Queen Elizabeth National Park
| Queen Elizabeth National Park | |||
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| Location: | Uganda | ||
| Surface: | 1952 km² | ||
| Founding: | 1936 as Kazinga National Park | ||
The Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP, unofficially also QEP) is located in western Uganda . It has existed since 1952. The park has a size of 1978 km² and borders in the west on Eduardsee and Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in the north on the Ruwenzori Mountains . Parts of the park are in the districts of Kasese , Rubirizi, Rukungiri and Bushenyi .
The height above sea level is 1000 to 1300 m, in the Ruwenzori Mountains it rises to 5110 m. The annual precipitation varies between 700 mm in Mweya, in the middle of the park, and 1250 mm in the north and in the Maramagambo forest.
The area around the visitor center on the Mweya peninsula between Lake Edward and the Kazinga Canal is best developed . This flows from Georgsee in the east with a slight gradient to Eduardsee in the west of the national park. Boat trips on this natural waterway offer excellent viewing opportunities for hippos and pelicans as well as for migratory birds that spend the European winter here ( guest birds ).
Flora and fauna
The plant and animal communities encompass the living areas of the open savanna , the tropical rainforest , dense papyrus swamps, crater landscapes and lakes, as well as the two lakes of the East African Rift Valley , Eduardsee and Georgsee .
Tropical rainforest grows in the southeast of Queen Elizabeth National Park, north of Lake Georg there are extensive papyrus swamps. Both sides of the Kazinga Canal are dominated by dense bushland. Grassy areas and acacia savannas can be found north of the Kazinga Canal, in the central part of the park and in the Ishasha region in the extreme south. Grassland predominates in the crater area .
The park is particularly rich in species with almost 100 species of mammals and over 600 different species of birds . In the pub on the east of the park gorge Kyambura Gorge is habituated let chimpanzees and other primates observed. Various species of monkeys and giant forest pigs can also be found in the Maramagambo forest . In the south of the park, in the Ishasha area, you can crowned cranes , the coat of arms of Uganda birds, and, Topis observe the large accumulations of topis for which this area was once famous, have now collapsed. There, lions have a habit of climbing trees. The crater lakes and salt lakes sometimes appear pink from a distance because of the high populations of flamingos .
Other typical or well-known animal species in the national park are, for example, the common Uganda grass antelopes , African buffalo , white rams , elephants , lions and zebra mongooses as well as various kingfishers , fish eagles and goliath herons . The elephant population decreased from about 4,000 animals in 1971 to 2,931 in 1973 and 1978 individuals in 1981 to about 700 in 1987 due to poaching pressures.
The Kigezi wildlife sanctuary with 330 km² in the south of the national park, the 550 km² Kitale forest reserve in the north and the almost 500 km² Toro Semliki reserve would also provide a habitat for elephants .
Individual evidence
- ^ Queen Elizabeth National Park. Official site . Retrieved April 5, 2011.
- ↑ a b c M. Fitzpatrik, T. Parkinson, N. Ray (2006): East Africa, Lonely Planet.
- ↑ African Bird Club: Hotspots in Uganda ( Memento of the original from December 24, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Retrieved April 6, 2011.
literature
- Wally and Horst Hagen: The African national parks as habitats for elephants . In: Vitus B. Dröscher : Save the elephants of Africa . 1st edition. Goldmann Verlag , Munich 1992, ISBN 3-442-12322-4 . Pp. 248-249.
- William Riley, Laura Riley: Nature's Strongholds. The World's Great Wildlife Reserves. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ u. a. 2005, ISBN 0-691-12219-9 .
