Wolwekraal Nature Reserve

Newsletter, Issue 2, December 2025

Welcome

We are happy to share our latest news with you in the second issue of the Wolwekraal Nature Reserve newsletter!

Highlights from the Reserve

Rainfall

We have had a very dry spring but are happy to report that at the time of writing this newsletter, the area received two rainfalls of 2mm and 13mm on 27 and 28 November respectively. This brought November’s rainfall up from 0mm to 15mm. September received 0mm, and October 1.5mm. The 2025 annual rainfall total to date is 90mm.

The Dorpsriver has not flowed since December 2024 but there are a few salty pools and trickles in the river on Wolwekraal as a result of occasional rain in the Swartberg.

Plants and Animals

There has been a decline in numbers of most nomadic birds, small rodents, hares and small carnivores. The Double-banded Coursers bred and raised one chick. Porcupines have been very active and feeding mainly on Euphorbia rhombifolia (Soetmelkbos) and Glottiphyllum neilii (Vaal Tongblaar).

Waterhole

The waterhole attracted Polecat, African Wildcat, Mongooses and Duikers in September but there have been fewer visitors to the waterhole, other than birds, over the past month.

Reptile Release

Over September, October and November, 34 animals were released on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve, made up as follows:

5 Leopard Tortoises, 1 Rock Monitor Lizard, 6 Brown House Snakes, 1 Rhombic Egg-eater, 5 Karoo Sand Snakes, 5 Horned Adders, 3 Puff Adders, 3 Boomslang, and 5 Cape Cobras.

Reptile relocation and release helps address human-reptile conflicts, such as when a snake is found in a residential area or poses a potential threat to people or pets, or to protect a reptile from harm or potential persecution. Capturing and relocating reptiles must be done with a licence, and with the goal of peacefully mitigating immediate human-wildlife conflict while providing long-term sustainable alternatives. In the Prince Albert area, resident Athol Loppnow is registered to relocate reptiles, which he releases into a safe environment on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve.

Education and Awareness

Interns

2024 intern Josh Cumming, zoology student from Cardiff University, completed his final report on his 2024 field surveys of birds along the Dorps River. We are currently preparing an article based on his work for publication.

Below: Josh Cumming sampling on the reserve, and with his bird study poster

In 2026 we will be hosting Hinata Abe, a 2nd year Nature Conservation student from NMU (George Campus). She will be carrying out her work experience year at Wolwekraal Nature Reserve. Born and schooled in Japan, she has been in South Africa for three years. Apart from achieving high marks in her final school year and at NMU, she enjoys working outdoors. She will hopefully collect plant population data on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve and assist at the Research and Education Centre.

Local Community Organisations

Around 30 Slimlappies students and their teachers visited Wolwekraal Nature Reserve on 8 October to collect wind-blown plastic litter.

Seventy Central Karoo Farm Community Youth Camp participants visited Renu-Karoo nursery and various gardens (Viv Mennell, Sue Goosen, Malcolm Searle) on 7 October to learn about growing food, medicinal and other plants.

Sue worked with EPWP workers to tidy up the indigenous garden display next to the Tourism office before the official re-opening of the tourism hub. She will continue to keep an eye on the garden as it introduces visitors to the local flora.

Research

Archaeology

John Parkington visited Wolwekraal Nature Reserve and Wolvekraal Guest Farm to take photographs and collect further contextual information for Lisa Christowitz’s thesis and the planned publication on artefact patterns and types on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve.

Veld Restoration Trials

Conditions have been too dry to monitor the restoration trials established in 2024.

Entomology

Karin Sternberg spent some time on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve in September, continuing her studies on wild honeybees and solitary bees. She has recorded 43 bee species on the reserve so far! Read her latest article below:

Visiting Researchers

Eight researchers from the ARC Long Term Veld Monitoring Project visited Wolwekraal Nature Reserve, adjacent farms, and Tierberg from 22-25 September. They monitored three 50x50 m areas on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve and plan to return to repeat the survey in five years’ time. This is part of a nation-wide monitoring program for South African rangeland condition and trends.

Philipp Nagel, a lawyer and UCT Masters student, researching the extent to which the South African legal regime accommodates climate change-specific biodiversity adaptation needs (e.g. biodiversity corridors for improving habitat connectivity), visited Prince Albert in October to conduct an interview with Sue.

University Groups

Nelson Mandela University

on 8 September, 35 Saasveld 3rd year Nature Conservation students visited Wolwekraal Nature Reserve with their lecturers, Willem Matthee and Josh Louw, to look at the effects of geology, biodiversity and past land use on the vegetation of the area.

North-West University

From 8-12 September Prof Frances Siebert and 11 North-West University postgraduates and lecturers visited Tierberg and Wolwekraal to learn about Karoo vegetation. Part of the team spent three days on Wolwekraal counting seedlings in 50 of the 75 permanent vegetation plots. These data have been archived by Sue.

Below is a link to an article on the excursion, published in the latest issue of the SAEON E-newsletter. Shaping Future Ecologists: North-West University and Arid Lands Node Join Forces in the Karoo, by Helga van der Merwe, Nanette van Staden and Sue Milton.

Talks

On 29-31 August Sue and Bertus attended the Herb Festival in Montagu and presented a talk on “Medicinal plant conservation or habitat conservation in the Klein Karoo”.

In September, Sue gave a talk to the Farmers’ Association in Prince Albert titled ‘Knaagdeursiklise (Rodent Cycles)’. This was at their request because of the current concern about the increase in rodent densities that followed drought-breaking rains in 2024.

From 19-20 September Sue attended the Vetplant Fees in Calitzdorp and gave a talk on Succulent plant conservation challenges and solutions on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve.

From 3-5 October the Open Gardens event organised by Malcolm Searle and others in October hosted a number of natural history talks including one by WCRO member Karin Sternberg on wild bees.

From 22-23 October Sue attended the Arid Zone Ecology Forum and gave a talk entitled “Walking the Talk” dealing with environmental education through guided walks on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve.

From our Wildlife Cameras…

Waterhole Visitors

The waterhole attracted Polecat, African Wildcat, Mongooses and Duikers in September, but there have been fewer visitors to the waterhole, other than birds, over the past month.

Pictured below: a Duiker, Porcupines, and an African Wildcat

All ears! A juvenile Steenbok at the waterhole.

Below: a Bat-eared Fox, Elephant Shrew, Yellow Mongoose, and Grey Mongoose

Below: a Kori Bustard, and a Karoo Korhaan pair

An inquisitive Spike-heeled Lark

Following up on the Double-banded Courser from our previous newsletter… we now have images of a well-camouflaged chick near the nest site on a bare pebbly patch!

Plant Spotlight: Macledium relhanioides

Macledium relhanioides is currently flowering on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve. This species grows on quartzitic patches and is commonly known as the ‘Quartz Dollprotea’ (the flowers resemble small proteas), and in Afrikaans as ‘Steekblom’ (from the spiny bracts of the flowerheads). It belongs to the Daisy Family (Asteraceae). This non-succulent shrub’s thorny leaves and spiny flowerheads discourage animals from browsing on it, thus reducing herbivore damage - one of the challenges plants face in the Succulent Karoo.

In very arid areas such as Prince Albert, the Tankwa Karoo and the Richtersveld, some non-succulent shrubs, such as Macledium relhanioides, mobilize stored water and nutrients in their thick deep taproot to produce flowers when most other plants are leafless and the veld looks dead and grey. These rare flowers attract pollinators and if the gamble pays off, seeds will be ready and waiting for should there be drought-breaking rains.

Macledium relhanioides on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve (Photos: Collette Hurt)  

With the Rain, Came…

The 15mm rain received at the end of November was enough to set the right conditions for some of Wolwekraal’s most flamboyant creatures to emerge!

Red Velvet Mites spend most of their life underground. In dry areas the adults come to the surface after heavy summer rain. They remain on the surface for a brief period and may only forage for a few hours per year. From the family Trombidiidae, their conspicuous colour is likely a warning of their unpalatability to potential predators. (Apart from their excessive delightfulness) they are harmless to humans. They play important ecological roles - contributing to decomposition of soil matter; and helping to keep invertebrate pest species populations in check.

Red Velvet Mites on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve (Photos: Collette Hurt)

WCRO Research and Education Centre

The construction of the Research and Education Centre in Van Dyk Street has made excellent progress and has reached roof level under the management of builder Hendrik de Villiers.

Please watch our walkabout video where Sue talks about how the Wolwekraal Research and Education Centre will be used to promote conservation and sustainable land-use, and to share information on the natural and cultural history of the Karoo.

Our Back-a-Buddy Campaign has raised 8% of the target needed to complete the project.

To everyone that has contributed so far: a huge Thank You!

Your support is a vote of confidence in our mission to conserve local biodiversity and cultural heritage, teach local people about their environment, and to conduct and share research.

Below: building progress, sewerage-recycling tanks, and reed ceilings

Protected Area Expansion in Prince Albert

The Prince Albert Municipality is willing to accept stewardship protected status for the Gordon Koppie. This is the first Municipality in the Western Cape to show willingness to conserve commonage. Sue Dean has completed a Protected Area Management Plan for the Koppie. Projects to remove invasive alien plants, stabilise the hiking trails and control access by two wheeled vehicles and dogs off leads will start in 2026. Tom Barry visited the Koppie with two Municipal environmental interns on 11 November and demonstrated the use of injectable herbicide (Turbidor) for controlling alien invasive cactus species.

Additional landowners in the Prince Albert area have shown interest in stewardship status. Prince Albert has potential to become a conservation nucleus in the Southern Karoo!

On the terrace of Gordon Koppie (Photo: Collette Hurt)

Prince Albert Open Gardens

Prince Albert Open Gardens took place on 4-5 October 2025. Encouraging waterwise, sustainable gardening and garden biodiversity, the event showed unique Great Karoo gardens, a host of talks, walks, book launches, and workshops, including some guided walks on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve!

The event’s 3rd edition attracted gardeners and nature lovers from beyond the Western Cape. Funds raised are donated to community projects, and this year Prince Albert Open Gardens donated R15,000 to WCRO!

Thank you for the support, Prince Albert Open Gardens!

Sue Milton-Dean and Inga Terblanche (Prince Albert Open Gardens)

An Exciting New Publication

Heuweltjie-covered Landscapes of Western South Africa - Interpretive Fieldtrip Guidebook

by Joseph R. McAuliffe

This is a new open-access resource, that focuses on heuweltjies and the environments in which they occur, and the keystone role of the Southern Harvester Termite in shaping Karoo landscapes. A substantial amount of information in the guidebook came from research conducted on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve, and the nearby Tierberg-LTER.

Upcoming Events

Book a Guided Walk on Wolwekraal Nature Reserve, guided by our resident ecologist Sue Milton-Dean, who has extensive knowledge of Karoo natural history, veld management and restoration. She is ably assisted at times by other local residents with considerable knowledge of local conditions, fauna, flora and archaeology. The walk is about 2 km and takes place on a fairly flat, desert landscape, and is suitable for all ages. We limit groups to 10 people per guide.

Contact Sue on 082 770 0206

Get Involved

Wolwekraal Nature Reserve relies on an income generated from guided nature walks on the reserve, as well as public support and donations to cover annual running costs and ongoing conservation efforts. We have put together an initiative whereby people can support a chosen area of conservation on the reserve, The six key themes are: aardvark burrow-dependent wildlife, vulnerable plants, wild bee populations, maintaining waterholes, tracking wildlife with cameras, and relocation and release of reptiles from potential urban threats to a safe habitat on the reserve.

By supporting vital conservation areas, you can help ensure the long-term survival of species and their habitats. Contributions will fund habitat protection, species monitoring and research, restoration of damaged Karoo habitats, anti-poaching and conservation efforts, general reserve operations, trail maintenance, and education and outreach projects.

Every contribution, big or small, strengthens our conservation work. For more details, click below.

Read our previous newsletter here (back issues can also be accessed from our website)

Thank you for standing with us, sharing our work, and helping us protect this precious piece of the Karoo. Until next time, stay curious and keep exploring the veld!

With gratitude,

Wolwekraal Conservation and Research Organisation