Bikuar National Park
|
Bikuar National Park
|
||
| location | Angola | |
| surface | 7900 km² | |
| WDPA ID | 350 | |
| Geographical location | 15 ° 8 ′ S , 14 ° 56 ′ E | |
|
||
| Setup date | December 26, 1964 | |
The Bikuar National Park (also Bikuar / Huila National Park , port. Parque Nacional do Bicuar (i) ) is one of the national parks in Angola . It is located in the south of the country in the province of Huíla at an altitude of 1152 to 1494 m above sea level and covers 7900 km². The figures for annual precipitation amount to 600 to 800 mm. In the southeast of the park are the town of Mulondo and the village of Tecaza. During the civil war , the national park was occupied by the population. In 2008 the administrative infrastructure could be rebuilt.
history
In the early 1930s, the Huíla region had the highest number of animal species and the largest herds of wildlife. The area therefore suffered from intense and uncontrolled hunting, which resulted in a drastic reduction in game populations. In order to make hunting controllable and sustainable, today's Bikuar National Park was founded as a hunting reserve on April 16, 1938 and declared a national park on December 26, 1964. After independence, the large animal species were again greatly reduced. In 2016, a revitalization project was started to bring back red buffalo that had been exterminated in the park, as well as more elephants, zebras, oryx gazelles, ostriches, impalas, gazelles and wildebeest into the park. The project had to be stopped due to financial problems.
Vegetation and water
The vegetation is composed of Miombo forest with Brachystegia and Julbernardia species or Baikiaea on sandy soils, dry thickets, river forest and hilly grass savannahs. Dry grassland can be found along the Mucope River, among other places . In total, forests make up 39% of the park area, shrub land 24% and grassland 5%. The most important river in the national park is the Kunene . Two wetlands serve as watering places for animals.
Wildlife
Mammals
There are 62 species of mammals here, including the endangered African wild dog and the endangered species cheetah , hippopotamus and lion, as well as the low-endangered hyena . In addition, live in the park Impala , Wildebeest , spotted hyena , waterbuck , Klipspringer , gemsbok , Oribi , southern reedbuck , African Buffalo , Greater Kudu , Eland , ground pangolin and Mantelpavian and African clawless otter , Atelerix frontalis , striped and black-backed jackal , caracal , vervet monkey , African wild cat , Moholi-Galago , yellow-spotted rock hyrax , South African porcupine , serval , Kirk's Dik , bat-eared fox , Brown Greater Galago , Leopard , springhare , aardwolf , Steenbok , duiker , bushbuck , plains Zebra , Cape hare , aardvark , marsh mongoose , Kaokoveld slender mongoose , slender mongoose , Southern Dwarf Mongoose , mongoose , white-tailed mongoose , banded mongoose , Selous' mongoose , honey badger , Zorilla , African striped weasel , African civet , Kleinfleck- and rusty-spotted genet , hyrax , warthog and bush pig , Mozambique hare , Elephantulus brachyrhynchus and Elephantulus intufi . The roan antelope was featured. In the early 1970s there was also a notable population of elephants; In 1977 there were 5000 animals.
Amphibians and reptiles
The amphibians are represented by Ptychadena mascareniensis , Ptychadena oxyrhynchus , Tomopterna cryptotis , Tomopterna tuberculosa , Ptychadena ansorgii , Hildebrandtia ornata , Xenopus petersii , Afrana angolensis , Ptychadena grandisonae , Bufo funereus , Bufo gutturalis , Bufo maculatus , Hyperolius benguellensis , Hyperolius cinnamomeoventris , Kassina senegalensis , Leptopelis anchietae , Leptopelis bocagii , Hyperolius parallelus , Hyperolius nasutus , Breviceps adspersus , Phrynomantis bifasciatus , Phrynobatrachus mababiensis , Phrynobatrachus natalensis and Phrynobatrachus parvulus . There are also said to be 27 reptile species in the national park.
Birds
The Bikuar National Park has been listed as an Important Bird Area since 2001 . Thanks to a visit to the park in September 1973 and the records in Mulondo, 143 bird species are known to occur in the national park, but the actual number is likely to be significantly higher. The distribution areas of Lamprotornis mevesii and Lamprotornis australis extend to this point, Neocichla gutturalis is common in the Miombo forest of the park. The presence of Lanioturdus torquatus is likely he has not heretofore seen only outside the Bikuar National Park in the north, south and west. Large birds of prey such as the cap , lobed and woolly vultures , jugglers and predatory eagles , in the forests also Aquila wahlbergi and crested eagles can often be observed. The swallowtail spint has been proven to breed in the Bikuar National Park. The southern ground hornbill is widespread in open forest areas and Neotis denhami in dry grasslands . Nectarinia talatala and Macronyx fuellebornii also live in the park . The wetlands within Bikuar National Park are home to at least 36 water bird species, which is 25% of the list of all of Angola. The only occurrence of the African oar duck and the only breeding site of the humped goose in Angola can be found here. The stilt can also be found at the edges of the pond . The whiskered tern is believed to breed in ponds along the Mucope River.
literature
- Wally and Horst Hagen: The African national parks as habitats for elephants . In: Vitus B. Dröscher (Ed.): Save the elephants of Africa . 1st edition. Goldmann Verlag , Munich 1990, ISBN 3-442-12322-4 , p. 255 .
- Soki Kuedikuenda and Miguel Neto Gonçalves Xavier: Framework Report on Angola's Biodiversity . Ed .: Republic of Angola, Ministry of Environment. Luanda 2009, p. 20 (English, cbd.int [PDF; 6.5 MB ; accessed on October 8, 2019]).
Web links
- Brief overview of the park. In: getamap.net. Retrieved October 8, 2019 .
- BirdLife profile. Retrieved October 8, 2019 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Parque Nacional do Bicuar: Historial biodiversidade-angola.com , accessed on October 8, 2019
- ↑ Parque do Bicuar sem verbas para repovoamento angop.ao , January 29, 2019, accessed October 8, 2019
