protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
in northern
South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...
. It was designated in 1939 when the area was within Sudan.
Located within the
Sudd
The Sudd (' or ', Dinka: Toc) is a vast swamp in South Sudan, formed by the White Nile's '' Baḥr al-Jabal'' section. The Arabic word ' is derived from ' (), meaning "barrier" or "obstruction". The term "the sudd" has come to refer to any large ...
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
** IUCN Category VI site with mostly seasonally flooded grassland and woodland landscape. It is internationally important for its large mammal concentrations. It was gazetted in 1939 along with Fanikang Game Reserve to protect
Nile Lechwe
The Nile lechwe or Mrs Gray's lechwe (''Kobus megaceros'') is an endangered species of antelope found in swamps and grasslands in Sudan and Ethiopia.
Description
Males are an average of long and tall at the shoulders, and weigh between , whi ...
and
Sitatunga
The sitatunga or marshbuck (''Tragelaphus spekii'') is a swamp-dwelling antelope found throughout central Africa, centering on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, parts of Southern Sudan, Equatorial Guin ...
. It is also home to
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two exta ...
.
A large portion of the reserve's area is on Zeraf Island, a seasonally flooded island area isolated by the
White Nile
The White Nile ( ar, النيل الأبيض ') is a river in Africa, one of the two main tributaries of the Nile, the other being the Blue Nile. The name comes from the clay sediment carried in the water that changes the water to a pale colo ...
to the West and the Bahr el Zeraf river to the east. Although the reserve extends eastwards of this island, some records call it the Zeraph Island Reserve and others state that this island was the primary target for protection. The name in general is derived from the Bahr el Zeraf and is popularly rendered simply as "Zeraf Game Reserve"