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NEWSLETTER
August 2013
Vision “To ensure a co-operative approach to and
the promotion of environmentally sustainable management of
wetlands in
Mpumalanga Province”
Mission “Promoting the wise use, effective
management and rehabilitation of wetlands in Mpumalanga Province
through co-
operative governance by engaging all public and private sectors
to achieve its objectives”
The year so far by André Beetge (Chairperson)
Greetings to all Mpumalanga Wetland Forum members…
Again we have past the half way mark of the year and there is
still so much to do! The past quarter again saw a lot of activity
of the forum members in the Chrissiesmeer Lake District. Endangered
Wildlife Trust hosted the annual crane festival, members were part
of the process of drafting the management plan for the proposed
Chrissiesmeer Protected Environment and support for this initiative
was raised through the forum in an effort coordinated by BirdLife
South Africa.
On the working groups front all is still alive and well, with
the convenors still hard at work behind the scenes. Again a plea to
all members to get involved with at least one of the working
groups, and to do your part in maintaining the forum’s momentum
from the past years.
To all the working groups thanks for your efforts and please
support Hannes Marais (inventory) Ursula Franke (monitoring and
compliance) and Hein Geldenhuys (Education and awareness) with
their activities
Also remember it’s that time of the year that you need to
register for the upcoming NWI 2013 hosted by the Eastern Cape
Wetland Forum. The registration forms are available on the web site
at http://Indaba2013.wetlands.za.net and you still have until the
6th of September to take advantage of the early bird registration..
The venue for the NWI is the Cape St Francis Resort and Conference
Centre at Cape St Francis and is hosted from the 22rd to the 25th
of October 2013. Please register early to avoid disappointment and
also to assist the Eastern Cape Wetland Forum with their planning.
The ECWF is to be commended for keeping the cost of this Indaba
below R1000.00! Well done!
For the rest of the year, happy wetlanding and remember to get
your feet wet!
African Grass Owl Chrissiesmeer breeding survey team July 2013 –
see page 4. (Photo: Oliver Oxtoby)
“The activist is not the man who says the river is dirty. The
activist is the man who cleans up the river.” – Ross Perot
This will be the 18th National Wetland Indaba and 3rd year of
National Wetland Awards.
http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/http://indaba2013.wetlands.za.net/
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MWF Newsletter August 2013
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The second Crane Festival was held in Chrissiesmeer over the
weekend of 12 to 13 July 2013 to celebrate the area’s special
wildlife including the cranes. The programme kicked off with praise
poetry on wetlands by Nomthandazo Ndlovu, a very talented learner
from Lake Chrissie Secondary School. Local Primary School learners
who took part in a recent Crane Art competition were also awarded
their certificates. As part of their prizes they then joined us on
a special crane viewing trip to see the beautiful cranes they
depicted in their art. Although the overall visitor numbers were
lower than last year those who attended the various activities on
the programme had a very enjoyable time. The trips and talks were
especially popular. The flock of over 130 Grey Crowned Cranes had
visitors enthralled with their dances next to the blue of one of
the area’s lakes; local bird guide Xolane Thusi took birders on an
early morning trip next to Lake Chrissie; Hannes Marais, provincial
wetland specialist, took visitors to Tevreden Pan for a wetland
walk. Jannie Coetzee from Loskop Dam Reptile Park gave exciting and
practical information on the local snakes. Friday evening the
Billiard Room in Chrissiesmeer opened their doors for the first
time with a talk by Kerryn Morrison on the 15 crane species of the
world and a tasty dinner.
Chrissiesmeer celebrates the 2nd Crane Festival Ursula Franke:
Endangered Wildlife Trust
The festival ended on Saturday with a whiskey tasting at Venue @
Florence Farm, followed by the Scottish Fireplace Concert. Ermelo
entertainers included bagpipe player Jacques Buys and classically
trained opera singer Wayne Matthews who received standing ovations
for their performances. The dinner was equal to the entertainment
and guests stayed until late! Thank you to Painted Wolf Wines who
added a special taste to the evening. Please visit Friends of
Chrissiesmeer on Facebook to receive updates on the next
Chrissiesmeer activity – the very popular Frog Night in December,
Wild Flower Day in January and next Crane Festival. To view the
wetland poem written and narrated by Nomthandazo Ndlovu from Lake
Chrissie Secondary School visit www.youtube.com/EWTSouthAfrica!
Grey Crowned Crane flock performing for the crowd in
Chrissiesmeer (Photos: Ursula Franke)
Nomthandazo Ndlovu performing her praise poem on wetlands
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens
can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
– Margaret Mead
http://www.youtube.com/EWTSouthAfricahttp://www.youtube.com/EWTSouthAfricahttp://www.youtube.com/EWTSouthAfricahttp://www.youtube.com/EWTSouthAfricahttp://www.youtube.com/EWTSouthAfrica
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MWF Newsletter
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August 2013
Digging in the Highveld of Mpumalanga for a novel freshwater
crab species
Savel Daniels: Department of Botany & Zoology, University of
Stellenbosch Freshwater crabs are the largest macro invertebrates
of inland aquatic ecosystems throughout the Afrotropical region.
They are ecologically important as detritivores and thus critical
for nutrient recycling. They are prey items in the diet of birds,
fishes, otters and crocodiles and are frequently consumed by humans
as a cheap source of protein. In addition, freshwater crabs are
also vectors of diseases such as river blindness and lung flukes.
Southern African freshwater crabs are relatively species poor in
comparison to similar sized areas such as west of east Africa. The
freshwater crab fauna of South Africa has been relatively well
studied, particularly species that live in first and second order
streams and rivers are well known. However, freshwater crabs
exploit a wide range of habitats, from holes in tree trunks (in
east and west Africa) to lakes; as well as ephemeral pans, high
mountains and forests, with the latter three habitat types
remaining poorly sampled. A total of 14 species has been described
from southern Africa, with some species, particularly mountain
living taxa, exhibiting narrow endemism, while riverine species are
generally widely distributed. In Mpumalanga three species have been
recorded, Potamonautes calcaratus, P. sidneyi and P. unispinus.
Recently, Gerhard Diedericks and Jerry (the frog man) sent a series
of images of a freshwater crab species, characterised by a bright
yellow post frontal crest and mottled yellow carapace from the
Chrissiesmeer area to me for identification. This freshwater crab
species appears to have special adaptations for a semi terrestrial
lifestyle from the images, as evident from the high carapace of the
animals. Subsequently a field trip was undertaken to the Highveld
of Mpumalanga to look for the elusive freshwater crab species. As
initially suspected, the species is indeed semi terrestrial and
forms deep borrows in areas in seepages far away from rivers or
streams, where they burrow into the soil until they reach the water
table. The crab burrows are generally characterised by the
deposition of fresh dark organic soil from the tunnel they clean
and excavate, and varies in depth from 20 cm to 100 cm deep. Some
burrows however, have a plug at the entrance comprised of soft mud
that sealed the entrance to the burrow. This species of freshwater
crab is always associated with reeds and grass pools that are
decaying, in seepages, and is never found in rivers. Morphological
and molecular examination (using DNA sequence data) of the
freshwater crabs demonstrate that it is unique and represents a
species new to science. It now awaits formal description and peer
review prior to publication. To date, the species has only been
found in the Chrissiesmeer and Verloren Valei (Dullstroom) areas. A
detailed study on the species distribution is required to determine
the extent of its occurrence and conservation status, however, it
appears to be a narrow endemic species. The enthusiastic naturalist
is encouraged to send images to Savel Daniels ([email protected]) of
this species and where they were observed to aid in determining its
distribution. These results suggest that several new species may be
hiding in plain sight, even for groups that are supposedly well
studied.
“This crab was discovered by the late Dr Johan Engelbrecht in
the Verloren Vallei Nature Reserve a few years ago
and identified as a new species occurring in the wetlands on the
Mpumalanga Highveld. It occurs in seepage areas
under vegetation in a burrow below the water table, in peat
soils.” Hannes Marais, July 2013.
Photo: Savel Daniels Photo: Hannes Marais
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MWF Newsletter
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MWF MEETING
Friday 16 August 2013 Main Municipal Building in President
Avenue,
Committee Room number 2 Emalahleni (Witbank)
10h00
Followed by a site visit to a Working for Wetlands project in
the Zaalklapspruit wetlands
CONTACT DETAILS Chairperson: André Beetge (SANBI)
Tel 084 240 2264 Email [email protected]
Celebrate National Arbor Week 1-7 September and World Tourism
Day on 27 September
August 2013
African Grass Owl news Charmaine Uys: BirdLife South Africa
BirdLife South Africa once again organised a successful
scientific survey for African Grass Owl in Chrissiesmeer (1-2 July
2013). The aim was to confirm breeding of this Vulnerable bird
species and wetland ambassador. The survey team comprised 17
dedicated people from MTPA, GDARD, EWT, BirdLife South Africa,
SAPPI and Wits Bird Club. At least eight adult birds and four
fledglings were recorded from the three major wetland systems in
the Chrissiesmeer Protected Environment, thereby contributing
valuable data to the African Grass Owl Task Force efforts to
conserve this species. Dr Craig Whittington-Jones and the African
Grass Owl Task Force have developed a draft Biodiversity Management
Plan for African Grass Owl Tyto capensis. This document is a
product of the collective thinking of numerous individuals and
organizations, and its layout conforms to the Department of
Environmental Affairs’ norms and standards. Urgent management
interventions are required to address the main causes of decline
for this regionally threatened species. For more info or to provide
input into this draft BMP, contact
[email protected].
The MWF is very grateful to the Emalahleni Municipality for
hosting the meeting. Your kindness
and generosity is sincerely appreciated.
MWF Banking details Should anyone wish to make donations or
contributions to the MWF, the Banking details are as follows:
Account Name: Mpumalanga Wetland Forum Bank: Standard Bank Bank
Account No: 33 555 4636 Branch: Nelspruit (Brown Street) Branch
Code: 052852
ANNOUNCEMENTS MWF caps are available from André Beetge, Gavin
Cowden and Don Cater [email protected] at R75.00 each. Postage
can be arrange at extra cost to be quoted.
Licence disk stickers are also available at R5.00 each.
Enviro News Briefs
Do you receive and read the interesting Enviro News Briefs from
Hein Geldenhuis? If not and you wish to, please contact Hein via
email [email protected] to subscribe to the Enviro News emailing
list. Enviro News Brief # 495 Iraq's Council of Ministers has
approved the designation of the country's first national park, in
the Mesopotamian Marshes of southern Iraq.
http://www.enn.com/wildlife/article/46275
African Grass Owl chicks in their tunnel nest in rank wet
grassland.
Below: Adult flushed from wetland roost
(Photos: Hannes Marais)
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