Staff

Zishan Ebrahim

Spatial and GIS analyst, Cape Research Centre

Location: Office 11, Cape Research Centre, Tokai

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: +27 (0)21 713 7523

Introduction

The role of the biodiversity data and GIS scientist at the CRC is to compile and maintain park species lists, provide GIS (geographical information systems) support for park planning, including provision of up-to-date park data, manage spatial data for Cape Cluster Parks, provide GIS support for CRC, SANParks, c ollect, capture, analyse and report on monitoring data, according to protocols, develop and maintain data management protocols, manage and store data for CRC according to data management protocols, coordinate access to and provision of biodiversity data from park planning unit and external sources, train rangers and CRC on use of biodiversity data collection software and hardware, and keep abreast of current scientific thinking and pursue appropriate development and growth to maintain scientific credibility and recognition.

Education

• BSc (Ecology), 2005, University of Cape Town (UCT)
• BSc Honours (Environmental & Geographical Science/GIS), 2007, UCT
• M.Sc (Zoology), 2017, Stellenbosch University, Centre for Invasion Biology

Research Focus and Interest

• Geographic Information Systems & Geographic Information Science
• Role of Cybertracker in ecological monitoring, and park management
• Herpetology, focusing on amphibian conservation
• Species of Special Concern (SSC): monitoring & research
• Freshwater: monitoring & research in relation to amphibians and animal SSC
• Threat mapping

Zishan’s M.Sc is entitled: Amphibian conservation in an urban park: a spatial approach to quantifying threats to Anura on the Cape Peninsula. The first data-chapter looks at existing representations of threats, in a desktop study of threat accumulation per 5x5m cell across the Cape peninsula, summing threats per distribution of 8 threatened and endemic frog species. The second data-chapter looks at the tadpole habitat of one of these species, and maps a representation of a threat-class not yet represented at the local-scale.

After graduation Zishan will focus on the Freshwater and Estuarine monitoring programme for rivers of Table Mountain National Park.

Publications