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Tanzania National Parks and Game Reserves - Kitulo National Park
Tanzania info > Tanzania Parks and Reserves > Kitulo National Park

 

Kitulo National Park orignally named Elton plateu, after the explorer crossed the area in the 1870s. It is hard to beleave that one is 8 degree south of equator, owing to the altitude 2500-3000 metres, the country is more reminiscent of the scotish highlands and similar areas in the northern Europe, vast expanses of rolling up land grassland and rounded or occassionally knobbly hills stretch away to the horizon. It is one of the great flower garden of the world, with over 40 species of ground orchids alone, flowers comes out in their thousands, making an unparalleled carpet of colour especially from late october until April.Geranium, kniphofias{red hot poker}, moraeas{irises}, orchids, crassulars, impatiens, Asters and Helichrysums are few of the myriads of
beautifull blossoms.

Locals refer to the Kitulo Plateau as Bustani ya Mungu - The Garden of God – while botanists have dubbed it the Serengeti of Flowers, host to ‘one of the great floral spectacles of the world’. And Kitulo is indeed a rare botanical marvel, home to a full 350 species of vascular plants, including 45 varieties of terrestrial orchid, which erupt into a riotous wildflower display of breathtaking scale and diversity during the main rainy season of late November to April.

Map of showing location of Kitulo National Park
Kitulo National Park Area and Its sorroundings,


Located
in the Southern Tanzania, Size: 412.9 sq km (159 sq miles), Perched at around 2,600 metres (8,500 ft) between the rugged peaks of the Kipengere, Poroto and Livingstone Mountains, the well-watered volcanic soils of Kitulo support the largest and most important montane grassland community in Tanzania.

Bustani ya Mungu - God's garden. Satyrium and Habenaria orchids on Kitulo Plateau.One of the most important watersheds for the Great Ruaha River, Kitulo is well known for its floral significance – not only a multitude of orchids, but also the stunning yellow-orange red-hot poker and a variety of aloes, proteas, geraniums, giant lobelias, lilies and aster daisies, of which more than 30 species are endemic to southern Tanzania. Big game is sparsely represented, though a few hardy mountain reedbuck and eland still roam the open grassland.

But Kitulo – a botanist and hiker’s paradise - is also highly alluring to birdwatchers. Tanzania’s only population of the rare Denham’s bustard is resident, alongside a breeding colony of the endangered blue swallow and such range-restricted species as mountain marsh widow, Njombe cisticola and Kipengere seedeater. Endemic species of butterfly, chameleon, lizard and frog further enhance the biological wealth of God’s Garden.

Africa's first new species of monkey for over 20 years has been discovered in remote mountains in southern Tanzania. Called the "Highland Mangabey" (Lophocebus kipunji), this long-haired forest primate was first discovered by conservation biologists from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) on the flanks of the 2961 m (10,000 ft) volcano Mt. Rungwe and in the adjoining Kitulo National Park.

Forest Trail in Kitulo National ParkGetting there; From Chimala, 78km east of Mbeya along the
surfaced main road to Dar es Salaam, head south along the rough but spectacular dirt road - called Hamsini na Saba (57) after the number of hairpin bends along its length - to the temporary park headquarters at Matamba, from where it’s another hour’s drive to the plateau.
Basic and erratic public transport is available.

What to do; Good hiking trails exist and will soon be developed into a formal trail system. Open walking across the grasslands to watch birds and wildflowers. Hill climbing on the neighbouring ranges. A half-day hike from the park across the Livingstone Mountains leads to the sumptuous Matema Beach on Lake Nyasa.

Best time to go; Although it open all year around, Wildflower displays peak between December and April. The sunnier months of September
to November are more comfortable for hiking but less rewarding to botanists. Conditions are cold and foggy from June to August.

The temporary park headquarters at Matamba are situated
approximately 100km (60 miles) from Mbeya town.








The Livingstone escarpment within Kitulo National Park
viewed from the summit of Mt Rungwe. Photo: Noah Mpunga / WCS

 
   
   
   
     

 

 

 

 

     
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