Recent Posts

By Mike Zingel On a cold, wet yet bracing autumn morning recently, a dozen bird dogs, accompanied by their handlers from the South African Field Trial Club (SAFTC), reserve guides and keen observers, set out across the slopes of the Verloren Valei … Read more

A recent paper suggests that the Pale-Crowned Cisticola is not quite as rare as previously supposed. The Pale-Crowned Cisticola is part of a large group of small brown birds that inhabit grasslands in both the high- and lowvelds—the classic LBJ … Read more

Several species of orchids found at Verloren Valei flower before the summer rains fall, thus acting as true harbingers of spring—effectively risking the “capital” they built up during the previous season on the expectation that the rains will come. Most … Read more

Mining poses severe threats to wetlands in particular. Unfortunately, Verloren Valei is situated in an area rich in minerals. We need to be alive to the dangers, particularly as illegal mining operations are becoming more common. Without water there would … Read more

Over 90 species of butterflies have been recorded at Verloren Valei—and it is the only place the rare Warren’s Blue occurs. More proof, if any were needed, of the pivotal role this small reserve plays in preserving South Africa’s biodiversity. … Read more

During the course of winter 2016, a team from the Escarpment Bird Club scoped the Verloren Valei area for bird species as part of an ongoing project to create an atlas of Southern Africa’s birds. By Alan Hatton, Escarpment Bird … Read more