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Karoo
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its extent is also not precisely defined. The Karoo is partly defined by its topography, geology and climate, and above all, its low rainfall, arid air, cloudless skies, and extremes of heat and cold.Potgieter, D.J. & du Plessis, T.C. (1972) ''Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa''. Vol. 6. pp. 306–307. Nasou, Cape Town.''Reader’s Digest Illustrated Guide to Southern Africa''. (5th Ed. 1993). pp. 78–89. Reader’s Digest Association of South Africa Pty. Ltd., Cape Town. The Karoo also hosted a well-preserved ecosystem hundreds of million years ago which is now represented by many fossils. The ǃ’Aukarob formed an almost impenetrable barrier to the interior from Cape Town, and the early adventurers, explorers, hunters, and travelers o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karoo National Park
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe Khoe languages, !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its extent is also not precisely defined. The Karoo is partly defined by its topography, Karoo Supergroup, geology and climate, and above all, its low rainfall, arid air, cloudless skies, and extremes of heat and cold.Potgieter, D.J. & du Plessis, T.C. (1972) ''Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa''. Vol. 6. pp. 306–307. Nasou, Cape Town.''Reader’s Digest Illustrated Guide to Southern Africa''. (5th Ed. 1993). pp. 78–89. Reader’s Digest Association of South Africa Pty. Ltd., Cape Town. The Karoo also hosted a well-preserved ecosystem hundreds of million years ago which is now represented by many fossils. The ǃ’Aukarob formed an almost impenetrable barrier to the interior from Cape Town, and the early adventurers, ex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karoo Supergroup
The Karoo Supergroup is the most widespread stratigraphic unit in Africa south of the Kalahari Desert. The supergroup consists of a sequence of units, mostly of nonmarine origin, deposited between the Late Carboniferous and Early Jurassic, a period of about 120 million years. In southern Africa, rocks of the Karoo Supergroup cover almost two thirds of the present land surface, including all of Lesotho, almost the whole of Free State, and large parts of the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal Provinces of South Africa. Karoo supergroup outcrops are also found in Namibia, Eswatini, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi, as well as on other continents that were part of Gondwana. The basins in which it was deposited formed during the formation and breakup of Pangea.McCarthy, T., Rubridge, B. (2005). ''The Story of Earth and Life.'' pp. 161, 187–241. Struik Publishers, Cape Town The type area of the Karoo Supergroup is the Great Karoo in South Africa, where the most exte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Fold Mountains
The Cape Fold Belt is a fold and thrust belt of late Paleozoic age, which affected the sequence of sedimentary rock layers of the Cape Supergroup in the southwestern corner of South Africa. It was originally continuous with the Ventana Mountains near Bahía Blanca in Argentina, the Pensacola Mountains (East Antarctica), the Ellsworth Mountains (West Antarctica) and the Hunter-Bowen orogeny in eastern Australia. The rocks involved are generally sandstones and shales, with the shales ( Bokkeveld Group) persisting in the valley floors while the erosion resistant sandstones (belonging to the Peninsula Formation) form the parallel ranges, the Cape Fold Mountains, which reach a maximum height of 2325 m at Seweweekspoortpiek ('Seven Weeks Defile Peak' in Afrikaans). The Cape Fold Mountains form a series of parallel ranges that run along the south-western and southern coastlines of South Africa for 850 km from the Cederberg 200 km to the north of the Cape Peninsula, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Fold Belt
The Cape Fold Belt is a fold and thrust belt of late Paleozoic age, which affected the sequence of sedimentary rock layers of the Cape Supergroup in the southwestern corner of South Africa. It was originally continuous with the Ventana Mountains near Bahía Blanca in Argentina, the Pensacola Mountains (East Antarctica), the Ellsworth Mountains (West Antarctica) and the Hunter-Bowen orogeny in eastern Australia. The rocks involved are generally sandstones and shales, with the shales (Bokkeveld Group) persisting in the valley floors while the erosion resistant sandstones (belonging to the Peninsula Formation) form the parallel ranges, the Cape Fold Mountains, which reach a maximum height of 2325 m at Seweweekspoortpiek ('Seven Weeks Defile Peak' in Afrikaans). The Cape Fold Mountains form a series of parallel ranges that run along the south-western and southern coastlines of South Africa for 850 km from the Cederberg 200 km to the north of the Cape Peninsula, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tankwa Karoo National Park
Tankwa Karoo National Park is a national park in South Africa. The park lies about 70 km due west of Sutherland, Northern Cape, Sutherland near the border of the Northern Cape and Western Cape, in one of the most arid regions of South Africa, with areas receiving less than 100 mm of average annual precipitation, moisture-bearing clouds from the Atlantic Ocean being largely stopped by the Cederberg mountains. Other low areas receive little more, as the Roodewerf station (co-ordinates: S32°14’27.9” E20°05’44.5”) with 180 mm of mean annual rainfall. In the hottest areas of the park, the mean maximum temperature in January is 38.9 °C, and in July the mean minimum temperature ranges from about 5 to 7 °C. Before this Park's proclamation, the only protected area of Succulent Karoo was the 2 square kilometre patch of the Gamkaberg Nature Reserve. Succulent Karoo has, together with the Cape Floral Kingdom, been declared a Biodiversity Hotspot by Cons ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swartberg
The Swartberg mountains (''black mountain'' in Afrikaans) are a mountain range in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is composed of two main mountain chains running roughly east–west along the northern edge of the semi-arid Little Karoo. To the north of the range lies the other large semi-arid area in South Africa, the Great Karoo. Most of the Swartberg Mountains are above 2000 m high, making them the tallest mountains in the Western Cape. It is also one of the longest, spanning some 230 km from south of Laingsburg in the west to between Willowmore and Uniondale in the east. Geologically, these mountains are part of the Cape Fold Belt. Much of the Swartberg is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The two ranges The Swartberg consists of two officially named ranges, the Smaller and the Greater Swartberg Mountains. ''Klein Swartberge'' The Smaller Swartberg are the westernmost of the two. Ironically, this range is the higher one, including the province's high ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini. It also completely enclaves the country Lesotho. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the second-most populous country located entirely south of the equator, after Tanzania. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with unique biomes, plant and animal life. With over 60 million people, the country is the world's 24th-most populous nation and covers an area of . South Africa has three capital cities, with the executive, judicial and legislative branches of government based in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, and Cape Town respectively. The largest city is Johannesburg. About 80% of the population are Black South Afri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Escarpment, Southern Africa
The Great Escarpment is a major topographical feature in Africa that consists of steep slopes from the high central Southern African plateauAtlas of Southern Africa. (1984). p. 13. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town downward in the direction of the oceans that surround southern Africa on three sides.McCarthy, T. & Rubidge, B. (2005). ''The Story of Earth and Life''. pp. 16–7,192–195, 202–205, 245–248, 263, 267–269. Struik Publishers, Cape Town.Truswell, J.F. (1977). ''The Geological Evolution of South Africa''. pp. 151–153,157–159,184–188, 190. Purnell, Cape Town. While it lies predominantly within the borders of South Africa, in the east the escarpment extends northward to form the border between Mozambique and Zimbabwe, continuing on beyond the Zambezi river, Zambezi river valley to form the Muchinga Escarpment in eastern Zambia. In the west, it extends northward into Namibia and Angola.The Times comprehensive Atlas of the world (1999). pp. 88–89. Times Boo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Matjiesfontein
Matjiesfontein is a settlement in Central Karoo District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa. History The original inhabitants of the region were the Khoikhoi herders and the San hunter gatherers. Following the arrival of the early European colonists, the area was settled by Afrikaner Trekboers and Griqua people. Railway origins The town itself owes its existence to the Cape Government Railways, and to the route that their founder, Cape Prime Minister John Molteno, chose for a railway line that would connect Cape Town's port to the diamond fields of Kimberley. The Royal Commonwealth Society (1898) records that in a meeting with his consulting engineers, the Prime Minister called for a map of Southern Africa to be brought to him and, taking a ruler, drew his pen along it from Cape Town all the way inland. He then handed the map to the engineers, telling them to build the railway accordingly. The line rapidly extended inland, and a station was built on 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Camdeboo National Park
The Camdeboo National Park is located in the Karoo and almost completely surrounds the Eastern Cape town of Graaff-Reinet Graaff-Reinet is a town in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is the oldest town in the province. It is also the sixth-oldest town in South Africa, after Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Simon's Town, Paarl and Swellendam. The town was the .... Camdeboo National Park was proclaimed as South Africa's 22nd National Park under the management of South African National Parks on Sunday 30 October 2005. It covers an area of 194 square kilometers. The Park is located in the foothills, or Snow Mountains, with an elevation of between 740 and 1480-metres above sea level. Following an extensive process of negotiation and discussion between government, conservation groups, and concerned stakeholders, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, announced the intention to proclaim South Africa's 22nd National Park in the area surroun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anysberg Nature Reserve
The Anysberg Nature Reserve of 62,500 ha, is situated in the western Little Karoo region of the Gouritz Cluster Biosphere Reserve in the Western Cape province, South Africa. The central mountain is named after Anise, ''Pimpinella anisum'', which is found in the reserve. The reserve was established in 1984, to conserve succulent and fynbos flora in the Cape Fold Belt, and to reintroduce game which formerly occurred here. The nearest towns are Laingsburg and Ladismith, which are both about 55 km from the main reserve entrance. History Land for the reserve was first set aside in 1984 below the Anysberg Mountain Catchment Area (designated in 1978). This was further extended multiple times to its current area of . Biodiversity Fed by three rivers, the diversity of life is supported here amidst mountain feathers and the characteristic Klein Karoo veil. About 180 species of birds are regularly spotted in the reserve, making it a popular choice for bird watchers. In additi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cederberg
The Cederberg mountains are located near Clanwilliam, approximately 300 km north of Cape Town, South Africa at about . The mountain range is named after the endangered Clanwilliam cedar (''Widdringtonia wallichii''), which is a tree endemic to the area. The mountains are noted for dramatic rock formations and San rock art. The Cederberg Wilderness Area is administered by CapeNature. ''Cederberg'' is now the generally accepted spelling for the area, which combines the English (Cedarberg) and Afrikaans (Sederberg) variants. Geography and climate The Cederberg mountains extend about 50 km north–south by 20 km east–west. They are bordered on the west by the Sandveld, the north by the Pakhuis Mountains, the east by the Springbok Flats and the south by the Kouebokkeveld Mountains and the Skurweberge. The main access road, the N7, runs to the west of the range. The nearest towns are Citrusdal to the southwest and Clanwilliam to the north. The area is spars ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
