The Soutpansberg, (formerly ''Zoutpansberg'') meaning "Salt Pan Mountain" in
Afrikaans
Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...
, is a
range of mountains in far northern
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 countri ...
. It is located in
Vhembe District
Vhembe is one of the 5 districts of Limpopo province of South Africa. It is the northernmost district of the country and shares its northern border with Beitbridge district in Zimbabwe and on the east with Gaza Province in Mozambique. Vhembe co ...
,
Limpopo
Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The capital and largest city in the province is Polokwane, while the provincial legislature is ...
. It is named for the
salt pan ( ve, Thavha ya muno, or "place of salt") located at its western end. The mountain range reaches the opposite extremity in the Matikwa Nature Reserve, some due east. The range as a whole had no
Venda
Venda () was a Bantustan in northern South Africa, which is fairly close to the South African border with Zimbabwe to the north, while to the south and east, it shared a long border with another black homeland, Gazankulu. It is now part of the ...
name, as it was instead known by its sub-ranges which include
Dzanani
Dzanani is a town and also the name of a region in the former Venda, now part of Limpopo province in South Africa. Dzanani was named after MuDzanani, which is one of the main surnames in Venda; and also the then Paramount Chiefs (Khosi Khulu) of ...
,
Songozwi
Hanglip (Afrikaans for ''hanging lip'', Venda: Songozwi'), thavha ya VhaDzanani is a prominent mountain peak near Louis Trichardt, South Africa. It is situated in the Vhembe District of Limpopo in the central Soutpansberg range. The peak with rad ...
and others.
Of late it is however known as Tha vhani ya muno, meaning "mountain of salt".
The Soutpansberg forms part of the 'Vhembe Biosphere Reserve', which was designated as a
biosphere reserve
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 o ...
by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
in 2009. The latter reserve also includes the
Blouberg Range
The Blouberg (formerly "Blaauwberg"), meaning "Blue Mountain" in Dutch, is a range of mountains in Limpopo Province, at the far north of South Africa. It is located in Blouberg Local Municipality, Capricorn District. The mountain is entrench ...
,
Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
,
Makgabeng Plateau,
Makuleke Wetlands
The Makuleke Contractual Park or Pafuri Triangle constitutes the northernmost section of the Kruger National Park, South Africa, and comprises approximately 240 square kilometres of land. The "triangle" is a wedge of land created by the confluen ...
and the
Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape
The Kingdom of Mapungubwe (or Maphungubgwe) (c. 1075–c. 1220) was a medieval state in South Africa located at the confluence of the Shashe and Limpopo rivers, south of Great Zimbabwe. The name is derived from either TjiKalanga and Tshivenda ...
.
Geography
The mountain is intersected by two
defiles, the Waterpoort in the west, containing the
Sand River (Polokwane) and a railway line, and Wyllie's Poort, which allows
N1 road traffic to pass from Louis
Trichardt
Trichardt is a town on the N17 National Route in Gert Sibande District Municipality in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. The village is 34 km west of Bethal and 32 km east-south-east of Leandra, adjacent to Secunda.
History
...
to
Musina
Musina (; formerly Messina) is the northernmost town in the Limpopo province of South Africa. It is located near the confluence of the Limpopo River with the Sand River and the border to Zimbabwe. It has a population of between 20,000 and 40, ...
.
Lajuma is the highest peak at . The
Nzhelele River
The Nzhelele River is a major watercourse in Limpopo Province, South Africa. The river's catchment area comprises 2,436 square kilometers.
Course
This river collects much of the drainage of the northern slopes of the extensive rock formation of th ...
and its tributary the
Mutamba, the
Nwanedi River
The Nwanedi River is a watercourse in Limpopo Province, South Africa. It is a tributary of the Limpopo River flowing east of the Nzhelele, joining the right bank of the Limpopo 58 km east of Musina at the South Africa/Zimbabwe border.
Course ...
and its tributary the
Luphephe River, as well as the
Levubu River
The Levubu River or Levuvhu ( ts, Rivubye; ve, Luvuvhu) is located in the northern Limpopo province of South Africa. Some of its tributaries, such as the Mutshindudi River and Mutale River rise in the Soutpansberg Mountains.
The Luvuvhu River f ...
and its main tributaries, the
Mutshindudi and
Mutale Rivers, and the
Letaba River
The Letaba River ( af, Letabarivier), also known as Leţaba, Lehlaba or Ritavi, is a river located in eastern Limpopo Province, South Africa. It is one of the most important tributaries of the Olifants River.
Course
It starts at the confluence o ...
rise in the slopes of the Soutpansberg Mountains. The
Brak River
The Brak River ( af, Brakrivier) is a river located in northern Limpopo Province, South Africa. It is a tributary of the Polokwane River.
Course
The Brak River starts on the east of the Makgabeng Plateau and flows north-northeast until reaching ...
, a tributary of the Sand River, flows diagonally at the western end of the Soutpansberg, separating it from the
Blouberg further west.
History
First Europeans
The first white person to reach, and name, the mountain was
Coenraad de Buys
Coenraad De Buys (1761 – 1821) was described as "a remarkable figure" on the frontier of the Cape Colony. Travellers described him with awe.
Their accounts mentioned that he was an impressive figure, nearly seven foot tall and with enormous ...
, a colonist who fled from
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 c ...
after a failed rebellion in 1795. He settled near the mountain in 1820 and was the patriarch of a half-caste clan, the "Buysvolk" or Buys People, who are still to be found at
Buysdorp
Buysdorp is a village in Makhado Local Municipality in the Limpopo province of South Africa.
A rural coloured community located 14 km from Vivo, on the R522 road to Louis Trichardt, Buysdorp was named after Coenraad de Buys, the “King of ...
. De Buys was followed by
voortrekker
The Great Trek ( af, Die Groot Trek; nl, De Grote Trek) was a Northward migration of Dutch-speaking settlers who travelled by wagon trains from the Cape Colony into the interior of modern South Africa from 1836 onwards, seeking to live beyon ...
Louis Tregardt
Louis Johannes TregardtFootnote (translated): Various opinions exist concerning the spelling of the surname which arrived with Louis' grandfather from Sweden. This forebear and his son almost always wrote it as "Tregard". Louis initially wrote it ...
who sojourned at the salt pan from May to August 1836. In November 1836 Tregardt moved camp to the vicinity of the later
Schoemansdal and
Louis Trichardt Louis may refer to:
* Louis (coin)
* Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name
* Louis (surname)
* Louis (singer), Serbian singer
* HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy
See also
Derived or associated terms
* Lewis ( ...
town, where he stayed until June 1837. From June to August 1837 Tregardt's party camped at the Doorn River, on the current Doorn River farm, whereafter they departed for good to find a trading route to the sea.
Early settlement
![Hanglip](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Hanglip.jpg)
Eleven years later, in 1848,
a settlement named
Zoutpansbergdorp was established at the site of an earlier Tregardt camp. It was founded by Jan Valentyn Botha,
who led a faction of
Andries Potgieter
Andries Hendrik Potgieter, known as Hendrik Potgieter (19 December 1792 – 16 December 1852) was a Voortrekker leader and the last known Champion of the Potgieter family. He served as the first head of state of Potchefstroom from 1840 and 1845 ...
's trek. Potgieter died at Zoutpansbergdorp in 1852, and his son shortly afterwards. In 1855 the town's de facto leader was
Stephanus Schoeman
Stephanus Schoeman (14 March 1810 – 19 June 1890) was President of the South African Republic from 6 December 1860 until 17 April 1862. His red hair, fiery temperament and vehement disputes with other Boer leaders earned him th ...
who named the growing, though disorderly reed-hut settlement
Schoemansdal, after himself. Augmented by renegades, the town was a successful
ivory trading centre by 1855, when its population numbered 200.
Venda
Venda () was a Bantustan in northern South Africa, which is fairly close to the South African border with Zimbabwe to the north, while to the south and east, it shared a long border with another black homeland, Gazankulu. It is now part of the ...
hunters supplied the Voortrekkers with ivory, and were in return supplied with fire arms. Relations between the Voortrekkers and Venda soured due to taxation, cattle rustling and lax control over the supply of fire arms.
Total discord broke out in 1866, when the voortrekkers intervened in a Venda succession dispute, and one claimant,
Makhado
Makhado (also: Makhato or Makgato, c.1839 – 3 September 1895) was a 19th-century chief (or ''khosi'') in the Singo (or Vhasenzi) dynasty of the Vendas. They ruled over the Dzanani "district" of the Zoutpansberg region of South Africa. He was t ...
, attacked an outlying voortrekker settlement.
Despite the arrival of a relief commando, the Venda's mountain strongholds could not be taken. The voortrekkers abandoned the town on 15 July 1867
and established
. An open-air museum was established to recreate the modest settlement.
First town
In October 1898 the
Boer
Boers ( ; af, Boere ()) are the descendants of the Dutch-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape Colony, Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controll ...
e returned to regain control over the territory. General
Piet Joubert
Petrus Jacobus Joubert (20 January 1831 – 28 March 1900), better known as Piet Joubert, was Commandant-General of the South African Republic from 1880 to 1900. He also served as Vice-President to Paul Kruger from 1881 - 1883. He served in Fir ...
's commando occupied a strategic position over the Doorn River in preparation. In November,
Mphefu's kraal suffered a three-pronged attack and his royal village was torched. Mphefu's clan fled across the
Limpopo River
The Limpopo River rises in South Africa and flows generally eastward through Mozambique to the Indian Ocean. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers led by Hosi Rivombo who settled in the mountaino ...
to Zimbabwe. The farms Rietvlei and Bergvliet were set aside in 1898 for a new town, and Trichardtsdorp was proclaimed the next year, named in honour of
Louis Tregardt
Louis Johannes TregardtFootnote (translated): Various opinions exist concerning the spelling of the surname which arrived with Louis' grandfather from Sweden. This forebear and his son almost always wrote it as "Tregard". Louis initially wrote it ...
. Today the town commemorates his full name,
Louis Trichardt Louis may refer to:
* Louis (coin)
* Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name
* Louis (surname)
* Louis (singer), Serbian singer
* HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy
See also
Derived or associated terms
* Lewis ( ...
.
Ecology
Plant diversity
Approximately 2,500 to 3,000 vascular plant taxa, comprising 1,066 genera and 240 families are known to occur in the mountain.
A species list from plots done at the Mutshidudi catchment area revealed 109 plant families, 397 genera and 619 species.
24 plant species are endemic to the mountain, and an additional 33 to the Vhembe Biosphere Reserve. 594 species of tree are native to the mountain or its direct vicinity.
The Soutpansberg's immense floristic diversity can be attributed to several distinct floristic elements acting on it, namely Tropical, Moçambique coastal,
Lowveld
Veld ( or ), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide open rural landscape in :Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Botswa ...
,
Afromontane
The Afromontane regions are subregions of the Afrotropical realm, one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms, covering the plant and animal species found in the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. The Afromontane regions ...
,
Bushveld
The Bushveld (from af, bosveld, af, bos 'bush' and af, veld) is a tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands, sub-tropical woodland ecoregion of Southern Africa. It encompasses most of Limpopo Province and a small part of ...
,
Waterberg, Kalahari and Limpopo Valley.
[ Approximately 10% of Soutpansberg plants can be considered succulent, and 32% of the endemic flora can be regarded as succulents.][
Of the mountain's endemic flora, the Asclepiadaceae with 5 genera and 6 species displays a high generic diversity. '']Aloe
''Aloe'' (; also written ''Aloë'') is a genus containing over 650 species of flowering succulent plants.WFO (2022): Aloe L. Published on the Internet;http://www.worldfloraonline.org/taxon/wfo-4000001341. Accessed on: 06 Nov 2022 The most wid ...
'' presents the highest species diversity among native genera with 5 endemic species, and the monotypic '' Zoutpansbergia'' is the only endemic genus. The floral endemics include ''Encephalartos hirsutus
''Encephalartos hirsutus'' is a species of cycad that is native to Limpopo Province, South Africa. It was recorded from three separate localities on south-east-facing quartzite cliffs in the Makuya Nature Reserve bordering the Kruger National Par ...
'', '' Duvalia procumbens'', '' Euphorbia rowlandii'', '' E. aeruginosa'', '' E. zoutpansbergensis'', '' Ceratotheca saxicola'', '' Stapelia clavicorona'', '' Tylophora coddii'', '' Huernia nouhuysii'', ''Aloe angelica
''Aloe angelica'' (Wylliespoort Aloe) is a species of aloe endemic to the Soutpansberg and Blouberg mountains in the Northern Province of South Africa. It is a large, single-stemmed plant, 3–4 meters in height, with green, succulent leaves, b ...
'', '' A. petrophila'', '' A. soutpansbergensis'', '' A. vossii'', '' Combretum vendae'', '' Blepharis spinipes'', ''Mystacidium braybonae
''Mystacidium'', abbreviated as Mycdm in horticultural trade, is a genus of the orchid family (''Orchidaceae''). It is native to eastern and southern Africa from Tanzania to South Africa.
Species accepted as of June 2014:
# ''Mystacidium alicia ...
'', '' Justicia montis-salinarum'', ''Khadia borealis
''Khadia'' is a genus of plants in the family Aizoaceae. Some species under this genus include:
* ''Khadia acutipetala''
* ''Khadia alticola''
* ''Khadia beswickii'' (L.Bolus) N.E.Br.
* '' Khadia borealis''
* '' Khadia carolinensis''
* ''Khadia ...
'', '' Orbeanthus conjunctus'', '' Streptocarpus parviflorus'' subsp. ''soutpansbergensis'', '' Searsia magalismontana'' subsp. ''coddii'', ''Vangueria soutpansbergensis
''Vangueria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is named for , as '' V. madagascariensis'' is known in Malagasy.
Distribution
The genus contains over 50 species distributed in Africa south of the Sahara with one ...
'' and '' Pavetta tschikonderi''.
The tropical floristic element, which reaches its southern distribution within the Soutpansberg, accounts for the species '' Brackenridgea zanguebarica'', ''Millettia stuhlmannii
''Millettia stuhlmannii'', commonly known as panga panga, is a well-known species of timber tree that is native to the southeastern Afrotropics. The wood of the tropical species '' M. laurentii'' has similar qualities and uses, but is slightly d ...
'', '' Oxytenanthera abyssinica'', '' Trilepisium madagascariense'', '' Brachystegia utilis''-'' torrei'' (assimilated into a dominant '' B. spiciformis'' genome) and '' Syzygium masukuense''. These species are not associated with the central Zimbabwean Miombo floristic element, but rather with the Eastern Highlands
:''"Eastern Highlands" also refers to Eastern Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea, and part of the Great Dividing Range, Australia.''
The Eastern Highlands, also known as the Manica Highlands, is a mountain range on the border of Zimbabwe ...
floristic element, and particularly its foothills.
Reptile diversity
A total of at least 116 reptile species have been recorded in the Soutpansberg. This biodiversity is remarkably high for such a small area and makes up 36% of the total number of reptile species that have been recorded in South Africa. This is roughly the same number of species (119) that occur in the Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
. The diversity is high compared to biodiversity hotspots of the world and the species diversity per unit area is higher than that of most of these hotspots. The Soutpansberg rock lizard
The Soutpansberg rock lizard (''Vhembelacerta rupicola'') is a small (40–50 mm) flattened species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. It has been described as a diurnal, rock-dwelling species inhabiting scree and rocky outcrops at altitude ...
, Soutpansberg worm lizard, Soutpansberg dwarf gecko and the Soutpansberg flat lizard are all endemic and named after this range.
Invertebrates
The Soutpansberg is known for a high level of endemism
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
of its invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
fauna.
Conservation
In today’s world, natural areas are under a lot of pressure from human activity. Exploitation of natural resources, human encroachment due to expanding developments, poaching and general pollution – these all affect the Soutpansberg in some way. At the moment the mountains are a World Heritage Site and they form part of the newly proclaimed Vhembe Biosphere reserve.
Gallery
Organisms endemic to the Soutpansberg
File:Searsia magalismontana subsp coddii, loof en vrugte, b, Walter Sisulu NBT.jpg, ''Searsia magalismontana'' subsp. ''coddii''
File:Vhembelacerta rupicola.jpg, Soutpansberg rock lizard, ''Vhembelacerta rupicola''
File:Platysaurus relictus1.JPG, A male Soutpansberg flat lizard, ''Platysaurus relictus''
File:Soutpansberg Wormlizard (Chirindia langi subsp. occidentalis).JPG, The endemic Soutpansberg worm lizard, ''Chirindia langi'' subsp. ''occidentalis''
File:Lygodactylus ocellatus soutpansbergensis.jpg, ''Lygodactylus ocellatus soutpansbergensis'', a gecko endemic to the Soutpansberg
File:Hadogenes soutpansbergensis scbc.jpg, ''Hadogenes soutpansbergensis'', a scorpion endemic to the Soutpansberg
File:Opistophthalmus lawrencei soutpansberg.jpg, ''Opistophthalmus lawrencei'', a scorpion endemic to the Soutpansberg
File:Soutpansberg Dung Beetle (Scarabaeus schulzeae).jpg, Soutpansberg dung beetle, ''Scarabaeus schulzeae'', a Soutpansberg endemic
See also
*
* List of mountain ranges of South Africa
This is a list of mountain ranges of South Africa.
Physiography
The list includes chains of mountains bordered by highlands or separated from other mountains by passes or valleys. Some ranges in South Africa are relatively isolated, while others ...
* Nwanedi Provincial Park
* Soutpansberg Conservancy
Notes
External links
The Soutpansberg
Game & Nature Reserves in Soutpansberg, Limpopo
{{Authority control
Mountain ranges of Limpopo