Lake St. Lucia

South Africa

About 530 species of bird are recorded in Lake St. Lucia, among them White Stork, Fish Eagle, Bee Eater, Oriole and Curlew. The range of reptiles is equally diverse, with leatherback turtle, Nile crocodile and the African python. Hippopotamus are found in the Lake as well.

Our partner organisation in South Africa is the Wilderness Foundation. Many species of plants and animals were and still are threatened by the impact of human activities upon the environment such as the devastation of dunes by a mining project.

A campaign of about 400 nature conservation associations from all over the world convinced the South African government to stop open pit-mining. In December 1999, UNESCO recognised the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park as a World Heritage Site thus acknowledging the universal value of this unique landscape.