Elephant March
The Elephant March ( English : Elephant Marsh ) is a south Malawi preferred fertile Aue along the Shire flow at about 100 m above sea level. Together with the Ndinde Marsh, it is the lowest lying area in Malawi and the area with the highest temperatures. it extends 80 km from north to south and up to 30 km from east to west. Their population density is very high by Malawian standards.
On its west side there are extensive sugar cane plantations that are irrigated with open ditch systems. The marshland is managed by small farmers who settle on the higher edges. They plant corn , cotton , oranges , lemons , mangoes , and very rarely vegetables. In addition, they raise cattle to a limited extent with goats , sheep and cattle . The livestock is still considered too high. For reasons of prestige, farmers prefer to keep cattle instead of selling them in good time. This marsh would be an area with far greater economic potential, comparable to the Usangu Plain in Tanzania , if only more sophisticated irrigation techniques could be used to use not only it itself, but also its extensive peripheral areas for rice cultivation. Because of the thin layer of earth and the basalt below, which leads to salinisation of the water, intensification is considered difficult.
The elephant march is economically convenient to the town of Blantyre . From their economic centers Bangula in the south a regularly re-profiled dirt road leads there and from Chikwawa in the north an asphalt road leads there. The Beira -Blantyre railway line of the Malawian Railway runs at the southern end of Bangula . There is a reliable transport system with minibuses during the day. At night the streets stay empty because of the wild animals.
The area is only slowly being developed for tourism. There are no more elephants, but there are crocodiles, which are aggressive because of the Shire's low fish content. In addition, their population here and in the Ndinde Marsch is considered too high, which is a result of their protection. To the west of Chikwawa is Lengwe National Park , where antelopes and buffalo can be found. The Majete Reserve now has huts and a small restaurant, while the Sucoma sugar cane plantation has a private enclosure with giraffes and a sports club that is open to visitors. The Kapichira waterfalls can also be reached from here , but there are neither restaurants worth mentioning nor nostalgic colonial hotels in this area. On the west side there is the year-round asphalt road, which in places has potholes, on the east side at the foot of the Thyolo there is a good dirt road with concrete fords , which are impassable when it rains. The march itself should only be entered with guides who are familiar with the area. A ride in wobbly pirogues near crocodiles and hippos is not for everyone. But in the rainy season it can give an impressive impression of an undeveloped Africa. In the dry season this meadow is green and is meandered by the dead arms of the Shire . Even then, orientation is not that easy. As there is little fish in the Shire, the crocodiles are aggressive. Women who wash and children who play are particularly at risk because they stay longer in one place and so the animals have to stalk.
The elephant march is under protection under the Ramsar Convention .
Individual evidence
- ^ The List of Wetlands of International Importance. (PDF) The Ramsar Convention Secreatariat, January 31, 2019, p. 29 , accessed on March 2, 2019 .
Coordinates: 16 ° 9 ′ 42.1 ″ S , 34 ° 55 ′ 27.1 ″ E