About Destination
Liuwa Plains National Park extends in the Western Province of Zambia, west of the Barotse Floodplain of the Zambezi River next to the border with Angola. The Park was appointed as a reserve of Barotseland by the king, Lewanika, in the nineteenth century and later became a National Park in 1972. The area covers 3600 km2 and has been an African Parks project since 2003 through a partnership with the Zambian Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) and the Barotse Royal Establishment – the traditional government of the Lozi people. Liuwa Plains is situated on the upper Zambezi floodplains of western Zambia and is bounded by the Luambimba and Lunginga Rivers. Liuwa is characterized by seasonally flooded grassy plains dotted with woodland islands. Liuwa entertains the second biggest wildebeest migration in the world, giving magnificent sights of maltitude of animals.
Herds of lechwe zebra and, tsessebe, also graze the plains and are all hunted by predators such as wild dog, cheetah, lion, and hyena, Many people will know the story of the famous lioness known as lady Liuwa. For nine years she roamed the expansive plains alone after massive poaching, and illegal trophy hunting had wiped out her fellow felines. This led to African Parks’ strategy to re-introduce lions to the park, using Lady Liuwa as the vital member around which to develop the pride. Last year three lion cubs were born, the first born in Liuwa in a decade. The birth of cubs means that Liuwa now boasts a lion population of six. Liuwa also supports globally essential bird populations, with more than 330 bird species recorded here.