Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden, Botanical garden in Gauteng, South Africa.
The Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden is a 300-hectare reserve in western Roodepoort, near Johannesburg. It covers three vegetation types: Northern Afrotemperate Forest, Egoli Granite Grassland and Gold Reef Mountain Bushveld, with over 600 naturally occurring plant species. The Roodekrans ridge, banded with quartz and shale, rises behind the gardens, and a waterfall on the reserve drops beside broad lawns.
The garden was founded in 1982 to protect and make accessible South African plant species. It received its name in honor of Walter Sisulu, a prominent opponent of the apartheid system.
The garden is named after Walter Sisulu, the anti-apartheid leader and former ANC deputy president. Its earlier name, Witwatersrand National Botanical Garden, referred to the region. The garden's Verreaux's eagle pair are named in African languages: the female Makatsa means "surprise" in Sotho and the male Mahlori means "miracle" in Tsonga.
The entrance gate and parking area are on Beacon Road in Poortview, Roodepoort. Paths lead from the garden lawns to the Witpoortjie Waterfall below the Roodekrans ridge, where the quartz-and-shale rock layers are visible. A restaurant, gift shop and bird hide overlooking a small dam are on the grounds.
The resident Verreaux's eagles are Makatsa, present since 2016, and Mahlori, who arrived in July 2019. Their nest sits about 100 metres from the older nest sites, near the waterfall over the Roodekrans ridge. Mahlori killed Makatsa's chick on 4 August 2019, and by June 2023 the pair had raised a fourth chick in four years.
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