Kundudo
Encyclopedia
Kundudo or Kondudo is a flat top mountain (or amba
) located in the Misraq (Eastern) Hararghe Zone
of the Oromia
region
of Ethiopia
. Part of the eight mile range that bears its name, its summit lies east of the walled city of Harar
, with a height of nearly 3,000 metres.
In the same range, the Goba tarara (a term for mountain) holds a vast cave known since the nineteen hundreds, whilst at the southern end the Stinico tarara holds ancient engravings, unknown until 2008, in two recently studied small open caves. The summit is a flat grassland thirteen hectares in area, and is the habitat of the only remaining feral horse
population of East Africa
, one of only two on the continent.
Below Kondudo lie the localities of Fugnan Bira
(also named Gursum), Day Feres, Fugnan Hujuba, Ejersa Goro
, Bedada, Goba, Sakhare and Yaya Guda. Nearby is also a shrine and a singular design mosque named by the locals after Sheikh Adem Goba.
.
On February 13/14 2009 a group of six Italian and French speleologists explored a newly found cave of international interest. The cave is classified amongst the best five on the continent and is the only one in Ethiopia to contain a full variety of active speleothem
kinds, or significant cave rock formations.. The Kundudo limestone layers have been indicated by Prof. Viganó to contain more similar caves and vast fossil fields. As a consequence of these discoveries the whole area is being proposed for the constitution of an Oromia State Park.
Emperor Haile Selassie I obtained his first mount from the Kundudo pack 107 years ago. This makes them the oldest known feral horse population in Africa.
The herd has been the focus since 2008 of six Italian and Italo-British ecologic mission to try and save it and offer locals economic alternatives to the peculiar area's destruction. Prof. Viganò, mission's head, has been given a charge to attempt a rapid intervention from the Ethiopian Environment Protection Agency, later by the Oromia Tourism Commissioner.
The Addis Ababa office of the UNEP is monitoring his attempt.
A second mission in March 2008 has revealed the whereabouts of the captive horses and found rock paintings in a cave in the mountain complex, giving rise to hopes of future tourism development in the area.
Seven horses were reported as then freed and presently on the amba's top by the Addis Ababa based GAG, a local interest group for the preservation of the Kundudo range and promote the Gursum area.
A major Italian aid organization is preparing a medium size aid programme that stems from the research. A series of related activities are being created to save the herd and promote the area as the end point of a tourist route named "the Extended East Route" to include Harar, the Awash National Park
, the Kuni-Muktar Mountain Nyala Sanctuary
and some other destinations of cultural, nature and historic interest in the East of Ethiopia, forming a destination cluster with Harar itself, including Koremi village, the Babille Elephant Sanctuary (or Harar Wildlife Sanctuary
) and the nearby Dhakata valley, a number of rock painting locations between Harar and the Kundudo itself.
Amba (geology)
An amba is a characteristic geologic form in Ethiopia. It is a steep sided, flat topped mountain, often the site of villages, wells and their surrounding farmland. These settlements were located there because they were very defensible and often virtually inaccessible plateaus.The original term in...
) located in the Misraq (Eastern) Hararghe Zone
Misraq Hararghe Zone
Misraq Hararghe is one of the 17 Zones of the Ethiopian Region of Oromia. Misraq Hararge takes its name from the former province of Hararghe. Misraq Hararge is bordered on the southwest by the Shebelle River which separates it from Bale, on the west by Mirab Hararghe, on the north by Dire Dawa and...
of the Oromia
Oromia Region
Oromia is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia...
region
Regions of Ethiopia
||Ethiopia is divided into 9 ethnically-based administrative regions and two chartered cities...
of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. Part of the eight mile range that bears its name, its summit lies east of the walled city of Harar
Harar
Harar is an eastern city in Ethiopia, and the capital of the modern Harari ethno-political division of Ethiopia...
, with a height of nearly 3,000 metres.
In the same range, the Goba tarara (a term for mountain) holds a vast cave known since the nineteen hundreds, whilst at the southern end the Stinico tarara holds ancient engravings, unknown until 2008, in two recently studied small open caves. The summit is a flat grassland thirteen hectares in area, and is the habitat of the only remaining feral horse
Feral horse
A feral horse is a free-roaming horse of domesticated ancestry. As such, a feral horse is not a wild animal in the sense of an animal without domesticated ancestors. However, some populations of feral horses are managed as wildlife, and these horses often are popularly called "wild" horses...
population of East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
, one of only two on the continent.
Below Kondudo lie the localities of Fugnan Bira
Fugnan Bira
Fugnan Bira is a town in east-central Ethiopia. It is commonly known by its more recent name, Gursum. Located in the Misraq Hararghe Zone of the Oromia Region, on a high plateau at the southern base of Mount Kondudo, which gives the town a climate similar to Harar...
(also named Gursum), Day Feres, Fugnan Hujuba, Ejersa Goro
Ejersa Goro
Ejersa Goro is a town in eastern Ethiopia. Located outside the city of Harar in the Misraq Hararghe Zone of the Oromia Region, it has a latitude and longitude of and an elevation of 2780 meters above sea level...
, Bedada, Goba, Sakhare and Yaya Guda. Nearby is also a shrine and a singular design mosque named by the locals after Sheikh Adem Goba.
Human history
This mountain was mentioned by the British explorer Richard F. Burton, whose party traveled along its northern base January 1854, on their way to HararHarar
Harar is an eastern city in Ethiopia, and the capital of the modern Harari ethno-political division of Ethiopia...
.
On February 13/14 2009 a group of six Italian and French speleologists explored a newly found cave of international interest. The cave is classified amongst the best five on the continent and is the only one in Ethiopia to contain a full variety of active speleothem
Speleothem
A speleothem , commonly known as a cave formation, is a secondary mineral deposit formed in a cave. Speleothems are typically formed in limestone or dolostone solutional caves.-Origin and composition:...
kinds, or significant cave rock formations.. The Kundudo limestone layers have been indicated by Prof. Viganó to contain more similar caves and vast fossil fields. As a consequence of these discoveries the whole area is being proposed for the constitution of an Oromia State Park.
The horses of Kundudo
The herd is less than ten strong and is threatened by extinction. Four local peasants in Bedada and Goba have been trying to tame them and have sold the docile colts; livestock is now grazing the top of the amba. The ruins of an ancient undated mosque on the amba has been transformed into a cattle pen.Emperor Haile Selassie I obtained his first mount from the Kundudo pack 107 years ago. This makes them the oldest known feral horse population in Africa.
The Addis Ababa office of the UNEP is monitoring his attempt.
A second mission in March 2008 has revealed the whereabouts of the captive horses and found rock paintings in a cave in the mountain complex, giving rise to hopes of future tourism development in the area.
A major Italian aid organization is preparing a medium size aid programme that stems from the research. A series of related activities are being created to save the herd and promote the area as the end point of a tourist route named "the Extended East Route" to include Harar, the Awash National Park
Awash National Park
Awash National Park is one of the National Parks of Ethiopia. Located at the southern tip of the Afar Region, this park is 225 kilometers east of Addis Ababa , with its southern boundary along the Awash River, and covers at least 756 square kilometers of acacia woodland and grassland...
, the Kuni-Muktar Mountain Nyala Sanctuary
Kuni-Muktar Mountain Nyala Sanctuary
Kuni-Muktar Mountain Nyala Sanctuary is a protected area and wildlife sanctuary in Ethiopia. It was set up in 1989 through the intervention of the Zoological Society of London to safeguard a small decreasing population of the critically endangered Tragelaphus buxtoni or Mountain Nyala.Mountain...
and some other destinations of cultural, nature and historic interest in the East of Ethiopia, forming a destination cluster with Harar itself, including Koremi village, the Babille Elephant Sanctuary (or Harar Wildlife Sanctuary
Harar Wildlife Sanctuary
The Harar Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area in Ethiopia. It is located in the Misraq Hararghe Zone of the Oromia Region, south of Babille, with a central latitude and longitude of ....
) and the nearby Dhakata valley, a number of rock painting locations between Harar and the Kundudo itself.