Jacqueline L Raw, Nelson Mandela University In the past, wetlands were often seen as undesirable landscapes – waterlogged areas that were difficult to navigate, impossible to build on or farm, and a source of pests such as mosquitoes. But the … Read more
De Berg’s spectacular landscapes (Photograph: Hannes Marais) The big news is that De Berg Nature Reserve was designated a Ramsar site on 2 February 2024—World Wetlands Day. Northam Platinum created the reserve in fulfilment of some of the conditions of … Read more
BirdLife Africa’s Dr Kyle Lloyd outlines the case of the White-winged Flufftail. In honour of World Wetlands Day this month, Dr Kyle Lloyd, Wetland Conservation Project Manager and Rockjumper Fellow of White-Winged Flufftail Conservation, presented a webinar on the current … Read more
Editor’s Note: New research is looking at how Blue Cranes are colonising a new ecosystem — farmland in the Western Cape. The removal of fynbos seems to play a role, which correlates to the view that cranes don’t like bushy … Read more
Alan Lee, Ian Davies, and Carrie Seltzer profile iNaturalist, eBird and the African Bird Atlas Project. With a limited number of conservationists and ornithologists across Africa, the importance of the contributions of citizen scientists to our understanding of birds cannot … Read more
Good news for the White-winged Flufftail as this is its only confirmed breeding site in South Africa. A White-winged Flufftail glides over the sedge meadows at Middelpunt Wetland (Photograph: Kyle Lloyd) The White-winged Flufftail (Sarothrura ayresi) is listed as globally … Read more
A further 7 448 hectares have been added to the existing area. Wetlands and rocky outcrops are some of the microhabitats within the protected environment, hosting threatened and endemic species specialised for these niches (Photograph: Kyle Lloyd) The Greater Lakenvlei … Read more
It’s not a pretty picture–but at least we know where we are. “There is growing concern that South African protected areas, which contain high biological density, are not fulfilling their conservation objectives”, begins this useful and rather perturbing study. It’s … Read more
Figures show the outflows from the reserve after a summer with somewhat lower rains. Thanks to Hannes Marais and Jannie Coetzee, we have the next lot of water data from Verloren Valei. As the data accumulates, it will become more … Read more
The recent Geology and Grasses field trip challenged participants to look at the natural environment broadly. On 25 February 2023, a group of seven set off to explore the geology and grasses of Verloren Valei. The field trip was led … Read more
