Wolkberg

Wolkberg

NASA picture of the Wolkberg
Highest point
Peak Ysterkroon
Elevation 2,126 m (6,975 ft)
Listing List of mountain ranges of South Africa
Coordinates 24°3′54″S 30°3′54″E / 24.06500°S 30.06500°E / -24.06500; 30.06500Coordinates: 24°3′54″S 30°3′54″E / 24.06500°S 30.06500°E / -24.06500; 30.06500
Dimensions
Length 30 km (19 mi) NW/SE
Width 10 km (6.2 mi) NE/SW
Geography
Wolkberg
Country South Africa
Province Limpopo
Parent range Drakensberg
Geology
Orogeny Kaapvaal craton
Age of rock Neoarchean to early Paleoproterozoic
Type of rock Bushveld igneous complex, sandstone

The Wolkberg is a mountain range in Limpopo Province, South Africa. It constitutes a northern subrange of the Drakensberg system. The range extends for about 30 km (19 mi) in a NW/SE direction north of Sekhukhuneland. The nearest towns are Haenertsburg and Tzaneen.

Physiography

The range forms a high plateau reaching up to 2126 m in height at the Ysterkroon, its highest point. Other conspicuous peaks are 2050 m high Serala,[1] 1838 m high Mamotswiri, 1667 m high Magopalone and 1611 m high Selemole.

The Wolkberg is the source of many small mountain streams, as well as the Mohlapitse[2] and the Ga-Selati River, tributaries of the Olifants River.[3]

Ecology

Burchellia bubalina growing in the Wolkberg

Weather can change very fast from clear skies to becoming misty, with the highest reaches enveloped in clouds. Hence the name of the range, meaning "Cloud Mountain" in Afrikaans. The Wolkberg is rugged, with rocky shoulders and deep humid gorges. There are rare plant and animal species in these areas. Species such as the Wolkberg Zulu (Alaena margaritacea), the Wolkberg widow (Dingana clara) and the Wolkberg sandman (Spialia secessus), have been named after these mountains. Some species like the critically endangered butterfly Lotana blue (Lepidochrysops lotana) are only known from the Wolkberg area.[4]

The Wolkberg Wilderness Area is a protected area located in the range.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Wolkberg (Northern Part) Map
  2. ↑ The Olifants River System - Ecoregion 2.14 & 2.15
  3. ↑ The Olifants River System
  4. ↑ Woodhall, S. Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa, Cape Town: Struik Publishers, 2005
  5. ↑ Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Conservation Area

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wolkberg.


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