Sodwana Bay National Park
Sodwana Bay National Park, is a park situated on the north eastern coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; it is located within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park World Heritage Site 20 minutes away from local town Mbazwana. This park is known for sport fishing, scuba diving and snorkelling. It is abundantly rich in a variety of fish species, fauna and flora covering the coastal area of about 240km and includes an inland area of about 332 000 ha. This is a tourism sustained community, generating most of its income from international tourist visitors and a good number of local tourists provided accommodation from the nearby hotels, resorts, Bed and Breakfasts, diving centres, camps, and lodges. Due to its rich biodiversity, it invites a great deal of researchers and hosts a few events from fishing competitions to beach concerts. In summer, loggerhead and leatherback turtles The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Velvet Monkey At Sodwana Bay National Park - Panoramio
Weave details visible on a purple-colored velvet fabric Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short pile, giving it a distinctive soft feel. By extension, the word ''velvety'' means "smooth like velvet". In the past, velvet was typically made from silk. Today, velvet can be made from linen, cotton, wool and synthetic fibers. Construction and composition left, Illustration depicting the manufacture of velvet fabric Velvet is woven on a special loom that weaves two thicknesses of the material at the same time. The two pieces are then cut apart to create the pile effect, and the two lengths of fabric are wound on separate take-up rolls. This complicated process meant that velvet was expensive to make before industrial power looms became available, and well-made velvet remains a fairly costly fabric. Velvet is difficult to clean because of its pile, but modern dry cleaning methods make cleaning more feasible. Velvet ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hamerkop (Scopus Umbretta) ISimangaliso
The hamerkop (''Scopus umbretta'') is a medium-sized wading bird. It is the only living species in the genus ''Scopus'' and the family Scopidae. The species and family was long thought to sit with the Ciconiiformes but is now placed with the Pelecaniformes, and its closest relatives are thought to be the pelicans and the shoebill. The shape of its head with a long bill and crest at the back is reminiscent of a hammer, which has given this species its name after the Afrikaans word for hammerhead. It is a medium-sized waterbird with brown plumage. It is found in Africa, Madagascar and Arabia, living in a wide variety of wetlands, including estuaries, lakesides, fish ponds, riverbanks, and rocky coasts. The hamerkop is a sedentary bird that often shows local movements. The hamerkop takes a wide range of prey, mostly fish and amphibians, but shrimps, insects and rodents are taken too. Prey is usually hunted in shallow water, either by sight or touch, but the species is ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is located in the southeast of the country, with a long shoreline on the Indian Ocean and sharing borders with three other provinces and the countries of Mozambique, Eswatini and Lesotho. Its capital is Pietermaritzburg, and its largest city is Durban. It is the second-most populous province in South Africa, with slightly fewer residents than Gauteng. Two areas in KwaZulu-Natal have been declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the iSimangaliso Wetland Park and the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park. These areas are extremely scenic as well as important to the surrounding ecosystems. During the 1830s and early 1840s, the northern part of what is now KwaZulu-Natal was established as the Zulu Kingdom while the southern part was, briefly, the Boer Nata ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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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 Sou ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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ISimangaliso Wetland Park
iSimangaliso Wetland Park (previously known as the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park) is situated on the east coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, about 235 kilometres north of Durban by road. It is South Africa's third-largest protected area, spanning 280 km of coastline, from the Mozambican border in the north to Mapelane south of the Lake St. Lucia estuary, and made up of around 3,280 km2 of natural ecosystems, managed by the iSimangaliso Authority. The park includes: * Lake St. Lucia * St. Lucia Game Reserve * False Bay Park * Kosi Bay * Lake Eteza Nature Reserve * Lake Sibhayi * St. Lucia Marine Reserve * St. Lucia Marine Sanctuary * Sodwana Bay National Park * Mapelane Nature Reserve * Maputaland Marine Protected Area * Cape Vidal * Ozabeni * Mfabeni * Tewate Wilderness Area * Mkuze Game Reserve The park was previously known as the Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park, but was renamed effective 1 November 2007. The word ''isimangaliso'' m ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mbazwana
Mbazwana is a town in Umhlabuyalingana Local Municipality and is part of Umkhanyakude District Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Settlement and plantation some 50 km east of Ubombo. Presumably takes its name from the tributary of the Mseleni Mseleni is a small settlement in Umhlabuyalingana Maputaland, northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is situated not far away from the small town of Mbazwana. It is divided into 2 small izigodi namely KwaJobe and KwaNhlamvu, ruled under the Aut .... The name, of Zulu origin, is said to mean ‘small axe’, after a person called Mbazwana. References Populated places in the Umhlabuyalingana Local Municipality {{KwaZuluNatal-geo-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Recreational Fishing
Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is professional fishing for profit; or subsistence fishing, which is fishing for survival and livelihood. The most common form of recreational fishing is angling, which is done with a rig of rod, reel, line, hooks and any one of a wide range of baits, as well as other complementary devices such as weights, floats, swivels and method feeders, collectively referred to as '' terminal tackles''. Lures are frequently used in place of fresh bait when fishing for predatory fishes. Some hobbyists hand-make custom tackles themselves, including plastic lures and artificial flies. Other forms of recreational fishing include spearfishing, which is done with a speargun or harpoon usually while diving; and bowfishing, with is done from above the water with archery equipments such as a compound bow or crossbow. Noodl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Scuba Diving
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Christian J. Lambertsen in a patent submitted in 1952. Scuba divers carry their own source of breathing gas, usually compressed air, affording them greater independence and movement than surface-supplied divers, and more time underwater than free divers. Although the use of compressed air is common, a gas blend with a higher oxygen content, known as enriched air or nitrox, has become popular due to the reduced nitrogen intake during long and/or repetitive dives. Also, breathing gas diluted with helium may be used to reduce the likelihood and effects of nitrogen narcosis during deeper dives. Open circuit scuba systems discharge the breathing gas into the environment as it is exhaled, and consist of one or more diving cylinders containing ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Snorkeling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a wetsuit may also be worn. Use of this equipment allows the snorkeler to observe underwater attractions for extended periods with relatively little effort and to breathe while face-down at the surface. Snorkeling is a popular recreational activity, particularly at tropical resort locations. It provides the opportunity to observe underwater life in a natural setting without the complicated equipment and training required for scuba diving. It appeals to all ages because of how little effort is involved and is the basis of the two surface disciplines of the underwater sport of finswimming. Snorkeling is also used by scuba divers when on the surface, in underwater sports such as underwater hockey and underwater rugby, and as part o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Loggerhead Sea Turtle
The loggerhead sea turtle (''Caretta caretta'') is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around in carapace length when fully grown. The adult loggerhead sea turtle weighs approximately , with the largest specimens weighing in at more than . The skin ranges from yellow to brown in color, and the shell is typically reddish brown. No external differences in sex are seen until the turtle becomes an adult, the most obvious difference being the adult males have thicker tails and shorter plastrons (lower shells) than the females. The loggerhead sea turtle is found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean Sea. It spends most of its life in saltwater and estuarine habitats, with females briefly coming ashore to lay eggs. The loggerhead sea turtle has a low reproductive rate; females lay an average of four egg clutches and then bec ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Leatherback Turtles
The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weights of . It is the only living species in the genus ''Dermochelys'' and family Dermochelyidae. It can easily be differentiated from other modern sea turtles by its lack of a bony shell; instead, its carapace is covered by oily flesh and flexible, leather-like skin, for which it is named. Taxonomy and evolution Taxonomy ''Dermochelys coriacea'' is the only species in genus ''Dermochelys''. The genus, in turn, contains the only extant member of the family Dermochelyidae. Domenico Agostino Vandelli named the species first in 1761 as ''Testudo coriacea'' after an animal captured at Ostia and donated to the University of Padua by Pope Clement XIII. In 1816, French zoologist Henri Blainville coined the term ''Dermochelys''. The leatherback was ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife Parks
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife is a governmental organisation responsible for maintaining wildlife conservation areas and biodiversity in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Their headquarters is in Queen Elizabeth Park situated on the northern slopes of Pietermaritzburg, the KwaZulu-Natal provincial capital. Prior to 1994, it was known as the Natal Parks Board. History The first known person to provide protection to wildlife in the region was Zulu King Shaka, who prevented excessive hunting of game animals in the Umfolozi River valley in the early 19th century. However King Shaka used this area for his own hunting purposes and cannot be classed as a 'preservationist'. Voortrekkers, who entered the region now known as KwaZulu-Natal in the early 19th century, also had conservation policies. The Voortrekker leader Piet Retief had rules excluding the unnecessary shooting of game, and veld burning was strictly controlled. Zulu King Mpande is known to have afforded protection to the Ong ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |