Tagged: Africa

Outstanding Natural Beauty of World Heritage Sites in Africa [36 PICS]

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August 27th, 2013 Permalink

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has designated 129 World Heritage Sites in Africa, but these 36 are listed as Outstanding Universal Value for natural heritage. As you might expect, there is a wide diversity of flora and fauna in each. Sadly, some of these have also been placed on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage Sites in Danger, most often due to poaching of endangered wildlife. The UNESCO committee may inscribe new sites on the list, or it may delist sites if the area no longer meets the criteria, but this is UNESCO’s current list for Africa in 2013 as of the time of publishing.
[36 Photos]

Lion at Serengeti National Park, Masai Mara, Tanzania

Lion at Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. It is one of many UNESCO World Heritage Sites for natural and outstanding universal value in Africa. This vast savanna has 3,648,000 acres (1,476,300 ha) and is world-renowned for its annual herd migrations in search of water and pasture. Two million wildebeests, hundreds of thousands of zebras and gazelles, and all their predators make it “one of the most impressive nature spectacles in the world.” Because there is so much prey, it contains the “Big Five.” Serengeti is believed to hold more than 3,000 lions, the largest population of lions in Africa, about 1,000 African leopards, African Buffalo, African Elephants and Black Rhinoceros — but few rhinos are said to remain due to “rampant poaching.” It was designated as a natural site by UNESCO in 1981. Photo #1 by Anita Ritenour

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Animal Safari: Wildlife that makes you say WOW! [40 PICS]

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July 14th, 2011 Permalink

Africa is not the only place on Earth to go on a safari, but it surely offers some of the best safari adventures around. Most of the African safari reserves have all the big five animals: the lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo. It’s now always easy to get photos of all on them on one safari, especially the nocturnal leopard. But these photographers did a great job of sharing with us the beautiful beasts they captured with their camera while on safari. So sit back and relax, let’s do some animal watching on this virtual safari. [40 Photos]

On Safari - Leopard in Heat

While on Safari in Africa, the photographer snapped a shot of this female leopard up in a tress and in heat. The male approached on the ground, but she “made an even louder racket and let out a loud bark at him.” So the male turned away and sauntered off. She jumped down and followed him. 😉 Photo #1 by Steve Jurvetson

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Devoured By The Desert: Creepy Kolmanskop Ghost Town (21 PICS)

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March 31st, 2011 Permalink

There is a slowly sinking city in the desert of southern Namibia, Africa, a ghost town called Kolmanskop. In the 1900s, diamonds were discovered just sitting upon the sand, waiting to be found, so people from all over the world with diamond fever flocked from the port of Lüderitz to the once desolated lonely desert. Kolmanskop became a mining town, but after the First World War when diamonds sales dropped, the sand-clearing squad failed to show up. That was the beginning of the end; Kolmanskop turned into a ghost town being buried by sand and trapped in time. The TV show Destination Truth visited this ghost town since it is highly rumored to be haunted. They were not disappointed, having captured EVPs of ghosts whispering, seeing shadows, hearing footsteps, and having the fluff scared of out them in Kolmanskop. [21 pictures]

Kolmanskop

In Namibia, Africa, not too far from the port city of Lüderitz, the ghost town Kolmanskop is slowly sinking, being buried by sand to be trapped in time. Photo #1 by Michiel Van Balen

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