area covering Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha), the neighbouring towns of Kariega (Uitenhage) and Despatch and the surrounding agricultural areas. Thus included the following cities/towns/villages: Statistics South Africa''Nelson Mandela Bay'' ''www.statssa.gov.za'' Demographics and statistics As of the census of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nature Reserves In South Africa
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for purposes of conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research. They may be designated by government institutions in some countries, or by private landowners, such as charities and research institutions. Nature reserves fall into different IUCN categories depending on the level of protection afforded by local laws. Normally it is more strictly protected than a nature park. Various jurisdictions may use other terminology, such as ecological protection area or private protected area in legislation and in official titles of the reserves. History Cultural practices that roughly equate to the establishment and maintenance of reserved areas for animals date back t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tsitsikamma National Park
The Tsitsikamma National Park is a protected area on the Garden Route, Western Cape and Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is a coastal reserve well known for its indigenous forests, dramatic coastline, and the Otter Trail. On 6 March 2009 it was amalgamated with the Wilderness National Park and various other areas of land to form the Garden Route National Park. The park covers an long stretch of coastline. Nature's Valley is at the western end of the park, and the main accommodation is at Storms River Mouth. Near the park is the Bloukrans Bridge, the world's highest bridge bungee jump at . The word "Tsitsikamma" originates from the Khoekhoe language ''tse-tsesa'', meaning "clear", and ''gami'', meaning "water", probably referring to the clear water of the Tsitsikamma River. Other meanings are 'place of much water' and 'waters begin'. Camps Storms River Various amenities, including a restaurant, shop, chalets, campsite and caravan park, information centre, adventure b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kouga River
The Kouga River originates near Uniondale, Eastern Cape, South Africa, and flows eastward, where it joins the Groot River to form the Gamtoos just past the Kouga Dam. Its main tributary is the Baviaanskloof River, which joins its left bank before the dam. The Kouga is part of the Gamtoos river system which is formed by the Groot and the Baviaanskloof River. The Kouga Mountains to the north the river, Kouga Municipality and Kou-Kamma Municipality are named after this waterbody. Ecology In 1995 specimens of the Cape galaxias (''Galaxias zebratus''), a South African fish species endemic to the Cape Floristic Region, were found in the Kouga and in the Krom River. Until then it had been thought that its distribution was restricted to the area between the Keurbooms and the Olifants River. Although in South Africa this relatively delicate fish is only classified as near threatened, in Australia species of the same genus were driven to extinction by competing salmonids and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rock Art
In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also may be called cave art or parietal art. A global phenomenon, rock art is found in many culturally diverse regions of the world. It has been produced in many contexts throughout human history. In terms of technique, the four main groups are: * cave paintings, * petroglyphs, which are carved or scratched into the rock surface, * sculpted rock reliefs, and * geoglyphs, which are formed on the ground. The oldest known rock art dates from the Upper Palaeolithic period, having been found in Europe, Australia, Asia, and Africa. Anthropologists studying these artworks believe that they likely had magico-religious significance. The archaeological sub-discipline of rock art studies first developed in the late-19th century among Francophone scholars s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Dwarf Chameleon
The Cape dwarf chameleon (''Bradypodion pumilum'') is a chameleon native to the South African province of the Western Cape, where it is restricted to the region around Cape Town. As with most chameleons, its tongue is twice the length of its body and it can be shot out of its mouth using a special muscle in the jaw. This gives the chameleon the ability to catch insects some distance away. Description The Cape dwarf chameleon grows to over in length, including the tail, with males and females reaching similar adult sizes. They are ovoviviparous, but examination in controlled captivity has shown the very soft egg-like Biological membrane, membrane around the young is discarded immediately on birth. The young resemble miniature versions of the adults, with muted colours, and typically reach no more than 2 cm in length at birth. Adults can vary quite significantly in colour variety, saturation and pattern, some appearing much more vibrant than others. Like most chameleons, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Suurberg Pass
Suurberg Pass () is traverses the Suurberg range in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, on the regional road R335, between Coerney and Somerset East. The pass hugs the western edge of the Nyati section of the Addo Elephant National Park. History Construction of the pass began in 1849, with Henry Fancourt White the lead engineer in charge of 250 convicts. In 1853, during construction of the first phase of the pass, White resigned. The project was taken over by Mathew Woodifield. In 1858, the pass was completed up to Somerset East and became part of the main road between Port Elizabeth and Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ... for a hundred years when Olifantskop Pass was built in 1955. References See also * Mountain passes of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atalaya Capensis
''Atalaya capensis'' (also called Cape wing-nut) is a species of plant in the family Sapindaceae. It is endemic to the Cape Provinces of South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the .... References capensis Endemic flora of the Cape Provinces Conservation dependent plants Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{sapindales-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lily
''Lilium'' () is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. They are the true lilies. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. Most species are native to the northern hemisphere and their range is temperate climates and extends into the subtropics. Many other plants have "lily" in their common names, but do not belong to the same genus and are therefore not true lilies. Description Lilies are tall perennials ranging in height from . They form naked or tunicless scaly underground bulbs which are their organs of perennation. In some North American species the base of the bulb develops into rhizomes, on which numerous small bulbs are found. Some species develop stolons. Most bulbs are buried deep in the ground, but a few species form bulbs near the soil surface. Many species form stem-roots. With these, the bulb grows naturally at some depth in the soil, and each yea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
