Nzhelele River

Nzhelele River
View of the Nzhelele River in the Philip Herd Nature Reserve
Nzhelele River is located in South Africa
Nzhelele River
Location of the Nzhelele River mouth
EtymologyNzhelele meaning a falcon or an eagle that in ancient times followed elephant hunters and fed on the meat hanging in the trees to dry.[1]
Location
CountrySouth Africa
StateLimpopo Province
RegionDzanani
DistrictVhembe
MunicipalityMakhado
Physical characteristics
SourceThathe Vondo
 • locationSoutpansberg
 • elevation1,673 m (5,489 ft)
Mouth 
 • location
Limpopo River, South Africa/Zimbabwe border
 • coordinates
22°21′08″S 30°22′19″E / 22.35222°S 30.37194°E / -22.35222; 30.37194
 • elevation
404 m (1,325 ft)
Basin size3,436 km2 (1,327 sq mi)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftMutamba
 • rightMufungudi, Tshishiru

The Nzhelele River is a major watercourse in Limpopo Province, South Africa. The river's catchment area comprises 3,436 square kilometers.[2]

Course

This river collects much of the drainage of the northern slopes of the extensive rock formation of the Soutpansberg. Leaving the mountainous area, it meanders in a northeastward direction across the Lowveld, a wide plain that contains considerable biodiversity, including numerous large mammals such as giraffes, white rhinos and blue wildebeests.[3] It joins the right bank of the Limpopo River 33 km east of Musina.[4]

The Mutamba River, its main tributary, rises in the Buelgum Poort farm of the Soutpansberg, further west from the sources of the Nzhelele.[5] Other tributaries are the Tshiruru River, Mugungudi River, Mutshedzi River and the Wyllie River.[6]

Dams in the basin

See also

References

  1. ^ Transvaal Indigenous Place Names Archived 2008-10-31 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Major rivers and streams within the Limpopo River Basin
  3. ^ Sites - Important Bird Areas (IBAs) - Soutpansberg
  4. ^ "Nzhelele Sub-basin". Archived from the original on 2012-04-20. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  5. ^ Soutpansberg - Geology and Geography
  6. ^ Busari, Ola (2008). "Groundwater in the Limpopo Basin: Occurrence, use and impact". Environment, Development and Sustainability. 10 (6): 943–957. doi:10.1007/s10668-007-9094-3. S2CID 154503353.