TWENTY YEARS OF CLIMATE DATA HAS INCREASED THE UNDERSTANDING OF HOW CHANGING CLIMATES IMPACT ON THE INDIGENOUS FORESTS OF THE SOUTHERN CAPE Poor availability of temperature data resulted in the deployment of temperature loggers in the Southern Afromontane Forests of the Garden Route National Park in the early 2000s. Loggers were placed at Groenkop…
WHILE CLIMATE WARMING AND RESULTING DROUGHTS ARE CAUSING DECLINES IN THE HEATSTRESSED NORTHERN POPULATIONS OF QUIVER TREES, THOSE IN THE HEAT-LIMITED SOUTH BENEFIT Sites like Kokerboomkloof in the Richtersveld attract visitors with the beautiful quiver tree, an icon of our arid parks. Quiver trees play a key ecosystem role, often providing the only bird perches…
SANPARKS HAS PRIORITISED PREPARING FOR AND RESPONDING TO THE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE There is increasing recognition that as a society we need to act now to reduce the impacts of climate change. SANParks’ Climate Change Preparedness Strategy, which was approved by the Board in December 2022, outlines a vision in which SANParks is resilient…
A BETTER METHOD TO MONITOR THE CRITICALLY ENDANGERED TABLE MOUNTAIN GHOST FROG WILL LINK TADPOLE ABUNDANCE TO HABITAT REQUIREMENTS The Table Mountain ghost frog (Heleophryne rosei) is elusive. It hides in rock crevices just millimetres wide. If you search the streams of Table Mountain, you are likely to only find tadpoles of this critically endangered…
MOKALA NATIONAL PARK AND ITS RIET RIVER ECOSYSTEM IS VULNERABLE TO UPSTREAM DISTURBANCES AS EVIDENCED BY EFFECTS OF THE COLLAPSED MINE TAILINGS DAM AT JAGERSFONTEIN A primary aim of protected areas is to conserve biodiversity and ecosystems. For linear riverine ecosystems this is extremely challenging, with many freshwater systems under pressure from water abstraction, development…
A COLLABORATION BETWEEN SANPARKS, SANBI AND THE CSIR CULMINATED IN A DETAILED REPORT SUMMARISING THE EXTENT TO WHICH SANPARKS CONTRIBUTE TO THE CONSERVATION OF RIVERS, WETLANDS AND ESTUARIES South Africa’s National Biodiversity Assessment (NBA 2018) highlights the dire and deteriorating state of most aquatic ecosystems – rivers, wetlands and estuaries. We asked to what extent…
IN CONTRAST TO OTHER ESTUARINE SYSTEMS, THE TOUWS ESTUARY FISHERY IS DOMINATED BY MOZAMBIQUE TILAPIA, A FRESHWATER SPECIES Estuaries, often places of great scenic beauty, are highly productive ecosystems and provide a range of goods and services. Unfortunately, this makes them focal points for development and use, with associated deterioration of habitats and processes. Thus,…
ABOARD A RESEARCH VESSEL VISITING ANTARCTIC SEA ICE. “NO TRIP IN THE FUTURE WOULD EVER COMPARE” I was thrilled to learn that I was among ten applicants selected as SAPRI (South African Polar Research Institute) trainees to participate in the SCALE (Southern oCean seAsonaL Experiment) winter research cruise in 2022. The opportunity for SAPRI trainees…
EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT KILLER WHALES ARE DISPLACING WHITE SHARKS FROM THEIR TRADITIONAL AGGREGATION SITES IN THE WESTERN CAPE The presence of apex predators profoundly affects land and ocean ecosystem structure and function. While losing top predators can disrupt ecosystems and trigger trophic cascades, the introduction of novel apex predators remains poorly understood. In our study,…
SANPARKS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED MONITORING, COMPLIANCE AND MAINTENANCE EFFORTS ON BIRD ISLAND WITH THE HELP OF SEVEN DEDICATED SEABIRD MONITORS FUNDED BY AN IUCN-SOS GRANT TO WILDERNESS FOUNDATION FOR A YEAR The iconic African penguin is facing a crisis. These charismatic birds, once abundant along the west coast of South Africa and Namibia, have experienced a…
AFRICAN PENGUINS ON BIRD ISLAND, ADDO MPA ARE BENEFITING FROM INCREASED VEGETATION AFTER RECENT GOOD RAINS, WHICH IS ADVANTAGEOUS FOR THEIR BREEDING SUCCESS The breeding success of penguins is closely linked to the availability of suitable nesting habitats, which play a vital role in providing protection and regulating temperature. Unfortunately, the historical, widespread and excessive…
BY BEING PREPARED AND POOLING EXPERTISE AND RESOURCES WE STAND THE BEST CHANCE AT MANAGING BIRD PANDEMICS AND PROTECTING THREATENED COASTAL SEABIRDS In 2017 and 2018, South Africa witnessed a devastating outbreak of deadly, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI; bird flu) virus that killed numerous endangered seabirds. Such widespread mortality in wild birds had not…