Rocherpan Nature Reserve is a nature reserve on the

West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...

of Western Cape, South Africa. It borders the sea, about north of

Velddrif Velddrif (the name of the town) or Velddrift (the name of the farm on which the town was established), is a coastal fishing town in the Bergrivier Local Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa. The town had a population 7800 in 2007 and is located ...

on the road between Velddrif and Laaiplek to Elands Bay, and is north of

Dwarskersbos Dwarskersbos is a fishing village and vacation resort some north of Laaiplek in West Coast District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Etymology The name is said to be derived from the name of the plant of the genus Euc ...

. The reserve occupies an area of . In 1839, Pierre Rocher dredged the mouth of the Papkuils River and used water drawn from the Auroraberg Mountains to make better pasture for his cattle behind the dunes. In the process, he unwittingly established ideal bird habitat. During the Cape rainy season, the lagoon fills an area of and is around long and up to deep. From March to June, however, the lake is dry. 183 species of birds (including 70 of waterfowl) can be found here, including, among others, the

great white pelican The great white pelican (''Pelecanus onocrotalus'') also known as the eastern white pelican, rosy pelican or white pelican is a bird in the pelican family. It breeds from southeastern Europe through Asia and Africa, in swamps and shallow lakes. ...

(''Pelecanus onocrotalus''), the African oystercatcher (''Haematopus moquini''), and the greater flamingo. There is also a hatching ground for the Cape shoveler(''Anas smithii'') From June to September, whales frequent the coast. In the spring, the veld often features the Namaqualand bloom. The lake was declared a nature reserve in 1966. Since 1988, the area from the coast has been a marine reserve. In the park are hiking trails, two bird hides, and an untouched beach.

References

* Die Burger, 23 July 2013 {{coord, 32, 36, 53, S, 18, 18, 7, E, source:enwiki-plaintext-parser, display=title Nature reserves in South Africa 1966 establishments in South Africa