Walia Special Edition on the Bale Mountains (2011) - Zoologische ...

water is located close to the hot spring, as are two small caves in the cliff. The site is used for Muda,
a thanksgiving celebration in which people gather together all their possessions (livestock, honey,
etc.) and give thanks to god for them. The celebration usually occurs in places of particular natural
beauty, history or with unusual properties. The hot spring is also visited by wildlife, probably as a
clay-lick due to formation of salt crusts on the cliffs. Finally, in Ordoba a small hora (hora Chakota)
of good quality (2 mS of electrical conductivity) is found but it is used little.
Figure 3. The only hot spring found within the park boundary, Tabala Sof Omar. The water in the
spring was traditionally used for healing skin diseases but is currently little used as the settlements
in the Ordoba region were abandoned.
Hawo
Among the nine horas found in Hawo (and Haro Gurratti), Dofo (Fig. 4a) and Waticha (Fig. 4b) are
by far the most important and most intensively used. Their quality is highly valued and the sites are
known and used by people living as far as Angetu and Adaba. Together with hora Dokke’ in Addeye,
these horas rank as the best in the forest according to communities. Batu Tiqo, Batu Gudo and Guge
are also used, but less intensively, while the other horas in the area are mostly unused.
4(a) 4(b)
Figure 4. Hora Dofo (a) and Hora Wachita (b) are two of the nine springs found in Hawo and are by
far the most important and intensively used springs in the Harenna. They are considered to be high
value and are used from people living as far as Angetu and Adaba.
<strong>Walia</strong>-<strong>Special</strong> <strong>Edition</strong> on the Bale Mountains 230