Mbhashe River is one of the major rivers in the
Eastern Cape Province
The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. It flows in a southeastern direction and has a catchment area of 6,030 km. The river drains into the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
through an
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...
located near the
lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Ligh ...
at
Bashee, south of Mhlanganisweni.
After passing under national road N2, the Mbhashe River encounters southwest of
Elliotdale and north-east of
Dutywa
Dutywa, also known as Idutywa, is a town in Mbhashe Local Municipality, Mbashe Local Municipality, Eastern Cape province, South Africa, that was founded in 1858 as a military fort after a dispute between a Natal Colony raiding party and its local ...
the more rugged terrain of the Wild Coast and suddenly enters into a 64 km long series of violent twists and turns known as the
Collywobbles before continuing more sedately towards the Indian Ocean.
The Mbhashe river's main tributaries are the
Xuka River,
Mgwali River,
Dutywa River and the
Mnyolo River. Presently this river is part of the
Mzimvubu to Keiskamma Water Management Area.
History
In 1554
Portuguese ship
São Bento ran aground at the mouth of the Mbhashe River. The ordeal of 322 of its survivors, who walked from there to
Lourenço Marques
Maputo () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088,449 (as of 2017) distributed ov ...
, presently Maputo, has been recorded.
Mvezo is a village on the banks of the Mbhashe River, where
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...
was born in 1918.
Ecology
Some of the fishes caught in its waters are ''
Labeobarbus aeneus'', ''
Barbus pallidus'', ''
Barbus anoplus'', ''
Myxus capensis'', ''
Anguilla marmorata'' and ''
Anguilla mossambica''. ''Labeobarbus aeneus'' is an
invasive species
An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...
, now widely present in the river system.
See also
*
List of rivers of South Africa
This is a list of rivers in South Africa.
It is quite common to find the Afrikaans word ''-rivier'' as part of the name. Another common suffix is "''-kamma''", from the Khoisan term for "river"
Meiring, Barbara"South African Toponymic Guidelin ...
*
List of estuaries of South Africa
This is a list of estuaries in South Africa. The list is in order from East (border with Mozambique) to the West (border with Namibia).
The South African coastline stretches for some 3000 km from Kosi Bay near the Mozambique border in the ...
References
External links
Mbashe Key AreaSouth African Tourism - Mbashe River PictureSA Birding - Cwebe and Dwesa Nature ReservesA History of the Qwathi
Rivers of the Eastern Cape
{{SouthAfrica-river-stub