We soon came across a stunted Pavetta revoluta in bud growing in the spray zone between rocks and close to this was a cluster of flowering Samolus porosus growing in a seep. Peering out between the wind-mowed grass was a small Crassula - identity yet to be determined. Behaving similarly were numbers of Lobelia anceps and very low-growing Podalyria burchellii. Near a clump of trees we found Pelargonium capitatum in flower.
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| Pavetta revoluta |
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| Samolus porosus |
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| Crassula sp. |
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| Lobelia anceps |
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| Podalyria burchellii |
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| Pelargonium capitatum |
After recent rains, the area behind the rocky coastline was pretty boggy. We passed a small stream where Nymphoides thunbergiana and Nymphaea nouchali were flowering in a pool. Growing nearby was a single Exochaenium sp. nov, the first of this species we have found in the Mkhambathi Game Reserve. Tired of getting our feet wet, we turned inland and worked our way up the hill encountering a colony of flowering Aspalathus gerrardii on the way - these plants are much greener than the woolly grey plants we see in the Umtamvuna NR. Dotted around were many flowering Muraltia lancifolia and growing in a cleft in an exposed rock was a Grewia pondoensis with both flowers and fruit.
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| Nymphoides thunbergiana |
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| Aspalathus gerrardii |
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| Muraltia lancifolia |
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| Grewia pondoensis |
Once out of the waterlogged ground we found a different-looking Chamaecrista mimosoides and near the top of the hill there was a cluster of Eriosemopsis subanisophila, some in flower.
Crossing over the hill we started down towards a small tributary to the Gwe Gwe River that sported a small cascade and some tempting pools - or they would have been tempting if the cold wind had not been so strong. On the rocks alongside the stream we found Aeollanthus parvifolius, and then a great find - the Vulnerable Brachystelma sandersonii.
Heading back to our rondavels we found some Pelargonium pulverulentum growing alongside the track.
The next morning we woke to a howling north-easterly wind. As our usual Ranger guide, Mr Jack, was on "off" we decided to try walking up the Daza River from the bridge, a direction we had not explored previously. First we confirmed that the population of Erica abbottii was still doing well, then proceeded along the edge of the very wet flood plain until we found a place to cross the river.
We climbed up the slope to the edge of the south-facing forest, skirting this part of the Daza River gorge. At the forest edge we collected specimens of several species of conservation concern; Grewia pondoensis, Putterlickia retrospinosa, Eugenia erythrophylla, and Searsia acocksii. Growing at the edge of a rock plate were some Gymnosporia heterophylla in flower.
At the top edge of the forest we were concerned to find many flowering Lantana camara, one of our worst invasive alien plants - this we reported later to the reserve staff.
We worked our way around the edge of the forest and down into the Daza River valley, where we found a few Hesperantha coccinea flowering on the river bank. In a nearby pool there was a beautiful flower of Nymphaea nouchali. Moving downstream we found the odd-looking fern, Psilotum nudum and nearby was the first Rangaeris muscicola we had encountered for this season.
While sitting on a grassy bank near a large pool enjoying the surroundings, we noticed an orange flower on a tree across the river on a steep slope - on close inspection this turned out (to our great delight) to be Tephrosia pondoensis, a plant we have been searching for for a long time. While we know this Endangered endemic plant well from garden specimens, this was the first time we had found it in its natural habitat.
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| Camaecrista mimosoides |
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| Eriosemopsis subanisophila |
Crossing over the hill we started down towards a small tributary to the Gwe Gwe River that sported a small cascade and some tempting pools - or they would have been tempting if the cold wind had not been so strong. On the rocks alongside the stream we found Aeollanthus parvifolius, and then a great find - the Vulnerable Brachystelma sandersonii.
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| Aeollanthus parvifolius |
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| Brachystelma sandersonii |
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| Waterfall on a tributary to the Gwe Gwe River |
Heading back to our rondavels we found some Pelargonium pulverulentum growing alongside the track.
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| Pelargonium pulverulentum |
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| Erica abbottii |
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| The upper reaches of the Daza River |
We climbed up the slope to the edge of the south-facing forest, skirting this part of the Daza River gorge. At the forest edge we collected specimens of several species of conservation concern; Grewia pondoensis, Putterlickia retrospinosa, Eugenia erythrophylla, and Searsia acocksii. Growing at the edge of a rock plate were some Gymnosporia heterophylla in flower.
At the top edge of the forest we were concerned to find many flowering Lantana camara, one of our worst invasive alien plants - this we reported later to the reserve staff.
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| Gymnosporia heterophylla |
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| Eugenia erythrophylla |
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| Hesperantha coccinea |
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| Nymphaea nouchali var. coerulea |
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| At the Tephrosia site |
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| Alongside the Daza River |
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| Plectranthus saccatus var. pondoensis |
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| Indigofera micrantha |
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| Rangaeris muscicola |
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| Psilotum nudum |
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| Tephrosia pondoensis |
A little further downstream we came across Erica aspalathifolia in flower.
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| Looking down the Daza River gorge |
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| Erica aspalathifolia |
After enjoying our lunch on the bank of the river, we walked coastwards to the next large forest patch, skirting a beautiful pool on the way.
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| Pool just below the "dipping tank" |
In this forest we found flowering Hyperacanthus amoenus, a huge Adenia gummifera in flower draped over a few trees and a very large, floriferous Pavetta revoluta. By this stage we had had enough of being battered by the wind and called it a day.
The next morning, accompanied by Mr. Jack and three monitors (Nolubabalo, Avelo and Yandani), we first identified a tree that the reserve management was concerned about - this was Syncarpia glomulifera and it is proving to be aggressively invasive in the reserve. We undertook to send recommendations on how to control this species to reserve management on our return.
We then drove to Mosquito Bay to revisit the wetland where we had seen so many Kniphofia drepanophylla during our visit in September. As we left the vehicle we pointed out several flowering species from the family Fabaceae to the monitors, showing them the characters to look for. Crossing the river near some Hibiscus tiliaceus, we headed upstream to where we had seen a swathe of flowering Watsonia plants. These turned out to be Watsonia pillansii, and were accompanied by scattered Watsonia densiflora.
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| Rafnia elliptica - one of the Fabaceae we showed the monitors |
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| Hibiscus tiliaceus |
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| Watsonia pillansii |
We worked our way around past flowering Apodytes abbottii and Tridactyle bicaudata, eventually arriving at the wetland where the Kniphofia drepanophylla had been flowering so well. There were surprisingly few seed heads remaining and all of these were empty. The leaf bases were still visible - looking very much like Merwilla plumbea. At the side of this wetland we found Disa caffra and Satyrium sphaerocarpum in flower.
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| Apodytes abbottii |
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| Tridactyle bicaudata |
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| Disa caffra |
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| Satyrium sphaerocarpum |
Crossing a saddle we walked to the base of the dune forest where we found a Peddiea africana covered in flowers, above a carpet of Carpobrotus dimidiata.
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| Peddiea africana |
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| Carpobrotus dimidiata |
Moving down the valley we came across several Asclepias albens and a single Kniphofia rooperi growing at the side of the reed-choked pool from which Mosquito beach derives its name. We also found Diclis reptans and Zalizianskya pachyrrhiza at the base of some tall grass.
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| Asclepias albens |
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| Diclis reptans |
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| Zaluzianskya pachyrrhiza |
On the way back we stopped to look at the falls on the Mkhambathi River before returning to Gwe Gwe to consult our reference books and confirm what we had seen during the walk.
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| Strandlooper Falls |
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| Small cascade above Strandlooper Falls |
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| Checking what we had seen in reference books |
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| Pondoland CREW members with Mr Jack and his monitor colleagues |
Bright and early on day three we searched the grasslands north of the Gwe Gwe estuary to look for more specimen material of a yet-to-be-described Brachystelma and we found several plants that we thought might be the new species. To be sure we stopped off near a patch of Euphorbia flanaganii where we had previously found the Brachystelma and fortunately we found a more recognisable specimen. At this spot we collected a specimen of Lampranthus fugitans - another of the species on our CREW to-do list -- and there were also several Craterostigma sp. nov on the rock plates.
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| Euphorbia flanaganii with damaged crown |
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| Lampranthus fugitans |
Participants: Anne S, Geoff S, Graham G, Kate G, Sonwabile J and monitors Avelo, Nolubabalo and Yandani.
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