Mana Pools National Park 

The World Heritage Site of Mana Pools National Park, Sapi and Chewore Safari Areas is a place of stunning terrain and ecological processes. This large property of 676,600 ha, which is physically protected to the north by the Zambezi River and to the south by the steep escarpment (which rises to over 1,000 m from the valley floor), provides shelter for massive congregations of Africa's large mammal populations in its flood plains.

The Mana Pools are former Zambezi River channels, and ongoing geological processes show how a huge seasonal river may erode and deposit, with a recognizable pattern of plant succession on its alluvial deposits. While black rhino has vanished since the property was established, vast herds of elephant and buffalo, followed by zebra, waterbuck, and a variety of other antelope species, as well as their predators such as lion and hyena, move to the area every year during the dry winter months.

The river is also known for its large hippopotamus and Nile crocodile populations. There are about 450 kinds of resident and migratory birds in the area. In the safari zones, controlled quota hunting is permitted.

The Mana Pools National Park, Sapi and Chewore Safari Areas were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984.

(Source UNESCO)