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The Mababe Depression which stretches w to the Eastern horizon as a flat and featureless plain, is in fact the bed of the original super-lake.
On the Western side of the Mababe Depression one can see the Mopane woodland and on the eastern side mainly Acacia scrub and Cadaba termitaria scrub, which recently encroached into the original lake area. The Savuti Marsh is the deepest part of the Mababe Depression and is the only part to have filled up with water in recent times. The dead trees on the marsh are the result of drowning, which is closely related to the flooding and drying up of the Savuti channel.
The Mababe Depression
is fed mainly by the Savuti channel, the Ngwezumba river that flows from the northeast (Nogatsaa area), and by channels from the delta. The delta channels have not flowed for decades and the Ngwezumba hardly ever reaches the Mababe Depression, but the Savuti channel does flow at intervals, spilling its water into the Savuti Marsh.
When the depression has received its first rain and has turned to a carpet of green, hundreds of thousands of animals are drawn to it. Zebra, impala, hartebeest, wildebeest, kudu, warthog, buffalo, lion, leopard, hyena, and jackal are but a few of the bewildering variety of animals to be seen.
The Mababe Depression lies at the heart of Chobe District and represents many things that are unusual, exciting and interesting in the District. It covers a wide spectrum of country: flood-plain, periodic marsh, riverine forest, mopane and miombo woodland and several rocky outcrops or kopjes. Travelling can be difficult during the rainy season and an experienced tour operator such as Bush Ways safaris is recommended!
A wide variety of wildlife is found in the park, ranging from dry-land species such as elephant (large herds), buffalo, giraffe, zebra and eland to water animals such as hippopotamus, crocodile, otter and fish. In all areas predators abound, including lion, cheetah, leopard and both species of hyena. The Savuti area has particularly strong populations of predators and annual the zebra migration provides excellent photographic opportunities. It is extraordinary to note that over 450 bird species have been documented in the park.
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