| Thula Thula Private Game Reserve | |
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| Location | KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa |
| Area | 1500ha |
| Established | 1911 |
| Official website | |
Thula Thula Private Game Reserve is a private game reserve situated in Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa.
Thula Thula means ‘peace and tranquility’ in Zulu.
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Thula Thula was once the private hunting grounds of the mighty Zulu Warrior, King Shaka. The first historic meeting between Shaka and his father, Senzangakhona, which set the stage for the creation of the Zulu Nation.[1] took place at the Nseleni River at Thula Thula.
The land became a game reserve in 1911 and is believed to be the oldest private game reserve in KwaZulu-Natal.
Thula Thula is owned by international conservationist and founder of the Earth Organization, Lawrence Anthony,[2] and his wife Francoise Malby-Anthony. The reserve is the scene for Lawrence's book The Elephant Whisperer[3] which was published in April 2009. In March 2007 Lawrence also published Babylon's Ark[4] which tells of the rescue of the Baghdad zoo, during the US lead Coalition invasion of Iraq.
Thula Thula is home to a wide variety of animals, including African elephant, buffalo, white rhino, leopard, giraffe, zebra, nyala, hyena, crocodile, kudu, wildebeest as well as other indigenous species. Over 350 species of birdlife has been identified, including raptors and vultures.
In 1999 Lawrence Anthony was asked to accept a herd of 'rogue' wild elephants from Mpumalanga onto Thula Thula which were destined to be shot unless alternative arrangements could be made. The herd was housed in a boma on Thula Thula but managed to break free and escape. The elephants were successfully tracked, recovered and transported back to Thula Thula. The story of their rehabilitation and Lawrence's subsequent relationship with the herd is told in his book The Elephant Whisperer. The elephant herd, including Nana, Frankie and Mabula are still at Thula Thula.[5]