The Greater St. Lucia Wetland area, Africa’s oldest nature reserve and a World Heritage Site is the largest estuarine system in Africa. The area embraces five ecosystems: Marine, Eastern Shores, St. Lucia Lake, Mkuze Swamps and Western Shores. This diversity offers the nature lover a rich variety of outdoor and wildlife experiences.
800 hippos
1200 Nile crocodiles
400 species of birds including 40 000 flamingos
Wilderness trails
Elephants, rhinos, coelacanths and whales coexisting within a few miles of each other.
100 miles of unspoilt coastline
Ancient swamp forests
109 species of reptiles
The big five mammals
Five species of turtles
Zulu cultural groups
2000 plant species
The world's highest density of the black rhinoceros
65 kms long and 21 kms wide, with its lakes, lagoons, freshwater swamps, and grasslands, St. Lucia supports more species of animal than the better-known Kruger National Park and the Okavango Delta, although these areas are much larger.
Although rich in bird and wildlife, for centuries, people have also come to the St. Lucia Estuary for the food and materials that it and the surrounding wetlands offer. To this day, thousands of Zulus harvest ncema grass each spring, which they use to make sleeping and sitting mats.
History of the St. Lucia Wetlands
The history of St. Lucia begins in 1575, when the Portuguese explorer Manuel Peresterello landed in the area on the feast of St. Lucy. In 1897, the area was designated a Game Reserve.
In 1989, a mining company proposed to bulldoze dunes along the eastern peninsula in order to remove titanium and other metals. This caused uproar amongst conservationists and, using strong mining laws, they convinced the government to have an environmental assessment prepared. The South African Government carefully weighed the potential economic benefits of allowing the mining against the disruption and further degradation of an area greatly in need of restoration. Late in 1993, the panel conducting the environmental assessment advised against the mining proposal.
In 1996, the government announced its aim to create jobs in the area, using the St. Lucia Park as the core. Already, KwaZulu-Natal attracts nearly three-quarters of South Africa’s tourism, but too few jobs have been created as a result. Although Phinda, north of Lake St. Lucia, has created more jobs than the proposed mine operations would have generated, still more jobs need to be created.
With coordination by the Wilderness Foundation, local, national, and international conservation organisations are working with the park authority of KwaZulu and Natal to replace the 150 jobs that would have been generated by the mining project.
Disputed land claims, squatting in protected areas, uncontrolled fishing practices, and the spread of exotic plants all present challenges to achieving sustainable development of the area. However, awarded World Heritage Site status in 2000 as an area of outstanding natural value, the Greater St Lucia Wetland area is now fully protected from external threats. To achieve such status, the area had to meet three criteria: unique ecological processes, superlative natural phenomena and exceptionally rich biodiversity.
"The St. Lucia Wetlands Park must be the only place on the globe where the world's oldest land mammal (the rhinoceros) and the world's biggest terrestrial mammal (the elephant) share an ecosystem with the world's oldest fish (the coelacanth) and the world's biggest marine mammal"
Former President Nelson Mandela, 10th August 2001.
