Kruger's historic Southern Region is bordered by the Crocodile River in the south and the Sabie River in the north. In the east, along the border with Mozambique, the Lebombo form a rugged ridge of rhyolite. Altitude varies from 140 metres in the east to 600 metres around Pretoriuskop in the west. In the southwestern corner near Berg-en-dal Camp, Khandzalive, the highest point in the Park, rises to 839 metres.
In its sheltered valleys specimens of trees which are rare elsewhere in Kruger, such as Cape chestnut (Calodendrum capense), white pear (Apodytes dimidiata), coral tree (Erythrina lysistemon), lavender fever-berry (Croton gratissimus) and mountain seringa (Kirkia wilmsii) can be found.
Most of Kruger's white rhino occur in the Southern Region. The best sightings are around Pretoriuskop, Mbyamiti River, and south of Lower Sabie.
As annual rainfall here is high for the Park, averaging 744 millimetres, grass grew profusely and large herds of grazers were drawn to the area.
Giraffe are little affected by severe drought conditions, and survive by concentrating their feeding patterns along river banks. Other mammals and birds are also drawn to the riverbeds, for a variety of reasons. Fruit-bearing trees such as wild figs and jackal-berries are common here and attract fruit-eating birds. An accumulation of clay along river courses yields sweet grasses, and the presence of trees like the brack thorn (Acacia robusta) and buffalo thorn (Ziziphus mucronata) attracts a variety of browsers.
The Sabie River, and the corridor of riverine bush that grows luxuriantly along its banks, provides essential habitat for a wide diversity of game including hippo, bushbuck, kudu, waterbuck, grey duiker, vervet monkey, baboon, elephant, buffalo, lion and leopard. The 43-kilometre road between Skukuza, the Park's headquarters and its largest camp, and Lower Sabie, one of the most popular and picturesque camps, is the most popular game-viewing road in the whole of Kruger.
Hippos play an important role in the ecology of the Sabie River.
The river is home to in the region of 600 hippo, a large population of crocodiles and the Lowveld largemouth (Serranochromis meridianus), an olive-brown endemic fish weighing up to 1.2 kilograms,
The Park are the purplecrested lourie, green pigeon, African finfoot, African goshawk, fish eagle, whitecrowned plover, black duck, halfcollared kingfisher, whitefronted bee-eater, trumpeter hornbill, Natal robin and bearded robin.
Seasonal Rivers
The appealing Mbyamiti is the largest of these rivers and its catchment falls entirely within the Park. Other important water courses in the region include the N'watimhiri, N'waswitshaka, Mtshawu, Mlambabe and Vurhami.
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