Ngoma
Encyclopedia
Ngoma, Zambia
is the only settlement in the south of Kafue National Park
. It is a short way south of Itezhi-Tezhi Dam
. Ngoma is the home of the head warden for the south half of the park, and for around 200 game warden
s and their families employed by ZAWA (Zambian Wildlife Authority). There is a small information centre about the local wildlife, and in the village is Ngoma Basic School.
Ngoma lodge shut down many years ago, when poaching
killed most of the animals in the area. The numbers of animals are now at least stable, if not increasing, thanks to the efforts of the underpaid game wardens, and the lodge may one day re-open.
Ngoma has a limited electricity supply. This electricity is hooked up to some homes, but the main use is to power the water pump. Ngoma has a borehole so the water does not need boiling or purifying. It can be obtained by a manual pump at any time or by taps spaced around the village when the electricity is working.
The roads to Ngoma and Itezhi-Tezhi are awful; once they were well graded in gravel but now they have many potholes. To add to the inevitable bumpiness there are huge swarms of tsetse flies
that have very painful bites and spread sleeping sickness, and will attack at any opportunity. There is an airstrip just south of Ngoma to save this unpleasant journey.
Ngoma is frequented by a large herd of impala
, as well as many bushbuck
and frequently elephant
s. There are groups of vervet monkey
s living in the trees above the village and leopard
s sometimes walk through the village at night.
Close by, there are many other species of animal, including puku
, reedbuck
, waterbuck
, sable
and roan antelope
, eland
, hartebeest
, wildebeest
, kudu
, zebra
, warthog
, lion
, serval
, wild cat
, hyena
, jackal
and, at night, springhare
and porcupine
. Birdlife in the village is impressive, with fish eagle
s and bateleur
s flying over frequently, and many species of kingfisher
and hornbill
living around the local river.
The river that flows past Ngoma is the Nkala. In the dry season it has a well defined course and can dry up complelety, but in the wet season it spreads out over the surrounding plains. Crocodile
s live in the river, although it doesn't get deep enough for hippo
s. Hippos can be found in Lake Itezhi-Tezhi though.
In the local area there are three hills. They are over 1100m above sea level, but the plains around Ngoma are at around 1000m so they are not realistically very high. From Ngoma it is possible to see and walk to Nakalombwe Hill, and behind Ngoma across the river is Nkala Hill. A little way off there is a hill known as the Screaming Chicken Hill. It is possible that this name comes from a tribal
ritual
, although this is just speculation.
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
is the only settlement in the south of Kafue National Park
Kafue National Park
Kafue National Park is the largest national park in Zambia, covering an area of about 22,400 km² . It is the second largest park in Africa and is home to over 55 different species of animals....
. It is a short way south of Itezhi-Tezhi Dam
Itezhi-Tezhi Dam
The Itezhi-Tezhi Dam on the Kafue River in west-central Zambia was built between 1974 and 1977 at the Itezhi-Tezhi Gap, in a range of hills through which the river had eroded a narrow valley, leading to the broad expanse of the wetlands known as the Kafue Flats...
. Ngoma is the home of the head warden for the south half of the park, and for around 200 game warden
Game warden
A game warden is an employee who has the role of protecting wildlife. Game wardens may also be referred to as conservation officers or wildlife officers...
s and their families employed by ZAWA (Zambian Wildlife Authority). There is a small information centre about the local wildlife, and in the village is Ngoma Basic School.
Ngoma lodge shut down many years ago, when poaching
Poaching
Poaching is the illegal taking of wild plants or animals contrary to local and international conservation and wildlife management laws. Violations of hunting laws and regulations are normally punishable by law and, collectively, such violations are known as poaching.It may be illegal and in...
killed most of the animals in the area. The numbers of animals are now at least stable, if not increasing, thanks to the efforts of the underpaid game wardens, and the lodge may one day re-open.
Ngoma has a limited electricity supply. This electricity is hooked up to some homes, but the main use is to power the water pump. Ngoma has a borehole so the water does not need boiling or purifying. It can be obtained by a manual pump at any time or by taps spaced around the village when the electricity is working.
The roads to Ngoma and Itezhi-Tezhi are awful; once they were well graded in gravel but now they have many potholes. To add to the inevitable bumpiness there are huge swarms of tsetse flies
Tsetse fly
Tsetse , sometimes spelled tzetze and also known as tik-tik flies, are large biting flies that inhabit much of mid-continental Africa between the Sahara and the Kalahari deserts. They live by feeding on the blood of vertebrate animals and are the primary biological vectors of trypanosomes, which...
that have very painful bites and spread sleeping sickness, and will attack at any opportunity. There is an airstrip just south of Ngoma to save this unpleasant journey.
Ngoma is frequented by a large herd of impala
Impala
An impala is a medium-sized African antelope. The name impala comes from the Zulu language meaning "gazelle"...
, as well as many bushbuck
Bushbuck
The bushbuck is the most widespread antelope in Sub-Saharan Africa, and is found in rain forests, montane forests, forest-savanna mosaics and bush savannaforest and woodland. Recently, genetic studies have shown that the bushbuck, is in fact a complex of two geographically and phenotypically...
and frequently elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
s. There are groups of vervet monkey
Vervet Monkey
The vervet monkey , or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus Chlorocebus....
s living in the trees above the village and leopard
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
s sometimes walk through the village at night.
Close by, there are many other species of animal, including puku
Puku
The Puku is an antelope found in wet grasslands in southern Democratic Republic of Congo, in Namibia and in Zambia.Puku stand about 80 centimetres at the shoulder and weigh from 70 to 80 kilograms. Puku are sandy brown in colour, the underbelly is a slightly lighter brown...
, reedbuck
Reedbuck
Reedbuck is a common name for African antelopes from the genus Redunca. These species are:* Southern Reedbuck, Redunca arundinum* Mountain Reedbuck, Redunca fulvorufula* Bohor Reedbuck, Redunca redunca...
, waterbuck
Waterbuck
The Waterbuck is a large antelope found widely in Sub-Saharan Africa.Waterbuck stand at the shoulder. Males weigh and females . Their coats are reddish brown in colour and become progressively darker with age; they have a white 'bib' under their throats and white on their rumps...
, sable
Sable Antelope
The Sable Antelope is an antelope which inhabits wooded savannah in East Africa south of Kenya, and in Southern Africa.-Subspecies:There are four subspecies:* H. n. niger which is considered low risk conservation dependent...
and roan antelope
Roan Antelope
The Roan Antelope is a savanna antelope found in West, Central, East Africa and Southern Africa.Roan Antelope stand about a metre and half at the shoulder and weigh around 250 kilograms. Named for the "roan' colour , they have a lighter underbelly, white eyebrows and cheeks and a black face,...
, eland
Taurotragus
Taurotragus, commonly called Eland, is a genus of antelopes of the African savannah, containing two species: the Common Eland and the Giant Eland...
, hartebeest
Hartebeest
The hartebeest is a grassland antelope found in West Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa. It is one of the three species classified in the genus Alcelaphus....
, wildebeest
Wildebeest
The wildebeest , also called the gnu is an antelope of the genus Connochaetes. It is a hooved mammal...
, kudu
Kudu
The kudus are two species of antelope of the genus Tragelaphus:*Lesser Kudu, Tragelaphus imberbis*Greater Kudu, Tragelaphus strepsiceros- Etymology :...
, zebra
Zebra
Zebras are several species of African equids united by their distinctive black and white stripes. Their stripes come in different patterns unique to each individual. They are generally social animals that live in small harems to large herds...
, warthog
Warthog
The Warthog or Common Warthog is a wild member of the pig family that lives in grassland, savanna, and woodland in Sub-Saharan Africa. In the past it was commonly treated as a subspecies of P...
, lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
, serval
Serval
The serval , Leptailurus serval or Caracal serval, known in Afrikaans as Tierboskat, "tiger-forest-cat", is a medium-sized African wild cat. DNA studies have shown that the serval is closely related to the African golden cat and the caracal...
, wild cat
Wild cat
The wildcat is a small cat with several subspecies and a very broad distribution, found throughout most of Africa, Europe, and southwest and central Asia into India, China, and Mongolia. It is a hunter of small mammals, birds, and other creatures of a similar or smaller size. Sometimes included is...
, hyena
Hyena
Hyenas or Hyaenas are the animals of the family Hyaenidae of suborder feliforms of the Carnivora. It is the fourth smallest biological family in the Carnivora , and one of the smallest in the mammalia...
, jackal
Jackal
Although the word jackal has been historically used to refer to many small- to medium-sized species of the wolf genus of mammals, Canis, today it most properly and commonly refers to three species: the black-backed jackal and the side-striped jackal of sub-Saharan Africa, and the golden jackal of...
and, at night, springhare
Springhare
The springhare , or springhaas, is not actually a hare, but a member of the order Rodentia. It is one of a number of species in the genus Pedetes, and is native to southern Africa. Synonyms are P. caffer or P...
and porcupine
Porcupine
Porcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend or camouflage them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, southern Asia, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about long, with...
. Birdlife in the village is impressive, with fish eagle
Fish Eagle
Fish eagle can refer to several birds:*African Fish Eagle, Haliaeetus vocifer*Sanford's Fish Eagle, Haliaeetus sanfordi*Madagascar Fish Eagle, Haliaeetus vociferoides*Lesser Fish Eagle, Ichthyophaga humilis...
s and bateleur
Bateleur
The Bateleur is a medium-sized eagle in the bird family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as buzzards, kites and harriers...
s flying over frequently, and many species of kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a group of small to medium sized brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species being found in the Old World and Australia...
and hornbill
Hornbill
Hornbills are a family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly-colored and sometimes has a casque on the upper mandible. Both the common English and the scientific name of the family...
living around the local river.
The river that flows past Ngoma is the Nkala. In the dry season it has a well defined course and can dry up complelety, but in the wet season it spreads out over the surrounding plains. Crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s live in the river, although it doesn't get deep enough for hippo
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...
s. Hippos can be found in Lake Itezhi-Tezhi though.
In the local area there are three hills. They are over 1100m above sea level, but the plains around Ngoma are at around 1000m so they are not realistically very high. From Ngoma it is possible to see and walk to Nakalombwe Hill, and behind Ngoma across the river is Nkala Hill. A little way off there is a hill known as the Screaming Chicken Hill. It is possible that this name comes from a tribal
Tribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
ritual
Ritual
A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value. It may be prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. The term usually excludes actions which are arbitrarily chosen by the performers....
, although this is just speculation.