North-east Zululand (Elephant Coast) – Falaza Game Park
About the Birding
Situated near False Bay on the western shores of Lake St. Lucia, Falaza Game Park comprises roughly 800 hectares of pristine sand forest, bushveld, riverine forest, grassland and wetland supporting well in excess of 300 species.
Perhaps the main attraction is the large area of pristine sand forest which supports the localized Pink-throated Twinpost and Rudd’s Apalis; two of South Africa’s most sought after near-endemics. The Neergaard’s Sunbird is present and is best detected by its distinctive call, quite unlike the other co-occurring sunbird species within this habitat.
About the Birding Site
The Zululand Birding Route in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa was the first of BirdLife South Africa’s avitourism projects and has now been running for nearly two decades. The specific objectives of this project were to promote birding tourism within northern KwaZulu-Natal, which in turn would assist in helping to conserve the birds of Zululand by giving them direct financial value. To date the birding route has trained and mentored over 35 community bird guides, making considerable progress in developing the birding infrastructure within the region.
Other Related Information
Directions:
Heading north from Durban, take the Hluhluwe off-ramp from the N2 highway and proceed through the village to the T-junction. Turn left here and proceed to the next turn-off. Turn right here, following the signs to False Bay. After 4km, turn right again at the T-junction, and then right again at the sign Falaza Game Park. The last 2km are on a dirt road.
Notable points of interest include the:
Falaza main lodge: -27.9937, 32.3454
Entrance track: -27.9934, 32.3499
Key species:
Pink-throated Twinspot, Lemon-breasted Canary, Gorgeous Bush-shrike, Rudd’s Apalis, Neergaard’s Sunbird
Contact details:
For more information, contact:
Falaza Game Park
Tel: +27 (0)35 562 2555 (reservations)
Tel: +27 (0)35 562 2555 (reservations)
Tel: +27 (0)35 562 2319 (lodge)
Fax: +27 (0)35 562 2086 (lodge)
Cell: +27 (0)72 037 9900 (lodge)
Tel: +27 (0)35 562 2319 (spa)
Email: reservations@falaza.co.za