Leopard cub - South Africa

 Claus was only supposed to send me the Turkemenistan cards but he also sent this extra cute card, one of my favs too. 

The Leopard – Panthera Pardus – Is another of the Big Cat Species and in South Africa it is known to be the smallest member of the Big  5.

 

 Photo: Chris Daphne

They're probably Africa's most beautiful and elusive cats, seldom seen due to their solitary behaviour.
Of all the big cats, they are the most at home in trees where they rest or store their prey out of reach of lions and hyenas. 

Male leopards defend large territories which overlap the territories of two or even three females. Females defend their territories against other females. Young are born any time of the year as they are non-seasonal breeders.

Leopard cubs are born after a gestation period of three and a half months and females usually give birth to two or three cubs in hidden lairs of natural holes or thick bush. The Leopard mother takes great care to hide the cubs from predators like Lion, Cheetah and Hyena, who would jump at the chance to make an easy meal of the cubs.

Cubs stay with the mother for at least a year, during which time they learn the ways of the wild and how to survive on their own. . in: https://www.krugerpark.co.za

The best places to see leopards in South Africa are:
- Sabi Sands Game Reserve: Renowned for the highest density of leopards and the best, most habituated, and relaxed viewing opportunities on the continent.
- Kruger National Park: Offers excellent chances, particularly in the southern regions and around riverine areas.

- Private Reserves: Phinda Private Game Reserve (KwaZulu-Natal), Shamwari Game Reserve (Eastern Cape), and Karoo National Park (Western Cape) are top locations.
- Cape Fold Mountains: The Cederberg Wilderness is home to the smaller, elusive "Cape Leopard.

Table Mountain - South Africa

Table Mountain is the most famous mountain and landmark of South Africa and also the country’s most photographed attraction. The mountain gained natural park status in 1998 and in 2004 the Cape Floristic Region was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

 Art Publishers

The Khoi and San people named the mountain Hoerikwaggo or Mountain in the Sea.

The mountain was sacred for the Khoi and San people as they believed their god (Tsui or Goab) lived there.

The first European to see the Cape was Bartolomeu Dias in 1448. In 1497, Vasco da Gama spotted it as well. The first recorded climb of the mountain was done by the Portuguese navigator, Admiral Antonio de Saldanha in 1503. It was de Saldanha who gave the mountain its name, naming it Taboa da caba, meaning table of the cape.

Images: Shi Zhao, Miquitos

ZA-151540, sent by JVR Family.

In 1652 the Khoi and the San people were robbed of their land when the Cape was colonized by the Dutch led by Jan van Riebeeck. They quickly established Cape Town, built houses and brought slaves.

Since then, many people from all around the world have climbed the mountain. Starting with 1929 the cable car opened and since then reaching the summit was made easier than ever.

More than 22 million people have used the cable car which was renovated and reopened in 1997. - in: https://tablemountainnationalpark.org

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The Afrikaans Language Monument is a famous South African landmark. It honors the birth and growth of Afrikaans, one of the eleven official languages of South Africa.

Photograph: Gerald Hoberman

ZA-143532, sent by Margaretha.

The Afrikaans language, spoken mainly in South Africa and Namibia, originated as a dialect of Dutch, brought to the Cape area by settlers from the Dutch East India Company in the late 17th century.

Over time, Afrikaans evolved into a distinct language with strong influences from other African languages, like Khoikhoi, Nguni, and Sotho, as well other European languages like French and Portuguese. The monument’s design reflects this progression.

The Afrikaans language became closely intertwined with South Africa’s political history, especially after the Anglo-Boer war of 1899-1902, when there was a strong push to establish English as the language of intellect. As a response against this, organizations were created to promote Afrikaans and the Afrikaner culture. In 1925, it was recognized as an official language with its own African identity, separate from its parent Dutch. However, the language’s most famous word became “apartheid,” meaning “apartness,” after the racial segregation policy in the mid-20th century. Afrikaans itself came to be associated with white supremacy, and was tangled in controversy all through the later half of the century. 

The monument designed by Jan van Wijk is a granite tribute to this tumultuous history. The sculptor won a competition to design the structure, which was opened in 1975, 50 years after the language was given official status. - in: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/afrikaans-language-monument

iSimangaliso Wetland Park - South Africa

Justyna put a lot of effort on this south african card. Even though the card was sent from Canada, she managed to use a Nelson Mandela stamp and wild african animal stickers and washi tape to decorate it. It was worth to wait for this new UNESCO card. 

Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park was how this park was known till 2007. Since then it's name is iSimangaliso Wetland Park and that's how you can find it on the WHS list.  

iSimangaliso Wetland Park is situated on the east coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, about 275 kilometres north of Durban. It is South Africa's third-largest protected area, spanning 280 km of coastline, from the Mozambican border in the north to Mapelane south of the Lake St. Lucia estuary, and made up of around 3,280 km2 of natural ecosystems.

The park was proclaimed a world heritage site because of the rich biodiversity, unique ecosystems and natural beauty occurring in a relatively small area. The reason for the huge diversity in fauna and flora is the great variety of different ecosystems on the park, ranging from coral reefs and sandy beaches to subtropical dune forests, savannas, and wetlands. Animals occurring on the park include elephant, African leopard, black and southern white rhino, buffalo, and in the ocean, whales, dolphins, and marine turtles including the leatherback and loggerhead turtle.

The park is also home to 1,200 Nile crocodiles and 800 hippopotami.

In December 2013, after 44 years of absence, African lions were reintroduced to iSimangaliso.[6]

There are large outcroppings of underwater reefs which are home to brightly coloured fish and corals. Some of the most spectacular coral diversity in the world is located in Sodwana Bay. The reefs are inhabited by colour-changing octopuses and squid ready to ambush unsuspecting prey. Occasionally gigantic whale sharks can be seen gliding through the water, mouth agape to scoop up tiny plankton.

Twenty-four species of bivalve molluscs are recorded in St. Lucia Lake, which constitutes a considerable portion of the park. - in: wikipedia

Suricates - South Africa

If there's a top 10 of the most funny and cute animals, suricates are probably there. Is impossible not to like them.

These gregarious animals are often seen in groups, and several families may live together in a large community. Squirrel-sized meerkats are mongooses famed for their upright posture. They often stand on their rear legs and gaze alertly over the southern African plains where they live. Mothers can even nurse their young while standing.

Photo by Nigel Dennis * Art Publishers

Meerkats (also called suricates) work together in numbers. A few will typically serve as lookouts, watching the skies for birds of prey, such as hawks and eagles, that can snatch them from the ground. A sharp, shrill call is the signal for all to take cover. While a few individuals guard the group, the rest busy themselves foraging for the foods that make up their varied diet. Meerkats will eat insects, lizards, birds, and fruit. When hunting small game, they work together and communicate with purring sounds. Meerkats are good hunters and are sometimes tamed for use as rodent-catchers.

Meerkat groups utilize several different burrows and move from one to another. Each burrow is an extensive tunnel-and-room system that remains cool even under the broiling African sun. Females give birth to two to four young each year in one of the group's burrows. Fathers and siblings help to raise meerkat young, teaching them to play and forage and alerting them to the ever present danger from above. Young meerkats are so fearful of predatory birds that even airplanes will send them diving for cover. - in: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/meerkat/

Cheetahs - South Africa

The cheetah is the world's fastest land mammal. With acceleration that would leave most automobiles in the dust, a cheetah can go from 0 to 60 miles an hour in only three seconds. These big cats are quite nimble at high speed and can make quick and sudden turns in pursuit of prey.

Photo: Denny Allen © Wild Treks

Before unleashing their speed, cheetahs use exceptionally keen eyesight to scan their grassland environment for signs of prey—especially antelope and hares. This big cat is a daylight hunter that benefits from stealthy movement and a distinctive spotted coat that allows it to blend easily into high, dry grasses.

When the moment is right a cheetah will sprint after its quarry and attempt to knock it down. Such chases cost the hunter a tremendous amount of energy and are usually over in less than a minute. If successful, the cheetah will often drag its kill to a shady hiding place to protect it from opportunistic animals that sometimes steal a kill before the cheetah can eat. Cheetahs need only drink once every three to four days.

Photo by Martin Harvey * Art Publishers

Female cheetahs typically have a litter of three cubs and live with them for one and a half to two years. Young cubs spend their first year learning from their mother and practicing hunting techniques with playful games. Male cheetahs live alone or in small groups, often with their littermates.

Most wild cheetahs are found in eastern and southwestern Africa. These populations are under pressure as the wide-open grasslands they favor are disappearing at the hands of human settlers. - in: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/c/cheetah/

ZA-32500

My 3rd official from South Africa. 

NZ-32500, sent by Wilna

Olivia Game Lodge is located only 35km from Bloemfontein. Is possible to find there over 14 species of wildlife, beeing one of the the white lion. 

Marion Island - South Africa

Last week i've received an envelope from Déa, my dear brazilian friend. She sent me 3 cards and one of them was this one showing a grotto in the rock, on the southeast coast of Marion Island, South Africa.

Photo by Miachel Kracke

Marion Island is one of the two islands of the Prince Edward Islands. They are two small islands in the sub-antarctic Indian Ocean that are part of South Africa.

The islands in the group have been declared Special Nature Reserves under the South African Environmental Management and activities on the islands are therefore restricted to research and conservation management. The only human inhabitants of the islands are the staff of a meteorological and biological research station run by the South African National Antarctic Programme on Marion Island. - in: wikipedia

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This is only my 2nd official card with a South African ID. The 1st card was sent from South Africa but the card was from Namibia.

ZA-20690, sent by Stel.
The spectacular Swartberg Pass runs through the Swartberg mountains (black mountain in Afrikaans) which are a mountain range that runs roughly east-west along the northern edge of the semi-arid area called the Little Karoo in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
The Swartberg is amongst the best exposed fold mountain chains in the world, and the pass slices through magnificently scenic geological formations. Much of the Swartberg is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was built using convict labour by Thomas Bain and opened on January 10, 1888. The drystone work supporting some of its picturesque hairpin bends is particularly noteworthy. The pass runs between Oudtshoorn in the south and Prince Albert in the north. The pass is not tarred and can be a little treacherous after rain, but offers spectacular views over the Little Karoo to the south and the Great Karoo to the north. The plant life along the pass is very interesting, many hundreds of species being found on the Swartberg. The pass is especially famous due to the spectacular geology that is exposed at its Northern end. The contortions in the rock display astonishing anticlines and synclines, and the vivid coloration of the surrounding Quartzite is remarkable. At the Northern end of the pass seven hundred metre high quartzite cliffs of the upper Table Mountain Group can be seen, and these are often tilted through 90 degrees (sometimes even more). - in: wikipedia

Montagu - South Africa

Montagu is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, about 180 km from Cape Town in western Kannaland. Montagu is a tourist destination, known for its hot mineral springs and scenic beauty. Nearby rock formations make it one of the country's major rock climbing venues.

Photo by Wicus Leeuwner

Aasvoëlkrans in the Cogman's Kloof is home to a pair of resident Black Eagles.

Cape Overberg - South Africa

These are the last cards sent by Emerich on our last trade.

The Cape Overberg is situated in the southernmost region of South Africa. It is beautiful region that attracts thousands of visitors a year to its orchards, forests, grain fields and vistas surrounded by rolling mountain ranges.

Sheep grazing on the fertile plains near Swellendam.

Patchwork design formed by wheat and barley fields and pastures in the Cape Overberg.

Cape Floral Kingdom - South Africa

Another unesco card from Africa, Cape Floral Region Protected Areas, a south african unesco site since 2004.

The card was sent by Gisela "protea".

"A serial site – in Cape Province, South Africa – made up of eight protected areas, covering 553,000 ha, the Cape Floral Region is one of the richest areas for plants in the world. It represents less than 0.5% of the area of Africa but is home to nearly 20% of the continent’s flora. The site displays outstanding ecological and biological processes associated with the Fynbos vegetation, which is unique to the Cape Floral Region. The outstanding diversity, density and endemism of the flora are among the highest worldwide. Unique plant reproductive strategies, adaptive to fire, patterns of seed dispersal by insects, as well as patterns of endemism and adaptive radiation found in the flora, are of outstanding value to science." -in: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1007

South Africa whs

These are my 1st unesco cards from South Africa, all of them sent by Gisela "protea".

"Parys is a town situated on the banks of the Vaal River in the Free State province of South Africa.
Parys is in the 5km buffer zone of the Vredefort Dome World Heritage Site. Vredefort crater is the largest verified impact crater on Earth. It is located in the Free State Province of South Africa, and named after the town of Vredefort, which is situated near its centre. The site is also referred to as Vredefort dome or Vredefort impact structure. In 2005, the Vredefort Dome was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites for its geologic interest." - in: wikipedia

"Robben Island is an island in Table Bay, some seven kilometres off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa. The name is Dutch for "seal island". Robben Island is roughly oval in shape, 3.3 km long north-south, and 1.9 km wide, with an area of 5.07 km². It is flat and only a few metres above sea level, as a result of an ancient erosion event. It is of particular note as it was here that former South African President and Nobel Laureate Nelson Mandela and former South African President Kgalema Motlanthe, alongside many other political prisoners, spent decades imprisoned during the apartheid era.
Today the island is a popular tourist destination and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1999. It is reached by ferry from the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town and is open throughout the year, weather permitting, and tours of the island and prison are led by guides who were formerly prisoners there. Robben Island Museum (RIM) operates as a site or living museum." - in: wikipedia

The bushman painting in Drakensberg National Park.
"The Drakensberg is the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, rising to 3,482 metres (11,420 ft) in height.
Caves are frequent in the more easily eroded sandstone, and many have rock paintings by the Bushmen. The Drakensberg has between 35000 and 40000 works of bushman art and is the largest collection of such work in the world. Some 20,000 individual rock paintings have been recorded at 500 different cave and overhang sites between the Drakensberg Royal Natal National Park and Bushman's Neck. Due to the materials used in their production, these paintings are difficult to date, but there is anthropological evidence, including many hunting implements, that the bushman civilization existed in the Drakensberg at least 40,000 years ago, and possibly over 100,000 years ago." - in: wikipedia

Surprise Trade - Round 7

These are the 3 cards i've received from the Surprise Trade.

This card from Taiwan was sent by reiner. 

This is the Martial Temple, in Yanshuei Town, used to commemorate Guan Yu, who is one of the bravest and best known generals in chinese history. He lived in the "Three Kingdoms Era" (208-280 A. D) and in 1662, his theophany, is said to have rescued Yanshuei from a terrible plague. The temple was built as a thank you and his birthday is celebrated every year.

I don't have many cards from Lithuania so i was really glad to get this one sent by Vilmante "wavycactus".
These are the sand dunes in Nida, Neringa Municipality, a resort town located in the Curonian Spit, which is an Unesco whs. Neringa is separated from the mainland Lithuania by Curonian Lagoon which, while there is no bridge, it is still accessible from the mainland by ferry only.

And this is my 1st card from South Africa :D Finally a card from there!! Thanks to Gisela "Protea".
"Cape Point is a promontory at the south-east corner of the Cape Peninsula, which is a mountainous and very scenic landform that runs north-south for about thirty kilometres at the extreme southwestern tip of the African continent in the Republic of South Africa. The rugged sandstone (Table Mountain sandstone) ridge that rises from Cape Point at sea level develops into two peaks. There is a major peak that dominates the skyline locally but there is also a smaller peak about 100 m further south. The higher peak has the old lighthouse on the top. A funicular railway runs from a car park to the north up to slightly below the level of the old lighthouse and a short flight of steps leads to a viewing platform at the base of the lighthouse. The new lighthouse is at a lower elevation for two reasons: the old lighthouse could be seen 'too early' by ships rounding the point towards the east, causing them to approach too closely. Secondly, foggy conditions often prevail at the higher levels, making the older lighthouse invisible to shipping. On 18 April 1911, the Portuguese liner Lusitania was wrecked just south of Cape Point on Bellows Rock for precisely this reason, prompting the relocation of the lighthouse.
The new location cannot be seen from the West until ships are at a safe distance to the South. The light of the new Cape Point lighthouse is the most powerful on the South African coast." - in: wikipedia