Estosha National Park Namibia |
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Etosha National Park is a national park in the Kunene Region of northwestern Namibia. Etosha was first established in 1907, when Namibia was a German colony known as South West Africa. At the time, it was the largest game reserve in the world but due to subsequent political changes, the park is now slightly less than a quarter of its original area but still remains a very large and significant area in which wildlife is protected. The Etosha Pan dominates the park. The salt pan desert is roughly 130 km long and as wide as 50 km. The salt pan is usually dry, but fills with water briefly in the summer, when it attracts pelicans and flamingos. Perennial springs attract a variety of animals and birds throughout the year, including the endangered Black Rhinoceros and the endemic Black-faced Impala. In the dry season, winds blowing across the salt pan pick up saline dust and carry it across the country and out over the southern Atlantic. This salt enrichment provides minerals to the soil downwind of the pan on which some wildlife depends, though the salinity also creates challenges to farming.
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