Biodiversity of Cape Town

Last updated
Cape Town's original vegetation types Cape Town Vegetation Types 1 - original vegetation.jpg
Cape Town's original vegetation types
Cape Town's surviving vegetation types Cape Town Vegetation Types 2 - current surviving vegetation.jpg
Cape Town's surviving vegetation types

The Biodiversity of Cape Town is the variety and variability of life within the geographical extent of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality, excluding the Prince Edward Islands. The terrestrial vegetation is particularly diverse and much of it is endemic to the city and its vicinity. Terrestrial and freshwater animal life is heavily impacted by urban development and habitat degradation. Marine life of the waters immediately adjacent to the city along the Cape Peninsula and in False Bay is also diverse, and while also impacted by human activity, the habitats are relatively intact.

Contents

Floristic region (phytochorion)

The City of Cape Town lies within the Cape Floristic Kingdom, by far the smallest and most diverse of the earth's six floristic kingdoms, [1] an area of extraordinarily high diversity and endemism, and home to over 9,000 vascular plant species, of which 69 percent are endemic. [2] Much of this diversity is associated with the fynbos biome, a Mediterranean-type, fire-prone shrubland. [2] The economical worth of fynbos biodiversity, based on harvests of fynbos products (e.g. wildflowers) and eco-tourism, is estimated to be in the region of R77 million a year. [2] Thus, it is clear that the Cape Floristic Region has both economic and intrinsic biological value as a biodiversity hotspot. [2]

Vegetation types

Cape Town is located within a Conservation International biodiversity hotspot and is home to a total of 19 different and distinct vegetation types. (This enormous variety is mainly because the city is uniquely located at the convergence point of a great many different soil types and micro-climates.) These 19 vegetation types are mostly restricted to unusually small areas, and several are completely endemic to the city – occurring nowhere else in the world. Vegetation types include the following. [3] [4]

Endemism

Table Mountain as seen from Bloubergstrand. Some examples of the region's plant biodiversity is seen in the foreground. Table Mountain - South Africa (2418536788).jpg
Table Mountain as seen from Bloubergstrand. Some examples of the region's plant biodiversity is seen in the foreground.

Of the thousands of plant species that are indigenous to Cape Town, 190 are known to be endemic to the city - occurring nowhere else in the world. In addition, there are over a hundred animal species that are also restricted to the city. [5] Endemic plant species include the following.[ clarification needed ] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]

Cape Peninsula endemics
Additional species

Species records in South African Biodiversity Database

Mammals

Mammals present in Cape Town, as of 2011, including the following. [11]

Fish

Fish present in Cape Town, as of 2011, including the following. [11]

Reptiles

Reptiles present in Cape Town, as of 2011, including the following. [11]

Amphibians

Amphibians present in Cape Town, as of 2011, including the following. [11]

Insects

Insects present in Cape Town, as of 2011, including the following. [11]

Fungi

Fungi present in Cape Town, as of 2011, including the following. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fynbos</span> Shrubland and heathland ecoregion of southwestern South Africa

Fynbos is a small belt of natural shrubland or heathland vegetation located in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. This area is predominantly coastal and mountainous, with a Mediterranean climate and rainy winters. The fynbos ecoregion is within the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome. In fields related to biogeography, fynbos is known for its exceptional degree of biodiversity and endemism, consisting of about 80% species of the Cape floral kingdom, where nearly 6,000 of them are endemic. This land continues to face severe human-caused threats, but due to the many economic uses of the fynbos, conservation efforts are being made to help restore it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Threatened fauna of Australia</span> Animals at risk of becoming extinct

Threatened fauna of Australia are those species and subspecies of birds, fish, frogs, insects, mammals, molluscs, crustaceans, and reptiles to be found in Australia that are in danger of becoming extinct. This article lists species classified as threatened species under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nature's Valley</span> Place in Western Cape, South Africa

Nature's Valley is a holiday resort and small village on the Garden Route along the southern Cape coast of South Africa. Nature's Valley lies between the Salt River, the foothills of the Tsitsikamma Mountains, the Indian Ocean and the Groot River lagoon. Nature's Valley has a balmy climate and is surrounded by the de Vasselot Nature Reserve which is part of the Tsitsikamma Park, and in turn part of the Garden Route National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newlands Forest</span> Conservancy area in Cape Town, South Africa

Newlands Forest is a conservancy area on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain, beside the suburb of Newlands, Cape Town, South Africa. It is owned and maintained by the Table Mountain National Parks Board, along with the City Parks Department of Cape Town, and includes a Fire Station, Nursery and Reservoir.

<i>Aspalathus</i> Genus of legumes

Aspalathus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. The yellow flowers and spiny habit of some species have suggested a resemblance to Ulex europaeus, the thorny "English gorse" Accordingly, "Cape Gorse" has been proposed as a common name although the resemblance is largely superficial; for instance, gorse is thorny, whereas Aspalathus species are variously spiny or unarmed. The genus belongs to the subfamily Faboideae. There are over 270 species, mainly endemic to southwestern fynbos regions in South Africa, with over fifty occurring on the Cape Peninsula alone. The species Aspalathus linearis is commercially important, being farmed as the source of Rooibos tea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rietvlei Wetland Reserve</span> Nature reserve in Table View, Western Cape, South Africa.

The Rietvlei Wetland Reserve is a 663-hectare (1,640-acre) nature reserve situated in Table View, Western Cape, South Africa. It is managed by the City of Cape Town's Environmental Resource Management Department.

The Milnerton Racecourse Nature Reserve is a lowland conservation area located in the City of Cape Town, South Africa.

The Diep River Fynbos Corridor is a nature reserve located in the Blaauwberg region of Cape Town, South Africa. It forms part of the larger Table Bay Nature Reserve, which was established in June 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Flats Sand Fynbos</span> Vegetation type endemic to the City of Cape Town

Cape Flats Sand Fynbos (CFSF), previously known as Sand Plain Fynbos, is a critically endangered vegetation type that occurs only within the city of Cape Town. Less than 1% of this unique lowland fynbos vegetation is conserved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peninsula Granite Fynbos</span> Vegetation type endemic to the city of Cape Town, South Africa

Peninsula Granite Fynbos is an endangered Fynbos vegetation type which is endemic to the city of Cape Town and occurs nowhere else. It is a unique type of tall, dense and diverse scrubland, scattered with trees. It can be found all along the belt of granite that encircles Table Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos</span> Vegetation type endemic to the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town, South Africa

Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos is a unique and endangered vegetation type that is endemic to the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town. This type of Mountain Fynbos occurs on very poor, acidic soils but is incredibly rich in biodiversity with an enormous number of plant species – many of which occur nowhere else. Due to its poor soils and steep, inaccessible location, it has not been developed for farming or houses, and consequently it is relatively well conserved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Afrotemperate Forest</span> Main indigenous forest-type in the south-western part of South Africa

Southern Afrotemperate Forest is a kind of tall, shady, multilayered indigenous South African forest. This is the main forest-type in the south-western part of South Africa, naturally extending from the Cape Peninsula in the west, as far as Port Elizabeth in the east. In this range, it usually occurs in small forest pockets, surrounded by fynbos vegetation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uitkamp Wetlands</span> Wetland reserve in Durbanville in the Western Cape

Uitkamp Wetland Nature Reserve is a 32-hectare (79-acre) wetland reserve located in Durbanville in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

<i>Erica abietina</i> Species of flowering plant

Erica abietina is a species of erica that is endemic to the Cape Peninsula of the Western Cape, South Africa. E. abietina includes four subspecies with often highly restricted distributions and distinctive flower colours. Previous delimitation of the species has included a further three subspecies which proved to be more distantly related to Cape Peninsula endemic E. abietina subspecies and are now classified under Erica grandiflora L.f. and Erica situshiemalis E.G.H.Oliv. & Pirie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table Bay Nature Reserve</span> Nature reserve in Western Cape, South Africa

The Table Bay Nature Reserve is an 880-hectare (2,200-acre) nature reserve in Milnerton, Western Cape, South Africa. It consists of several smaller constituent reserves including Rietvlei Wetland Reserve, Diep River Fynbos Corridor, Zoarvlei Wetlands, Milnerton Racecourse Nature Reserve, and Milnerton Lagoon, as well as surrounding protected areas. These adjacent reserves were amalgamated on 27 June 2012, in order to improve the biodiversity management in the built-up area. It is managed by the City of Cape Town's Environmental Resource Management Department, with offices at Rietvlei.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tokai Park</span> Small section of Table Mountain National Park in Cape Town, South Africa

Tokai Park, previously known as "Tokai Forest", is a small wing, about 600 ha, of the greater Table Mountain National Park in Cape Town, South Africa. Tokai Park is made up of two sections: upper and lower Tokai Park. Lower Tokai Park is flat, and characterized by the threatened Cape Flats Sand Fynbos. Upper Tokai Park is on the slopes of Constantiaberg Mountain, and consists of conservation area as well as the Tokai Arboretum. Upper Tokai Park is characterized by Peninsula Granite Fynbos, Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos and Afromontane Forest and noted for its diversity.

<i>Serruria fasciflora</i> Shrublet in the family Proteaceae from the Western Cape of South Africa

Serruria fasciflora or common pin spiderhead is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae. It is a sprawling to upright shrublet of 40 cm to 1 m high and about 12 m wide. It has finely divided, upward curving leaves with thread-thin segments and clusters of sweetly scented heads, each consisting of five to seven silvery pink flowers, that may be found year-round, but mostly from May to December. It is a rather widespread and common species, that is restricted to the south of the Western Cape province of South Africa.

<i>Schoenus bolusii</i> Species of grass-like plant

Schoenus bolusii is a species of sedge endemic to the mountains of the Western Cape Province of South Africa. However, S. bolusii is not found on the Cape Peninsula.

References

  1. "Environmental Resource Management in the city of Cape Town". Archived from the original on 2014-05-20. Retrieved 2011-01-06.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Odendaal L. J., Haupt T. M. & Griffiths C. L. (2008). "The alien invasive land snail Theba pisana in the West Coast National Park: Is there cause for concern?". Koedoe – African Protected Area Conservation and Science 50(1): 93-98. abstract, doi : 10.4102/koedoe.v50i1.153.
  3. "City of Cape Town - Vegetation Types". Archived from the original on 2013-08-24. Retrieved 2014-02-24.
  4. "Vegetation Types". Archived from the original on 2012-04-04. Retrieved 2011-01-07.
  5. "Endemic Species of the city of Cape Town" (PDF).[ permanent dead link ]
  6. "Brochures, booklets and posters". Archived from the original on 2012-12-23. Retrieved 2011-10-01.
  7. "Endemic species" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-11-01. Retrieved 2011-02-06.
  8. A.B. Low & A.G. Rebelo (eds). Vegetation of South Africa, Lesotho & Swaziland, a companion to the vegetation map of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. Dept Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Pretoria. 85pp. ISBN   0-621-17316-9.
  9. A.G. Rebelo, C. Boucher, N. Helme, L. Mucina, M.C. Rutherford et al. 2006. Fynbos Biome, in: L. Mucina & M.C. Rutherford (eds). The Vegetation of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. Strelitzia 19, pp 52‐219.
  10. Anthony G. Rebelo, Patricia M. Holmes, Clifford Dorse & Julia Wood. Cape Town: Averting a Biodiversity Megadisaster? Unpublished MS.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Biodiversity Management" . Retrieved 2024-02-19.