The Drakensberg (Afrikaans: "Drakensberge") is the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, rising to in height. In Zulu, it is referred to as uKhahlamba ("barrier of spears"), and in Sesotho as Maluti (also spelled Maloti). Its geological history lends it a distinctive character amongst the mountain ranges of the world. Geologically, the range resembles the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia.

Location

The range is located in the eastern part of South Africa, running for some from south-west to north-east. The mountains drain on the western slopes by the Orange and Vaal rivers, and on the east and south by a number of smaller rivers, the Tugela being the largest. The range separates KwaZulu-Natal Province from Free State Province, looming over the nearby coast of Natal.

A Guide to the Drakensberg describes the escarpment as lying "parallel to the south-eastern coast of South Africa from the Northern Province to the Eastern Cape."^[1] In the vicinity of Giant's Castle, it "swings to the south-west and enters the Eastern Cape", splitting there into the separate ranges of Stormberg, Bamboes, Suurberg, Nieuveld and Komsberg.^[1]

Geological origins

During the Pre-Cambrian era, volcanic eruptions in the area resulted in lava covering large sections of the Southern African sub-continent. In the Mesozoic era, wind and water deposited thick layers of shale, mudstone and sandstone, now known as the Karoo Supergroup, over the ancient primary rock. When Gondwanaland began to break up 200 million years ago, the resultant forces caused the extrusion of magma, known as Drakensberg lava, through fissures and cracks in the earth's surface.^[1] In the Drakensberg region it capped the sedimentary rock formations with layers of solid basalt up to 1400 m thick. Weathering reduced the range's size, and caused the plateau to recede. In modern times, continued erosion has exposed some of the underlying sediment.^[1]

Geomorphology

Appearance

The mountains are capped by a layer of basalt approximately 1,400 m thick, with sandstone lower down, resulting in a combination of steep-sided blocks and pinnacles.

Composition

The majority of the range is basalt, as a result of continental upheaval and volcanic activity in the Pre-Cambrian era. Many of the lava flows are characterized by amygdaloidal zones.^[2] Many of the primary minerals within the basalts have been subjected to varying degrees of deuteric alteration which has led to the formation of clay, as well as chlorite and zeolite to a lesser extent.^[2] Some interstitial glass has also broken down to form clay. These secondary minerals, together with zeolites which occur notably as amygdaloidal fillings, mean that many of the basalts break down rapidly on exposure. The breakdown results from the expansion which occurs when the clay minerals swell on absorption of water.^[3]

Highest peaks

The highest peak is Thabana Ntlenyana, at . Other notable peaks include Mafadi at 3,450 m, Makoaneng at 3,416 m, Njesuthi at 3,408 m, Champagne Castle at 3,377 m, Giant's Castle at 3,315 m, and Ben Macdhui at 3,001 m. All of these are in the area bordering on Lesotho; north of Lesotho the range becomes lower and less rugged until entering Mpumalanga where the quartzite mountains of the Transvaal Drakensberg are loftier and more broken and form the eastern rim of the Transvaal Basin, the Blyde River Canyon lying within this stretch. The geology of this section is the same as and continuous with that of the Magaliesberg. South Africa's Drakensberg mountains are home to the world's second-highest waterfall, the Tugela Falls (Thukela Falls), with a total drop of 947 metres.

Ecology

Flora

Southafricainfo.net notes that the mountains are "home to aquatic, forest, scrub, fynbos, savannah, mountain grassland and heath plant families", including a large number of species listed in the Red Data Book of threatened plants, with 119 species listed as globally endangered." That site also says that: "of the 2 153 plant species in the park, a remarkable 98 are endemic or near-endemic."^[4]

Fauna

According to southafrica.info, the area is "home to 299 recorded bird species", making up "37% of all non-marine avian species in southern Africa."^[4]

Caves and cave paintings

Caves are frequent in the more easily eroded sandstone, and many have rock paintings by the Bushmen. The Drakensberg has between 35000 and 40000 works of bushman art^[4][5] and is the largest collection of such work in the world. Some 20,000 individual rock paintings have been recorded at 500 different cave and overhang sites between the Drakensberg Royal Natal National Park and Bushman's Neck.^[5] Due to the materials used in their production, these paintings are difficult to date, but there is anthropological evidence, including many hunting implements, that the bushman civilization existed in the Drakensberg at least 40,000 years ago, and possibly over 100,000 years ago. According to countryroads.co.za, "[i]n Ndedema Gorge in the Central Drakensberg 3,900 paintings have been recorded at 17 sites. One of them, Sebaayeni Cave, contains 1 146 individual paintings."^[6] Southafrica.info indicates that though "the oldest painting on a rock shelter wall in the Drakensberg dates back about 2400 years", "paint chips at least a thousand years older have also been found."^[4] The site also indicates that "[t]he rock art of the Drakensberg is the largest and most concentrated group of rock paintings in Africa south of the Sahara, and is outstanding both in quality and diversity of subject."^[4]

Conservation

Tourism in the Drakensberg is developing, with a variety of hotels and resorts appearing on the slopes. Most of the higher South African parts of the range have been designated as game reserves or wilderness areas. The uKhahlamba or Drakensberg National Park, located in KwaZulu-Natal, near the border with Lesotho, was listed by UNESCO in 2000 as a World Heritage site. The park is also in the List of Wetlands of International Importance (under the Ramsar Convention). Adjacent to the Drakensberg National Park is Cathkin Estates Conservation and Wildlife Sanctuary which spans 1044HA of virgin grassland and represents the largest privately owned game park in the KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg region.

Panorama of the Giant's Castle region

Notes

References

• Rozan, D.Z., Lewis, C.A. and Illgner, P.M., 1999. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 54, pp. 311?321.

External links

• KZN Drakensberg Homepage - Official Website for the KwaZulu Natal Drakensberg.
• Cathkin Estates Conservation and Wildlife Sanctuary - the largest privately owned game park in the Drakensberg.
• Nature - Drakensberg: Barrier of Spears - PBS Nature episode covering the eland (largest member of antelope family) of the Drakensberg.
• Accommodation in Drakensberg - Various destinations in and around the Drakensberg.

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