Levubu, Limpopo

Levubu is situated in a sub-tropical fruit Farming Area in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Fruit such as litchis, avocados and bananas, as well as pecans and macadamia nuts are grown in the fertile Valley which lies East to West along the Soutpansberg Mountains in the northern Limpopo Province. Several fruit and nut processing facilities operate in the area producing nut oils, flour and dried fruit. The Town is about 100 km West of the Kruger National Park’s Punda Maria gate. (The name Punda Maria is a bastardisation of the Swahili word for zebra, which is 'Punda Miliya'. The name of the camp was coined in 1919 by the first ranger in charge of the area, JJ "Ou Kat" Coetser, who named it after his wife, Maria. After representations from the Coetser family in 1979, the original name was restored.) The Area has two major Rivers, the Lotonyanda and Levubu rivers, both fringed by forests filled with birdlife. The Levubu Area boasts around 300 species of birds, including Purple-crested turacos, African green pigeons and Kingfishers. African paradise flycatcher is a common visitor in the summer as well as the Grey-headed parrot, which is in the Area from August to November.