en Mkhambathi Nature Reserve

Mkhambathi Nature Reserve
Mkhambathi Nature Reserve
	Brunia trygyna, a species on the brink of extinction. Only remaining plant (front right) in the Mkhambathi Nature Reserve.
Location	Lusikisiki, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Nearest city	Flagstaff; Port Edward; Port St Johns;
Coordinates	31°18′22″S 29°59′5″E / 31.30611°S 29.98472°E
Area	7,720 hectares (19,100 acres)
Established	2009
Website	Mkambati Nature Reserve - Wild Coast

The Pondoland Marine Protected Area, off the coast of the park

Mkhambathi Nature Reserve (or Mkambati Nature Reserve)^[1] is a protected area at Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is 7,720 hectares (19,100 acres), with the Pondoland Marine Protected Area off its coastal edge. The reserve is located in the Pondoland Centre of Plant Endemism and the greater Maputaland–Pondoland–Albany Hotspot, and is covered in open grassland, dotted with patches of indigenous forest, swamp forests and flanked by the forested ravines of the Msikaba and Mtentu rivers.^[2] ^[3]

Biodiversity

Amphibians

Amphibians occur in the coastal region of the reserve.

Birds

The reserve has a large colony (400–800 individuals) of Cape vulture (a threatened species).^[4]

Mammals^[5]

Reptiles

Natal black snake

Vegetation

There is an abundance of endemic plants found in the Pondoland landscape of the reserve, including the endemic false water-berry, Rhynchocalyx lawsonioides. The Pondo palm is only found in this region, growing along the banks of the Msikaba and Mtentu rivers. Gurney's sugarbird can be found in protea bushes. Broad-tailed warblers can be found in marshland.

Threats

The endemic plants in the reserve face threats from fire as a consequence of poaching game, and of pervading invasive alien plants like:^[4]

Gallery

Brunsvigia grandiflora
Watsonia pillansii
Protea afra
Brunia trygyna. A species on the brink of extinction. The only remaining plant in the Mkhambathi Nature Reserve.