Quissama National Park, National park in Bengo, Angola.
Quissama National Park covers 9,600 km² in Quissama municipality, Luanda Province, bounded by the Cuanza River to the north, the Longa River to the south and 120 km of Atlantic coast to the west. Its vegetation runs from mangroves and dense forest along the Cuanza to savanna, scattered trees, cacti and baobabs inland. The park has a visitor centre, a guesthouse and several bungalows.
The area began as a hunting reserve in 1938 and was later transformed into a national park during the 1950s under Portuguese colonial administration. This shift marked the transition from active hunting grounds to a wildlife protection zone.
The park's name Quiçama is rendered in English as Kissama, Kisama or Quicama, with Kissama closest to the Portuguese pronunciation. Inside the park, small villages such as Cassebo, Quindembele, Mucolo and Galinda once relied on water from small ponds and intermittent streams like those at Pitchi and Gunza Demba. Cattle ranches at Sangano and Cabo Ledo pumped water from the Cuanza and built earthen dams called chimpacas.
The park lies about 70–75 km south of Luanda, with the Cuanza River as its northern limit and the Longa River as its southern one; the Atlantic forms 120 km of western coast. Visitors stay at an on-site guesthouse and bungalows. Access is by road from Luanda, and the coastal and river boundaries make a guide advisable.
In a major effort in 2001, elephants, zebras, and antelopes were reintroduced to the park from southern African countries. This reintroduction was an attempt to restore animal populations that once roamed the region.
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