Vlei birds will flock to lodge in area with more than 400 species

MOOKGOPHONG, the town near Ubumanzi Lodge on auction next month, is a regional hub in the Waterberg surrounded by nature reserves, hot springs resorts and one of South Africa’s top bird-watching wetlands.

Under its original name of Naboomspruit, Mookgophong dates back to the late 1800s when it was a rest station for the Pretoria-Pietersburg mail coach.

Although the little village eventually developed around the railway station on the farm Naboomspruit, Mookgophong owes its growth largely to the discovery of minerals in the area. There was a “tin rush” in 1910 that briefly turned the village into a boomtown, and the discovery of platinum later added to its expansion.

In 2006, the local government changed the town’s name to Mookgophong, the Tswana word for the euphorbia trees that form a major feature of the landscape in the area. “Naboom” is the Afrikaans name for the euphorbia. Today, Mookgophong’s mild bushveld climate attracts holidaymakers all year round. For birding enthusiasts, the proximity of the popular Nylsvley bird sanctuary just 22km away has made the town a twitchers’ paradise. Nylsvley Nature Reserve is situated in the upper reaches of the Nyl River and includes part of the largest floodplain vlei in South Africa . During rainy seasons, it attracts up to 80 000 birds. The number of bird species recorded on the floodplain is 412, almost half the number in South Africa. As fences do not deter birds, the new owners and guests at Ubumanzi Lodge – with its own proliferation of water sources – can expect visits by hundreds of water birds daily.