Tag Archives: indigenous plants

Winter Walks in World’s View

A party of five went on a CREW outing to World’s View recently. Some of the grasslands in the conservancy had been burned several weeks ago and it was a good time to see the early emerging plants. Rogan Roth took this pic of the group.

Alison Young compiled this report and took the rest of the pictures. Lots of magnificent Boophone disticha (Seerooglelie) were in flower. They flower much better after a fire. The Afrikaans name refers to the effects the pollen has if you get it into your eyes.

Bright yellow Gnidia kraussiana plants brighten up the burnt veld in early spring.

Rotheca caerulium or Wild Violets waiting to burst into bloom.

Helichrysum alloides in bud.

Lots of Merwilla kraussii or Dwarf Scillas on the rocky crags above the grassland.

A winter flowering Moraea hiemalis which flowers for a short spell in July.

Then on 31 July, Howard Richardson led the inaugural regular walk that World’s View will be hosting on the last Thursday of every month.

The howling wind didn’t deter anyone as they set off to explore the grassland.

Among the plants they spotted was Aloe maculata Common Soap Aloe

Many participants were astonished to discover this little know piece of wilderness right on their doorstep.

Don’t miss the next World’s View Walk on 28 August – book your place with Howard on 083 591 0079. Donation R20 to world’s View Conservancy.

Midlands Wildflower for July – Aloe maculata

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Common name: Soap Aloe, Zulu names: icena, amahlala, Sotho name: lekhala, Afrikaans name: Bontaalwyn

Winter days are not particularly dreary in the Midlands, however a splash of orange in the faded grasslands is always delight. Aloe maculata, can be relied on to provide that. The flat-topped inflorescence can have many branches, each topped with flowers ranging from red, through orange to yellow. Young buds are erect with older flowers drooping.

The broad, recurved leaves are triangular shaped and this aloe usually has no stem, although a short stem does form over a long period of time. The leaves have brown teeth along the margin and are spotted (maculata means ‘splotched’), making them pretty easy to identify even though they occur in a variety of habitats – including rocky out crops, open grassland and thicket.

In traditional medicine, crushed leaf infusions are used as enemas following the use of other purgative medicines. Reports include use of stems and leaves, in powdered and infusion form, as cleansing agents after the ingestion of too much food, alcohol or narcotics. This plant is the logo of the Mpophomeni Conservation Group – where it is flowering profusely at the moment, despite being burnt.

Why not join the regular walk on the second Tuesday of each month, to explore Mpophomeni grasslands for yourself? Book with Penelope Malinga 0084 226 5227 Donation R20 to MCG.

Thanks to Penelope Malinga, Christeen Grant and Nkululeko Mdladla for the photogaphs.

Boston Wildlife Sightings – June 2014

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Christeen Grant – Sitamani

June has been a month of wonderful surprises!

In the early hours of the 15 June, gusty wind blew in the darkness outside my window. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a whitish shape flash past and thumping noises on the verandah, but thought it was just wind blown objects. Then a definite bump on the windowpane and two bright eyes beneath large ears revealed a Serval kitten, who seemed intent on trying to get in. When I got up for a closer look it looked back at me then ran off into the darkness. Two weeks later at 6.30am on 27 June, before sunrise, what I think was the same kitten, was dozing beneath the bay tree outside the kitchen door. This time it stayed long enough for me to photograph it!

The day before a family of three Mountain Reedbuck, a male, female and a youngster; grazed near the garages in the afternoon. My apologies for the poor images, but I only had my cell phone on me.

On the 6 June we awoke to a winter wonderland.

June has been a delight of bird sightings. A winter wash of White-eyes,

Dark-capped Bulbuls,

Cape Canaries and Drongos enjoying the bird bath.

The Speckled Pigeons love preening in the sunshine on top of the roof

and Cape Turtle Doves forage on the lawn.

One morning I watched an African Harrier-hawk swoop from tree to tree. The Fish Eagles iconic call floats up from the valley on most days.

Careful inspection of flowers and fallen leaves revealed a Bee about to enter an aloe flower

and a Gaudy Commodore (winter form).

Bared branches reveal colourful lichen.

A few flowers caught my eye, Aloe maculata, Common Soap Aloe;

Buddleja dysophylla with dainty white drifts of blossom

and Euryops laxa’s yellow star-like flowers in the dry grass.

Searsia dentata leaves glow in russet colours.

Crystelle Wilson – Gramarye

Birding in winter is hard work and it is not easy to get more than 60 species on an atlas card. Some birds migrate to Europe or Africa north of the equator, following summer, while others do altitudinal migration to the coast. Like I did for most of the month, hence only a short list for this month! Most of the widowbird, weaver and bishop males have lost their breeding colours and it is more difficult to distinguish between species. The Pintailed Whydah male is also far less aggressive at the feeding table. The Black-winged Lapwings were also still present in the district.

The list for Elandshoek pentad 2935_3000: African Hoopoe, Red-eyed Dove, Cape Turtle Dove, Hadeda Ibis, Cape Crow, Cape Sparrow,

Village Weaver, Black-headed Oriole, Common Fiscal, Helmeted Guineafowl, Southern Greyheaded Sparrow, African Pipit, Egyptian Goose, South African Shelduck, Spur-winged Goose, African Stonechat, Speckled Mousebird, Drakensberg Prinia, Dark-capped Bulbul, Fork-tailed Drongo, Cape Robin-Chat, Cape White-eye, Grey Crowned Crane, Giant Kingfisher, Yellow-billed Duck, Green Wood-hoopoe, Long-crested Eagle,

African Firefinch, Red-necked Spurfowl, Red-throated Wryneck, Cape Longclaw, Black Sparrowhawk, African Rail, Le Vaillant’s Cisticola, Common Waxbill, Fan-tailed Widowbird, African Sacred Ibis, Black-headed Heron, Pin-tailed Whydah,

Southern Boubou, Bokmakierie, Red-knobbed Coot, Common Moorhen, Southern Red Bishop, Red-billed Quelea, Cape Glossy Starling, Little Grebe, Brown-throated Martin, Jackal Buzzard, Sombre Greenbul, Red-winged Starling, Speckled Pigeon, House Sparrow, Pied Starling, Black-winged Lapwing, Reed Cormorant, African Dusky Flycatcher, Red-capped Lark, African Darter, Cape Wagtail.

Boston Wildlife Sightings – May 2014

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Christeen Grant – Sitamani
We have had truly stunning weather during May, an Indian Summer. Brilliant blue skies and amazing dawn and sunsets.

Bees have been congregating wherever there has been water, puddles and even taps, as it’s been so dry. I have seen several Gaudy Commodores in the winter form, blue and black with scarlet markings. Carpenter Bees are attracted to the Polygala myrtifolia flowers in the shrubbery

and there was a lovely russet Stinkbug on our kitchen door one morning.

The grasses have turned into a glowing mix of autumn hues, a dried Crassula alba flower blended well into the palette.

Aloe maculata plants are covered in buds.

Here and there are a few brave flowers, Nemesia caerulea,

Sutera floribunda

and Senecio polyanthemoides which attracted a wide range of small beetles, and neatly camouflaged, a hungry green Praying Mantis!

Early one morning just before sunrise a male Common Reedbuck sauntered down our driveway, and on a few occasions Duiker browse under the trees in the orchard.

There was a fresh Porcupine scraping near the house. Black-backed Jackal call most evenings.

A persistent Rock Kestrel decided our hillside was his territory and repeatedly dive-bombed two Pied Crows until they flew off. Hadeda Ibis complacently forage around the garden.

The Speckled Pigeons have hatched a brood very late in the season in the garage. The bared branches of the Sweet Chestnut tree near the house exposed a Dark-capped Bulbul nest. In summer they had been flitting in and out of the dense foliage.

A Black-backed Puffback has been displaying his white ‘puff’ in the wisteria on the verandah. In the late afternoons, a chittering flock of Cape White-eyes love exploring the Natal Bottlebrush, Greyia sutherlandii, which already has buds on it.

The Cape Glossy Starlings have visited the garden several times this month. In the grass down near our gate I’ve seen an African Hoopoe, and sunning themselves on rocks, African Stonechats.

At the moment a Drakensberg Prinia has decided that he must stake his territory and fend off his ‘reflected-image’ in the sitting room window, giving beautiful close-up sightings.

Lizards can be seen soaking up the sun, in leaf litter. Including Variable Skinks

and between wooden slats, a small Agama.

Caroline McKerrow – Stormy Hill

A Caracal in the forest while on a horse ride.

Barbara and David Clulow – The Willows

On 18 May saw the floater Flock of Grey Crowned Cranes walking in a long stately, slow queue on Melrose farm at 5:20 pm over a rise and down into a dip, where they could no longer be seen

Barbara took this photo of a Gymnogene along the Dargle Road

While driving along Dargle road, a Lanner Falcon poised for take-off from a perch on a pole

And a juvenile Gymnogene (African Harrier-Hawk) being dive-bombed by some irritated defenders

myriads of monkeys munching mielies

Crystelle Wilson – Gramarye

It is possible to find new sightings even after so many years of birding in the district. This month I added Red-backed Mannikin to my lists for the first time after spotting them in the forest on Norwood. Unfortunately they didn’t allow my camera lens to get too close to them as they flitted about in the foliage.

The annual Cape Parrot count was disappointing with only one confirmed sighting at Boston View, although others were heard at Impendle and on the Ridge at Inhlosane.

But it was good to hear and see an African Goshawk on its dawn patrol at the Ridge

and finding a Long-crested Eagle on a nest on the banks of the Elands River at Boston.

I spotted another buzzard with confusing plumage, very dark to be a Steppe Buzzard, and out of season, but not resembling juvenile Jackal Buzzards. Even the experts declined to call it, advising me to look the other way when I see it again!

Other welcome sights were Denham’s Bustard,

Black-winged Lapwings and the more common Blacksmith Lapwing comparing its black-and-white outfit with that of its bovine friend.

The atlas list for the Elandshoek pentad 2935_3000 was: Cape Glossy Starling, Red-throated Wryneck, Green Wood-hoopoe, Cape White-eye, Cape Sparrow, Red-eyed Dove, Cape Turtle Dove, Dark-capped Bulbul, Village Weaver, African Dusky Flycatcher, Speckled Mousebird, Southern Greyheaded Sparrow, Cape Robin-Chat, Fork-tailed Drongo, Common Fiscal, South African Shelduck, Fan-tailed Widowbird, Red-collared Widowbird, Hadeda Ibis, Egyptian Goose, Common Waxbill, African Sacred Ibis, Cape Crow,

African Rail, Bokmakierie, Grey Crowned Crane, Spur-winged Goose, Denham’s Bustard, Long-crested Eagle, Southern Red Bishop, Red-necked Spurfowl, Black-headed Heron, Greater Striped-Swallow, Spotted Eagle-Owl, African Pipit, Little Grebe, African Darter, Blacksmith Lapwing, Cape Longclaw, Red-knobbed Coot, Cape Weaver, Yellow-billed Duck, Common Moorhen, Cape Wagtail, Cape Canary, Buff-spotted Flufftail, Amethyst Sunbird, Pin-tailed Whydah, African Hoopoe, Pied Kingfisher, Le Vaillant’s Cisticola, African Stonechat, Southern Boubou, Pied Crow, Lanner Falcon,

Red-billed Quelea, House Sparrow, Brown-throated Martin, Jackal Buzzard, Pied Starling, Reed Cormorant, African Black Duck, Cape Parrot, African Harrier-Hawk, Black-shouldered Kite, Olive Woodpecker, Cape Batis, Sombre Greenbul, Southern Black Tit, Black-headed Oriole, Red-winged Starling, Southern Double-collared Sunbird, Black-backed Puffback, Thick-billed Weaver, Yellow-fronted Canary, Helmeted Guineafowl, Bar-throated Apalis, Wattled Crane.

Bruce and Bev Astrup of Highland Glen watched a Lanner Falcon circling above

Cape Parrot Count: Crystelle Wilson, Barbara and David Clulow

On 17^th and 18^th May we counted Cape Parrots at Flemmington, at Boston View House with the huge Yellowwoods well stocked with kernels, and on the ridge below southern Inhlosane – walking up in minus 3 degrees Celsius at 6 am to overlook the magnificent indigenous forests. We heard Cape Parrots in the distance, saw one flying overhead and perching several times, but nothing like a few years ago.

Dargle Wildlife Sightings – May 2014

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At the Dargle Conservancy AGM held recently, contributors to our monthly Wildlife Sightings were honoured. Sue Robinson won “Most interesting sighting” for her Cape Vulture pictures on Ivanhoe; Sandra Merrick of Albury farm was recognised as the “Most enthusiastic and committed contributor” and Dieter Setz won “Best Photo” for his sleeping bat. Everybody enjoyed the video clip compilation of the past year’s Wildlife pictures and videos – click on this link to view it online: http://animoto.com/play/40k5MovekaZT20o47z1Hkg

Brandon Powell – Bukamanzi

Iona Bate and I were having tea on my verandah when we enjoyed a rare sighting of the White Wire Tea Table Frog. It was so tiny and well-camouflaged that it was only after three cups of tea that we noticed it. If there are any keen Herpotologists out there we’d love to know what it is really called. We called it Proust, after that famous white Frog. A week before I had seen another tiny, very beautiful tree frog on my bedroom window. 20140503_110332

Thanks to frog lover Charlene Russell for providing some help with id: “Did you see it’s underbelly at all? It’s probably a Painted Reed Frog (believe it or not), the brown version. During the day, and especially as winter approaches they lose their colour and can go almost white…hard to see the patterns, and no feet to reference it by, but that’s my best guess…I like your name best though.” Also remember comment from Megan Loftie-Eaton about exactly this? https://midlandsconservanciesforum.wordpress.com/2014/01/13/dargle-wildlife-sightings-december-2013/

Ian and Sue Robinson – Ivanhoe

The Eland are a few from one of our two herds of about 50 each.

Have no idea what type of lizard this is.

Bald Ibis,

Black Shouldered Kite.

Two Oribi seen up in the hills overlooking the Furth.

Nikki Brighton Old Kilgobbin Farm

At the beginning of the month there was still quite a lot in flower, but that has changed rapidly despite the warm days. This Berkheya multijuga is now just spikey brown stalks.

Leonotis leonaurus is flowering spectacularly and so often in conjunction with bright yellow Senecio and Phymaspermum creating gorgeous pictures.

During winter, the mist-belt forests open up. The canopies let in more light and the understory shrubs are less dense. This means that some trees become more visible or easier to get close to. One such species is the Zanthoxylum capense – impossible to miss now. The Zulu name for the tree is amusing – umlungumabele which means ‘breast of a white woman’. Apparently this refers to the fact that white women settlers wore bras which made their breasts appear more pointed, unlike the local women. The Afrikaans name kleinperdepram means ‘small horse breast’.

Zanthoxylum is a member of the citrus family. The fragrant white flowers are much favoured by insects, the crushed leaves smell of lemon and shiny black seeds are rich in fragrant essential oils and have been used as perfume. Traditionally twigs were used as toothbrushes and decoctions of bark as an antibacterial mouthwash, ground roots or leaves inserted into a tooth cavity for toothache.

Senecio madagascariensis still puts on a show. The small, bright yellow flowers are clustered on branched inflorescences and are easily visible in the grass. Senecio is a largest genus of flowering plants (2000 species worldwide) with over 300 species found in South Africa.

It seeds itself prolifically – lots of fluffy windborne seeds are produced continually. Bees, wasps, flies, butterflies and beetles all love this little shrub, which is common in disturbed ground. As was the case on the edges of the farmland when we did the last track and scat id workshop. Oriah was pretty as a picture in the middle of it all!

Rose and Barry Downard Oak tree cottage

Birds: Saw a Spotted Eagle Owl perched on our property signpost one evening as we returned home. Crested Eagle, Herons, Cardinal Woodpecker, Olive Woodpecker, Hoopoes, Amethyst Sunbirds, Rock Pigeons, Sparrows, Olive Thrush, Robin, Fiscal Shrike. A lone male Redwinged Starling has been sleeping on our veranda every night for the past two to three months, and finally this week he found a mate. We have not seen any other Redwinged Starlings on our property for a couple of months. Genet and Reedbuck seen next to the Dargle Road by the Sinclair’s farm late one evening.

Natal Green Snakes (juvenile and adult). Large adult Red-lipped Herald. Dwarf Chameleon. 4Several tiny tree frogs looking for places to shelter from the cold. A tree frog on our dewy window at sunrise.

Jeanne Tarrant from EWT comments: “I would say that both this frog, and the white one above, are juvenile Painted Reed Frogs – Hyperolius marmoratus. Quite tricky to ID as the colouring is not yet established, but the body shape, and most importantly orientation of the pupil (horizontal) is diagnostic for reed frogs. Natal Tree Frogs don’t occur that far inland, and have vertical pupils.

Many spectacular sunrises and sunsets again this month.

Mike and Anne Weeden – River Run on Hopedale

We have three swallows nests under the thatched eaves and enjoy watching their endeavours during the summer months. This year one of the pairs had very late babies. One fell out of the nest and died. The other one fluttered from the nest onto a nearby beam and got stuck. When we moved in five years ago we had a problem with starlings roosting above our table and pooping all over us. We invested in a sticky product to spread on the beams which would be unpleasant for the birds without being harmful (so we were told). Unfortunately some little birds got covered in goo and died or had to be euthanased. Only mineral turpentine removes the goo which is obviously unsuitable for birds. Mike rescued this baby who had goo on its feet and tail feathers. He spent a couple of days cleaning it and put it in a box under the nest in between. Finally he pronounced it clean and placed it on a table at the top of the steep bank down to the river. I called the frantic parents with the app on my iPad and once they swooped past the baby tried to follow. It would flutter a little way and then land in the long grass. Mike would trudge down the hill, bring it back up and start again. This went on for most of the day with every flight getting longer and faster and by evening the three were flying around together. A day or two later, all the swallows had left for the winter. We like to think that our little “late starter” made the grade!

We also had a baboon in our veggie garden – the first one we have ever seen or heard.

Ashley Crookes – Copperleigh Farm

Sunset panorama I took on my way back to Dargle last weekend.

jsuu_Sunset

Pat and Sandra Merrick – Albury Farm

One morning we took our 2 small dogs on a walk through the natural forest next to Lythwood lodge. We left our 2 large dogs at home thank goodness. 5 minutes into the walk the dachshund disappeared off the foot path. We could hear him running around in the undergrowth. 20 minutes later he sped past us, up the path and round the corner, where all hell broke loose. Barking and screeching ensued. Pat told me to get off the path (I did have my camera with me) as animal might come racing down. My thought was, a bush pig or a bush buck, attacking the dog. Pats thought, leopard! It was neither. It was 5 jackal attacking our little dog – they were out hunting at 10am. Pat shouted and screamed to “voetsak” and I joined in vocally although could not see what I was screaming at, but thought more noise the better to chase off whatever it was.

They ran off and left our poor dog with a few bites on his legs and 2 teeth marks on each testicle! Ouch! ( I do have a photo but thought it best not to put it in – some members might be squeamish, or it might have to be edited ha ha) I was just so thankful that our rottie and terrier were not there as it would have been a massacre. They hate jackal who stand yowling outside our gate every night, before the nightly hunt. Fortunately our dachie was not badly injured and all his injuries had healed after 2 weeks. It could have been so much worse.

The Reed Buck seem to be coming down from the hills – quite a few in our garden in the long grass. The dogs flush them out in the evening – they then jump over the fence.

Reedbuck Doe

Quite a few duiker. A caracal ran in front of Pats bakkie just outside our gate last week. Our blue crane still keep coming back to the dam every couple of days, mainly in the evenings.

Grey Crowned Crane

Gurney sugar birds are back and like hiding in the bottle brush trees. They sing all day long – beautiful to hear.

Still lots of sunbirds, although colourless now. African hoopoes still in the wattle plantation. Buff streaked Chats.

Orange Throated Longclaw.

Our baby bulbuls have left. Our barn owls are still in the roof and chimney. I am not sure how many we have at the moment. Saw 2 flying off the roof a couple of nights ago. Saw a gymnogene hopping over the rocks. Still get Spoonbills every now and then.

Spectacular sunsets this past month incredible sunset

Responses to some of last Month’s Dargle Sightings:

Josh Dovey – Regarding Dave Mann’s note on the noises in the forest, it is Baboons, we saw them last week. We are opposite Dave’s place.

Jason Londt – The frog at Copperleigh is actually a toad. The caterpillars seen at Robhaven are those of an emperor moth, and the eggs on the back of one are actually cocoons of a parasitic wasp.

Boophane and Bushman’s Tea

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Boophane and Bushman’s tea – not words one would normally associate with suburbia. However, on a recent walk through the steep north facing grassland in World’s View Conservancy, these were just two of the interesting plants we found.

The Conservancy hosted other members of the Midlands Conservancies Forum to show off their work and the treasures that they have uncovered in the area. First stop was the View Site which they help to maintain by doing regular litter clean ups. This is also the spot where their popular Carols by Candlelight event is held. “Last year it was quite magical” Elli Hamilton says “the mist was really thick and the bagpipes playing created a wonderful atmosphere.”

We explore the area, chatting about the Voortrekker road which passed this way hundreds of years ago. There is still evidence of that in the grooves the wheels gouged in the rocks and this “brake rock”. Apparently the wagons were tethered to the rock as they descended to slow them down. Howard Richardson is a mine of interesting information about the Heritage Site.

At this time of year, the aloes are all about to burst into bloom and it would be well worth visiting the area in a few weeks’ time.

Then, the real treat – a patch of untransformed grassland perched precariously between the R103 and the pine plantations on top of the ridge.

Although nothing is in flower at the moment, we found all sorts of interesting plants including the above mentioned Boophane disticha and Bushman’s tea – Athrixia phylicoides.

Read about some of the other treasures to be found in a recent blog post World’s View is Worth Conserving. After searching for the splendid specimen of Boophane in the long grass, Len carefully hid it again as it is popular medicinal plant and might be at risk from muthi gatherers. “This is our jewel” he said proudly as a Red Admiral butterfly flitted past and three Long-Crested Eagles swirled overhead.

Then we headed into the green desert which comprise 80% of the Conservancy area – the plantations – along the old abandoned railway line, passing through a 100 year old tunnel. This line, known as the Townhill Deviation, was abandoned in the 1960’s when the Cedara Twin Tunnels were built (still in use today).

We came across an old station platform – the Teteleku Station, now completely overgrown. The foundations of the Station Master’s cottage and an enormous avocado tree still bearing fruit are remnants of a life long gone.

Amongst the invasive plants, a few indigenous species cling on bravely, like this pretty pink Pavonia.

The Conservancy is justifiably proud of the work they have done uncovering parts of the Teteleku Stream and original wetlands. This will be an on going project, but is already having a positive impact on the amount of water flowing down the hill.

We come to an area where the DUCT River Care team are hard at work clearing the banks of a tributary of the Dorpspruit. The banks have been infested with Ginger and Bugweed, but the water is now visible and we can hear it as it cascades over some rocks out of view. “Now that is a special sound” says Elli.

Back at the Girl Guides Hall on top of the ridge, welcome and delicious refreshments await. Howard and Pat Wilkinson do interesting presentations on the area and the efforts of the Conservancy to protect the natural heritage – animals (including caracal), 98 species of birds and endangered plants – and cultural heritage for posterity. Well done, World’s View Conservancy.

Dargle Wildlife Sightings – April 2014

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Josh Dovey and Claire Weston – Rathmines Farm
Found this little chap in the Hydrangeas last week!

David and Helen Mann – Knowhere Farm
Have been hearing some loud barking coming from the forest across the uMngeni river from their farm. Baboons perhaps? Somebody mentioned it might be Samango monkeys calling (Ed: perhaps we need to setup a trail cam there sometime?)

Nigel Anderson – Lane’s End

Nice flock of Crowned Cranes that are very common adjacent to Lanes End farm at the moment, feeding on the spilled maize.

Rose and Barry Downard – Oak Tree Cottage
Two sightings this month of female Flufftails, possibly the Redchested Flufftails as I have heard their calls a few times recently in our garden. On both occasions she came fairly close to me, quite unconcerned by my presence as she seemed to be more focussed on foraging for food. Unfortunately I didn’t have a camera on hand either time to take any photos. No other unusual wildlife sightings this month, but lots of gorgeous sunrises and sunsets! The sunrise on Easter morning – the entire sky was a beautiful pink and golden colour, quite spectacular!

David and Alvera Crookes – Copperleigh Farm
Spectacular sunset over Mavela dam

Pink Everlasting (Helichrysum adenocarpus)

Senecio madagascariensis (Canary Weed)

Dieter Setz – Wakecroft
Saw 7 Eland at the bottom of Wakecroft towards the umngeni a few days ago And lots of autumn colours.

I found this little Datura man ready to pop, the other morning

Noticed these 2 beetles hiding from the cold and feeding on one of the last evening primroses.

Evert and Malvina van Breemen – Old Furth
In April we saw a young Honey Buzzard who took up residence in the trees near our bottom dam for a while and who was very clumsy about landings, causing great consternation to the Dabchick family on the dam. The Teal seemed largely unconcerned about it. The bottom dam also saw a long residency of a Spoonbill who kept the Herons and Egyptian Geese company for a few weeks. We also had a superb sighting of a juvenile Martial Eagle in the trees alongside this dam one morning. The ever-clumsy Gymnogene is still raiding the trees around the house and down the driveway. Spider wrapped up this moth very neatly.

A jackal was run over on the P130 outside Sagewood’s gate at the end of April. The jackal have been extremely vociferous at night and have been coming down quite low from the hills surrounding us, as have the baboon and vervet monkey troops. The plague of locusts is diminishing at last and we now have large flocks of little seed birds swarming all over the grasses on the hillside next to the house. The waxbills and firefinches come into the garden areas as well, which is a delight. The Sunbirds are also still very active in the garden.
We also had a surprise visitor in the kitchen early one evening in the form of a dark upper bodied snake with a salmon pink underbelly, who was fairly relaxed about being posted into a very large tupperware and taken outside. It behaved rather like some form of constrictor – any guesses as to the uninvited guest’s identity? We did not try to introduce ourselves

Thanks for the response from Pat McKrill about the snake sighting: “No guarantees, but it fits the description of a brown water snake, Lycodonomorphus rufulus – iVuzamanzi (Zulu) – pretty common up in that area, feeding mostly on fish, tadpoles and frogs. Just an observation, but at first glance, a relaxed Mozambique spitter making its way across the lawn can look pretty similar. Caution always urged.”

Brandon Powell – Bukamanzi Cottage

Last week I saw a genet or a serval (I don’t know which, but it was long legged and spotty with pointy ears) on the D17! Update after viewing pics of both on Wikipedia: I think a Genet, the Serval looks too big.
You can also mark me down for a couple of Duiker (D17, daytime and night-time) and Petrustroom Rd (night-time, opposite David Fowler’s) and Francolin (my house, D17) although the latter have stopped their calls now but they were going mad a few weeks ago. And a hare and a jackal (D17) Eds note: Perhaps you saw an African Wild Cat? that’s pretty special.

Ashleigh Crookes – Copperleigh Farm

Black Ants and eggs found under a rock on the farm

lots of locusts still about

mom found this tiny toad in the garden.

we rescued this mole from the dogs

Nikki Brighton – Old Kilgobbin Farm

My favourite things this Autumn month of April have been:
The sound of thick billed weavers snacking on Celtis africana seeds
A purple heron rising elegantly from the reeds
Forest edges festooned with yellow Senecio tamoidesVery early in the morning, tree dassies calling – (why so late in the season?) the occasional wood owl and jackals, of course
Athrixia phylicoides, Bushman’s tea – The muted mauve flowers and dark leaves felted grey underneath, blend beautifully with the rest of the faded colours in the landscapeThe shiny new leaves on Prunus africanus and the old ones swirling off in the breeze
Lots of Reedbuck in the occasional still-green fields
Birds feasting on Vepris lanceolata fruit
Many interesting spoor in the mud as the dam level recedes

A lone Cape Parrot flying between forest patches – hope he finds his friends
A Bush Black Cap on a branch outside my window
Tiny bright purple Monopsis decipens flowering on forest fringes

All the little birds which frequent the water bowl on my veranda – furtively looking about to make sure it is safe. So many butterflies – mostly white, but some emerald swallowtails too.
Masses of Phymaspermum acerosum – Curry’s Post Weed – in full bloom

Bridgette Bolton – Robhaven Farm

Please can someone put to rest my curiosity, and end a debate… What on earth is this caterpillar? (in fact, is it a caterpillar???)

Does it cocoon? Does it turn into a moth or butterfly? Are those its eggs on its back?

Why do they suddenly drop dead at the bottom of the tree in a stinky pile?

Ed’s note: Pretty sure those are the eggs of a wasp that lays them in caterpillars to hatch. Were the caterpillars on a Celtis africana tree? Why not post them on this wonderful facebook page and see if an insect enthusiast can help you?https://www.facebook.com/groups/Butterfliesandbugs/

Jason Londt, an expert in creepy crawlies tells us “The caterpillars are those of an emperor moth, and the eggs on the back of one are actually cocoons of a parasitic wasp”

Pat and Sandra Merrick – Albury Farm

Pat saw 3 jackal running around the farm mid-morning. A striped pole cat on the D 18
Buffstreaked chats spent many hours bathing in our rock pool over the past hot couple of weeks.

Buffstreaked chat and malachite sunbird in eclipse

Common bulbul mom been feeding her 3 fully grown babies with worms. They sit just outside our kitchen on a tree branch, although I think mom is getting a bit fed up now and flies off to eat her own worms. Common Stone Chat.

Cape Robin flew into our window

I was looking for our 3 blue crane one morning and found them in a newly planted rye grass land next to the natural bush. As I watched a jackal ran out the bush and ran towards them. Thankfully they saw him and flew off. The jackal slunk back into the bush. Our crane are still around and arrive at the dam in the evenings, hopping up and down or running up and down the edge of the dam.

A pair of crowned crane have also been here nearly every day.

They do not like the Ngunis to come and drink near them and open their wings and run forwards trying to chase them away.

One evening I took the dogs for a walk. They were prancing around the dam, jumping and running for joy. As we walked on they flew ahead of us and landed in front of us on the hill. They seemed curious and kept following. Eventually when we were about 20 metres from them they flew off.

Saw jackal buzzard on stone wall. Reed cormorant on dead tree. He sat for a few minutes and then flew into the pond. He was on the ground for a while but could not see what he was eating as grass too long. It would have been a crab or frog.

4 natal francolin live in our garden somewhere where the grass is long. They are very shy and run off when approached. A black stork arrived at the dam and stayed for 2 days.

4 white breasted crows around house area. One morning, Pat saw a pair of Stanleys Bustards on lower part of farm.

A hamerkop arrived in the garden after a storm

Wayne and Kathy Lourens – Aloe Ridge Farm

We have seen the usual Reedbuck, a duiker, Giant Mongooses etc. on Hopedale in general. Early in the month, our manager, David, found an injured raptor at his off-grid house on the top-farm. Kathy took it in to FreeMe for treatment, but here are some photos David took of it…

As far as we can make out, it’s a Juvenile Rufous-chested Sparrowhawk (Accipiter rufiventris)

Over Easter weekend, we camped out with our caravan (called “Kat-a-Van”) on a new site above our top-farm dam, and on Sunday morning, hosted a short visit from our neighbours, Mike & Ann Weeden & their family, to be greeted by a Fish Eagle flying over the dam, & settling into one of the trees at the old ruin site. A week prior to that, while restocking our dam, a juvenile Fish Eagle gave us a regal fly-by. Its great to see offspring from breeding pairs in the valley.

While clearing the tall grass on our new off-grid campsite, I spotted an amphibian hiding in the grass, a Striped Stream Frog (Strongylopus fasciatus), as there is a stream not far from where it was seen.

On Easter Sunday, as we were breaking camp on the top-farm, our manager, David, contacted us urgently on the cellphone, to say a large black & yellow snake was in the paddock where our breeding mares & their offspring were grazing. As the pack-up was nearly done, Kathy & I asked David to keep an eye on it, as we were leaving within 10 minutes, & would sort it out when we got down to the main Aloe Ridge farm. Kathy had her quadbike, so left ahead of me, & when I’d negotiated the 4X4 route down to Aloe Ridge as quickly as was safe while towing the off-road caravan – envisioning meanwhile that I’d be dealing with a possible M’fesi (Mozambican Spitting Cobra – Naja mossambica) or Rinkhals (Hemachatus haemachatus) – then collected my snake-stick from my study at a gallop, I arrived at where Kathy was standing under one of the old Pecan Nut trees, where she pointed out the well-camouflaged culprit, which, I was relieved to see, was a rather beautiful uMbalulu (Puff Adder – Bitis arietans), about 1 metre long. With Kathy’s help I carefully snared it in my snake-stick, & put it in an empty feed sack, then took it for a ride on the quadbike to the far end of the flood plain, where I released it on the fence line.

Going out from the farm to fetch staff in Howick after one of the holiday weekends, Kathy spotted a juvenile Serval on the D.244, about a third of the way up “Hopedale Hill”. She took a photo with her mobile phone camera, but it was not at all clear. After having both our tractors in pieces, our haymaking got off to a late start when Kathy’s tractor was rebuilt.

While out baling hay, a one-legged Stork followed Kathy quite closely, hopping towards her more than once. Perhaps its injury is keeping it local when the remainder have migrated?

World View is Worth Conserving

2 Replies

Paul de Jager, a keen botanist who spends many hours wandering in the grasslands and natural areas of the World’s View Conservancy, has set down some impressions on the ecological status and conservation significance of a portion of the Worlds View Conservancy, based on ten brief visits he has made to the area since 13 October 2013. His observations are based on the area eastward from the telecommunications tower, centred on the Crags, and extending down to the Old Howick Road. He reports as follows: My overall impression as an ecologist is that the area studied is of great conservation value, comprising a remarkably intact eco-system of a habitat type (primarily mist-belt grassland), which is now very rare, with an impressive diversity of both plant and animal life. The latter includes a wide range of insects, as well as vertebrates, ranging from small lizards to birds and larger mammals including antelope. This diversity is all the more remarkable for being supported by a remarkably small area of land not planted to forestry, crops, or destroyed by road or building construction. Please understand that many plants can only be accurately identified while in flower, and not all plants can be expected to flower every year – many will only flower after a fire, for instance – so only after visiting an area throughout a year and over several years, could one get a very thorough idea of what occurs there. So I have made a very limited sample so far. Nevertheless, I have been struck by the biodiversity of this area – on most visits I have seen something in flower, which I did not see before. It is very significant I believe, that while these notes are based on a very small sample of this biodiversity (and further limited to plants) I have already noted the plant species treated by the late Rob Scott-Shaw in his book: Rare and Threatened Plants of UKZN (1999). This is already a good result, in terms of motivation for conserving the fauna and flora of this area, and I am confident that greater familiarity with it will yield a far longer such list, possibly including some items classified as having a more highly threatened status than the ones detailed below, as well as an ever-lengthening comprehensive plant list. As it happens the Hilton Daisy, may also occur in the area I have looked at – I have seen plants of what may be this species, but can only confirm their identity after seeing them in flower (there is a large colony further down-slope in Queen Elizabeth Park, so this seems likely), only 0.3% of the grassland of Moist Midlands Mist belt is formally protected and only approximately 1% remains in a near-pristine state. The threats to this vegetation type are agriculture and forestry, and these threats are increasing. So, the habitat type surrounding the Crags is severely threatened. Species recorded by myself and their status according to Scott-Shaw is: Begonia geranioides – lower risk, near threatened Kniphofia buchananii – lower risk, least concern Sandersonia aurantiaca – low risk; conservation dependent Dierama pallidum – vulnerable Scott-Shaw further commented that the threats pertaining to Sandersonia are that moist grasslands of Eastern KwaZulu Natal have largely been lost to agriculture and forestry, and that very few protected areas occur in this habitat. Likewise, regarding Dierama pallidum: grassland has been transformed by forestry, agriculture and urban expansion, which have severely reduced the extent and quality of suitable habitat. So, there is a recurring theme here and plants are threatened to varying degrees, with extinction as the extreme possibility, because they were perhaps rare to start with, having high habitat specificity, and their habitat has been destroyed in many areas, leading to local extirpation (i.e. being wiped out). Moving on from an attempt to assess what we have here to consider the likely threats and possible management priorities. Besides the possibility of further hitherto undisturbed habitat being built on, there are the more immediate threats to the habitat. Evident to me are the invasion of wild areas by alien plant species including both unmanaged species and seedlings of the eucalyptus and Australian acacias, used in forestry plantations. Also poaching; be it the hunting of animals by subsistence -orientated or sport hunters or the collection of plant and plant roots by people wishing to supply to muthi trade. Exotic plants, unrelated to the forestry industry do seem to me to prove a significant current threat in this area. Wild Ginger is particularly prevalent in this section of forest adjacent to the former rail bed and lantana is also a problem here. If funding can be accessed, some effort to physically remove or chemically control such weeds would be a good thing. In order to make optimal long term use of such an investment in effort it is important to ensure that weeds are killed outright and not merely cut down only to re-sprout and require a further investment in effort in the future. This is not always easy in the case of wild ginger the complete removal of the plants rhizome and its subsequent destruction by physical means (burning/cooling/ crushing/mincing etc.), may be the only way and with many woody species, cut stumps need to be timeously treated with a paint on herbicide or eco-plugs of herbicide inserted immediately after cutting. Whilst Lilium Formosanum is a highly visible invasive weed, which I know some people are making an effort to control, I would not prioritise its control, but rather advocate the dedication of scarce resources towards efforts to deal with species such as those already mentioned, as it does not seem to me to pose the same threat of modifying the structure of the habitat in the same way, being of insufficiently large stature to do so. The existence of densely planted and fecund stands of exotic trees (in the shape of forestry plantations) immediately adjacent to the wild area must always pose an ongoing threat in the form of a massive and endlessly renewed seed source, which spontaneously generates large seedlings easily able to colonise wild areas, changing vegetation structure and ground water dynamics. Would that our forestry industry could become one based on sterile (i.e. non seed bearing trees) These legal aliens will have to be dealt with continuously. I believe that such efforts are being made – the felling of the tall seedling gums, which, until recently, featured so prominently on the skyline above the Crags, is evidence of this. However, I believe it is important to note that many of these gums were in fact, multi-stemmed coppice growths emerging from stumps which had evidently been cut down some years before and not killed outright. I saw no evidence of efforts to kill the stumps this time either, and I saw stumps some days after they had been cut. As far as I know the herbicide needs to be applied immediately after cutting, so it seems likely that this work will be to be duplicated again when the stumps have sprouted, which is a waste of resources which could always be better deployed to deal with other problems. There also seem to be some conflict between forestation activities and optimal practices regarding catchment conservation (i.e. the avoidance of drainage lines and water-courses when planting timber crops) and possibly also encroachment on the hitherto undisturbed wild areas. A clearer demarcation of wild areas as strictly no-go areas in terms of plantations would be very useful in this regard. Also, for both the control of existing invasive plants (including forestry crops) and advice and legal assistance regarding appropriate practices in terms of catchment protection, a useful person to get in touch with is Jacky Zuma. He is now based at Cedara and is The Project Manager: Invasive Alien Species Programme and he works for the Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development of KZN. His contact details are as follows: cell: 0798953636; landline: 033 355 9345; fax: 033 355 9334; email: phillip.zuma@kzndae.gov.za; website: http://agriculture.kzntl.gov.za. As I understand it, Jacky has it within his power to assist landowners and users with advice, and to some extent with chemicals and manpower in the control of aliens, as well as having access to the legal machinery to compel compliance with current legal standards. He has, I believe, a good deal of hands-on experience, with the background in the practical fieldwork aspect of this work and has catchments rehabilitation and conservation as one of his priorities. Regarding poaching, as far as the flora are concerned, the most significant threat to this area would be the harvesting of plants and plant parts for the muthi trade. The area studied is extremely rich in geophytes (plants with bulbs or similar underground storage organs and growth suds) as well as woody species of likely interest to the muthi trade. I observed several instances of heavy bush harvesting from Rauvolfia caffra (quinine trees) though these did not appear to be of very recent date. Image On the other hand the area supports a very large population of Boophone disticha, which tends to be regarded as an indicator of habitat health in terms of muthi-collecting impact. Furthermore, the presence in the area, though not in large numbers of Eucomis autumnalis subsp. clavata is also a positive sign. Scott-Shaw notes that this species is a sought after medicinal plant, which has been critically over-exploited over most of its range, becoming very rare and extirpated in many areas, particularly in the Midlands and coastal areas. Given that the WVC is located in an increasingly urban area the existence of a large number of potential muthi collectors and consumers nearby, mean that this threat must be taken seriously and policing efforts maintained. Returning to the subject of long-term threats to the maintenance of diversity of the fauna and flora of this area. It is, however sobering this may be, worth remembering that effective conservation of biological diversity only makes sense on a geological timescale; i.e. millions of years, so in terms of the very brief period which anyone of our lives represents, this effectively translates into forever! The converse of the fact that extinction is permanent, is the fact that in order for their constituent species to be able to continue to adjust and evolve, eco-systems need to be maintained as intact as possible for ever and a day. The greater the area of a given habitat type that can be preserved relatively intact – with a diversity of types of life-forms alive and functioning – the greater the chance of that habitat type and its constituent species, being able to contribute to the range of species which will be able to endure in the future, over millions of years. Bearing this in mind, the future of mist-belt grassland and the species which comprise it, is not looking bright, because there is so little left. So the grassland areas within the WVC are really important; though they are small in area they are rich in species including rare and endangered ones. Any natural area located adjacent to or within a city is particularly threatened as cities sprawl and Pietermaritzburg is sprawling fast, with Hilton becoming something of a commuter suburb. Over time, land values are likely to rise and it is not inconceivable that sometime in the future, land that is now land for forestry plantations will come to be seen as potential “real-estate” and it, and adjacent land, might become grist to that industries mill, under the guise, so euphorically referred to as “development”. One should perhaps guard against any temptation to be over-optimistic about the power of human laws to protect organisms and habitat. The current plight of the Rhinos springs to mind and of more pertinent, the fact that only a few years ago, part of Queen Elizabeth Park, not just a nature reserve but also located close to the Head Office of the Provinces conservation organ, was de-proclaimed and converted into real estate, thus ending its possible contribution to maintenance of the biodiversity. However, having uttered these threats it would still seem to me a good thing if parts of the WVC could acquire some sort of official or legal status as a wild life preserve. A glorious pipe dream! “What if the WVC is able to raise funds from inter-alia, the wealthy citizens of Hilton and purchase, or by whatever means, acquire, title to the land which I have been studying, and establish “The Crags” Nature Reserve.” Less ambitiously, it would seem to be that a clarification and demarcation, i.e.; survey with clearly visible markers of the areas within the WVC dedicated to nature conservation and therefore off limits to forestry activities would be very useful. It needs to be drawn to the attention of those that control this land that it has significance in terms of conservation of biodiversity, given that the bottom line is always relevant in debates about land-use, the question arises as to whether it can be made to pay for its upkeep or even yield revenues. Amenity areas can be argued as fulfilling a necessary function within a city, even if they do not yield income, whilst a well-maintained and productive catchment can be argued for in terms of actual Rand value of water production and flood amelioration. Natural areas stand head and shoulders above forestry plantations and developed environments in terms of both water quality and yield and flood amelioration. Durban’s D. Moss network of nature reserves is something worth investigating and perhaps emulating partially. In conclusion, I would not claim to have answers to all the issues and questions I have raised but I do emphatically believe that the area I have looked at, especially the Crags, is well worth working to conserve. I am impressed with what has evidently been done already to keep it looking as good as it does. I congratulate you and your colleagues for your work in achieving this. Any work you do for the WVC is worth doing! I will continue to pursue my interest in the flora of this area and hopefully look at other areas within the WVC as my limited time and energy budget will allow and hope that my efforts will be of further use to the Conservancy. learn more about World’s View at: