Mkhaya Game Reserve
Encyclopedia
Mkhaya Game Reserve was established in 1979 to save Nguni cattle
, which were close to extinction, and has gone on to include other endangered species such as black rhino, roan antelope
, sable antelope
, tsessebe, white rhino, elephant
and other locally endangered species.
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Mkhaya Game Reserve is named after the knobthorn tree which is known as mkhaya in siSwati).
It is situated in lowveld wilderness in the southeast of Swaziland and is made up of acacia-dominated thornveld in the south and broadleaf sandveld in the north. The reserve has many dry riverbeds, is dotted with waterholes and has a network of game-viewing roads.
Birds of note include Narina Trogon
, Purple-crested Turaco
, Grey-headed Bush-shrike
, Gorgeous Bush-Shrike and Pygmy Kingfisher.
Mkhaya is staffed and patrolled entirely by local Swazis. All travel within the reserve is guided and require pre-booking. It is self-financed solely through visitor revenues.
Trials were started in 2009 to find a financially viable and humane method to control the elephant population by performing vasectomies
on some bull elephants.
Nguni cattle
The Nguni cattle breed is indigenous to southern Africa. A hybrid of indigenous and Indian cattle they were introduced by the Bantu tribes of southern Africa from the north of the continent...
, which were close to extinction, and has gone on to include other endangered species such as black rhino, roan antelope
Roan Antelope
The Roan Antelope is a savanna antelope found in West, Central, East Africa and Southern Africa.Roan Antelope stand about a metre and half at the shoulder and weigh around 250 kilograms. Named for the "roan' colour , they have a lighter underbelly, white eyebrows and cheeks and a black face,...
, sable antelope
Sable Antelope
The Sable Antelope is an antelope which inhabits wooded savannah in East Africa south of Kenya, and in Southern Africa.-Subspecies:There are four subspecies:* H. n. niger which is considered low risk conservation dependent...
, tsessebe, white rhino, elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
and other locally endangered species.
Mkhaya Game Reserve is named after the knobthorn tree which is known as mkhaya in siSwati).
It is situated in lowveld wilderness in the southeast of Swaziland and is made up of acacia-dominated thornveld in the south and broadleaf sandveld in the north. The reserve has many dry riverbeds, is dotted with waterholes and has a network of game-viewing roads.
Birds of note include Narina Trogon
Narina Trogon
The Narina Trogon, Apaloderma narina, is a medium-sized , largely green forest bird in the Trogonidae family, the most widespread and catholic in habitat choice of three Apaloderma trogons...
, Purple-crested Turaco
Purple-crested Turaco
The Purple-crested Turaco is a species of bird in the Musophagidae family.It is found in Burundi, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe....
, Grey-headed Bush-shrike
Grey-headed Bush-shrike
The Grey-headed Bushshrike is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family.It is found throughout Sub-Saharan Africa in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...
, Gorgeous Bush-Shrike and Pygmy Kingfisher.
Mkhaya is staffed and patrolled entirely by local Swazis. All travel within the reserve is guided and require pre-booking. It is self-financed solely through visitor revenues.
Trials were started in 2009 to find a financially viable and humane method to control the elephant population by performing vasectomies
Vasectomy
Vasectomy is a surgical procedure for male sterilization and/or permanent birth control. During the procedure, the vasa deferentia of a man are severed, and then tied/sealed in a manner such to prevent sperm from entering into the seminal stream...
on some bull elephants.