Category Archives: South African Wildlife

The inhabitants of South Africa’s wild places

Finally seeing a Pangolin in the wild!

Last month, while travelling between Elephant Sands Lodge and the Sua Pan in Botswana during Gospel on Safari, a life-long dream of mine was realised when I finally had the chance to see a Pangolin in the wild!

Ground Pangolin

Ground Pangolin scales

Ground Pangolin rolling into a protective ball

Smutsia temminckii – The Ground Pangolin

Sadly, the Ground Pangolin is being threatened with extinction and is currently listed as vulnerable by the IUCN. Like other kinds of pangolin their populations are being driven downward by illegal trade for mainly superstitious medicinal uses and as a high-end delicacy. Farming practices, electric fences and road deaths are further threats to these enigmatic animals. In South Africa today they’re found mainly in the Northern Cape, North West, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and northern KZN, with populations in the Eastern Cape and Free State now feared extinct, while their natural distribution stretches beyond our borders as far north as Chad and Sudan.

Fully grown Ground Pangolins measure between 70 and 110cm in length, stand about 30cm high on all fours and weigh between 5 and 18kg, with males being considerably bigger than females. They feed on ants and termites, breaking open their nests with the powerful claws on their front feet and lapping the insects up with a tongue that is longer than the Pangolin’s body! They inhabit any habitat that has an ample supply of their favoured food items, being found from semi-deserts to the edge of forests. They do not need to drink.

As their name suggests, Ground Pangolins are strictly earthbound. They rest in tunnels that they dig themselves or take over from other animals. They plug the entrance to the tunnel from inside when using it. If caught outside they will roll up into a tight ball, their hard, sharp scales serving as excellent protection. Pangolins have wonderful senses of hearing and smell, but poor eyesight, and are solitary animals except when mating or when a mother is with her offspring. Females give birth to a single baby at a time, which she carries around with her on her tail for much of the first months of its life. They live to about 12 years of age in the wild.

Watching Black Mambas at Domtshetshu Pan in Botswana

7 Replies

While camping near Domtshetshu Pan in Botswana recently, as part of Gospel on Safari, I took a stroll towards a muddy part of the waterhole, where I found two Black Mambas – one of the deadliest species of snake on the planet – wallowing in the mud, drinking from little pools and being very coy with each other. The snakes paid me no notice at all, making me think that they probably have never seen a human before – what an amazing thought! Later, one of my fellow campers joined me at the sighting and still the snakes acted as if we weren’t even there.

Black Mamba

Black Mamba trail

Red-sided Skink

12 Replies

Trachylepis (Mabuya) homalocephala

In South Africa, Red-sided Skinks commonly occur mainly along the southern coast, stretching from Saldanha Bay to Durban, and adjacent hinterland, with a few isolated populations deeper inland in Mpumalanga and the Free State. It lives in areas with sandy soils in a variety of vegetation types, ranging from karroid and fynbos to forest, often near water. In the summer months females may lay up to 10 eggs in nests dug in soft soil below logs and rocks. The eggs hatch after approximately 3 months. Leaving the tail out of the measurement adults are about 7cm long.

Red-sided Skink

Veined Tip Butterfly

15 Replies

Colotis vesta

The Veined Tip is a commonly seen butterfly occurring in savanna habitats and as such is found year-round in Kwazulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, North West, Gauteng and isolated parts of the Northern Cape. Adults have a wingspan of around 4cm and fly relatively low and slow, often landing on flowers.

Veined Tip

Veined Tip Butterfly

Veined Tip butterfly

Marico Flycatcher

9 Replies

Bradornis (Melaenornis) mariquensis

The Marico Flycatcher is an insectivorous bird that lives in dry, thorny savannas (they are entirely independent of drinking water), and in South Africa occurs from the Lowveld through Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Gauteng and North West through to the Northern Cape and western Free State. Their distribution further extends to Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and southern reaches of Zambia and Angola.

Marico Flycatchers live alone, in pairs or small groups of up to 5. They may breed at any time of year. Monogamous pairs raise clutches of 2-4 chicks that hatch in a flimsy cup-shaped nest built by the female. Chicks remain with their parents for up to 2 months after leaving the nest. Adults weigh about 24g and measure approximately 18cm in length.

The IUCN considers the Marico Flycatcher to be of least concern.

Marico Flycatcher

Immature Marico Flycatcher

Barn Swallow

10 Replies

Hirundo rustica

Barn Swallows are amongst the best known birds in the world, occurring on all the continents (except Antarctica) for at least part of the year. They breed in the northern hemisphere and migrate to the southern continents during the northern winter, covering distances of up to 11,500km between their breeding grounds and non-breeding abodes. Locally they arrive from late September and depart again by April and can be seen in basically every corner of the country during that time. The IUCN estimates that there’s at least 290-million Barn Swallows in the world and lists the species as being of least concern.

in South Africa Barn Swallows can be found in any habitat though they reach their highest densities in areas of higher rainfall. They feed mainly on insects caught on the wing. Barn Swallows are highly gregarious and usually roost in reed beds – some of these have been in use for decades and may host up to 3 million birds! Barn Swallows measure about 14cm in length and weigh around 20g.

Barn Swallow

Barn Swallows

Barn Swallow

Wild Date Palm

2 Replies

Phoenix reclinata

The Wild Date Palm is a characteristic tree of forests and moist savannas in the east of South Africa, where it grows from the Eastern Cape through low-lying areas of Kwazulu-Natal and into the Lowveld of Mpumalanga and Limpopo and is classified as a protected tree. Beyond our borders they’re found all the way to Egypt. It only grows in well-watered areas and is most common along streams or in marshy areas. It may be encountered as dense multi-stemmed clumps of 3-6m high or more typically palm-like tall long-stemmed trees of up to 12m tall.

While the fruit, which appears towards the end of summer, isn’t as large as commercial dates, it is still a favourite among fruit-eating birds and mammals, including humans. Elephants browse the leaves. Several local cultures use the fronds to weave hats, mats and baskets and make brooms and fish traps from the stems, while an alcoholic drink is made of the sap.

Wild Date Palm blowing in the wind

Kudu hiding in the shade of a small Wild Date Palm

Wild Date Palm

Wild Date Palms

Wild Date Palm on the Western Shores of Lake Saint Lucia

Wild Date Palms on the Western Shores of Lake Saint Lucia

Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbia

7 Replies

Euphorbia cooperi

The Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbia grows as a bush or small tree of up to 7m tall, occurring in the savanna regions of Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and North West and most commonly found in rocky parts.

In keeping with most Euphorbia plants the milky latex contained in the branches is highly poisonous to humans and animals, causing severe blisters on the skin, blindness if it gets into the eyes and even death if swallowed – it is so potent that even just the smell of it causes a burning sensation in the airways. In rural areas people soak bundles of grass with the latex and then tie it to a stone before dropping it into the water – soon after paralysed fish start floating to the top to be scooped up with ease.

Hill covered by Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbias next to the Tsendze River

Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbias on the hill at Shipandani

A closer look at the Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbias growing on a hill near Shipandani Hide

Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbia (photo by Joubert)

Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbia

Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbias

Bushveld Candelabra Euphorbia

Common Tree Euphorbia

12 Replies

Euphorbia ingens

The Common Tree Euphorbia, which grows up to 12m tall, is a succulent savanna plant that favours hot and dry areas, often growing on rocky outcrops or in deep sand. In South Africa it is found over most of Kwazulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, Limpopo and the North West Province.

The branches of the Common Tree Euphorbia contain a milky latex that is extremely poisonous, causing severe pain and even death if ingested, blindness if it gets in the eyes and terrible irritation of the skin. This is sometimes used as a poison for harvesting fish in rural areas. While it is a beautiful and hardy specimen plant in a garden it should not be used where pets and children may come into contact with it.

Common Tree Euphorbia on a hill between Letaba and Phalaborwa

Common Tree Euphorbia

Common Tree Euphorbias in fruit

Common Tree Euphorbia in fruit

Common Tree Euphorbia

Blennies

6 Replies

Family Blenniidae

The Blennies are a family of fish represented by 42 different species occurring along the South African coastline.

They’re mostly found in rocky areas in the intertidal zone and can live remarkably long outside of the water, being capable of storing oxygen-rich water in their gill chambers and absorbing oxygen straight from the air through their slimy, scaleless skin – handy adaptations for when the retreating tide catches them in a dwindling pool, requiring them to walk and even skip on their strong limb-like fins back to safety over dry mud and rocks.

Blennies feed mainly on algae and micro-organisms. They breed throughout the year and females may lay up to 800 eggs in empty shells, with the territorial male then guarding the eggs until they hatch after a few months. The largest species grows to about 20cm in length but most kinds of Blenny are considerably smaller.