MARVELS DO MOUNT BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT FULL OF SPECTACULAR FINDS
A fter over two decades of extensive field surveys across southern Africa, an international specialist team have identified a new mountain ecoregion harbouring unprecedented levels of unique biodiversity.
to be biological treasures protecting miniscule but irreplaceable forests and grasslands. Across reptiles, amphibians, crabs, butterflies, and other groups, the SEAMA stands out for its high degree of unique endemic diversity even compared with much larger ecoregions in Africa. However, according to the researchers, the ecoregion already faces an urgent conservation crisis. Since surveys began two decades ago, the region has lost a fifth of its forest cover due to human activities like agriculture - one of the fastest deforestation rates on the continent. Without formal protections over much of the ecoregion, many endemic species localised to just one or a few mountains remain precariously close to extinction. The paper warns that international support is now needed to stem further loss of this globally significant hotspot and safeguard its extraordinary but little-known natural wealth into the future.
ORDINARY PHOTOS FUEL FRESH DISCOVERIES
O rdinary people can assist scientists with their daily work simply by submitting photos of butterflies, birds, trees, dragonflies, frogs and more to the Virtual Museum (VM), an online database with several specimens from different areas in South Africa. The Animal Demography Unit at the University of Cape Town originally developed this innovative concept in 2005. Since 2018, The FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology at the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Cape Town has hosted and administered the VM in partnership with The Biodiversity and Development Institute (BDI), an independent non- profit company. For many, a museum is a place to see stuffed animals on display and insects in drawers, but the Virtual Museum has changed this perception by taking it online. The establishment of a virtual museum comes with plenty of advantages. Along with the basic information submitted for each record, a panel of experts then identify the species and compile distribution maps, serving as conservation and education tools. These records confirm the presence of a species at a particular point in time, and they also provide new distribution records for species and this sometimes leads to extensions of the known range of a species. At least four new species were discovered in the last few years. Dr Megan Loftie- Eaton, Communications and Citizen Science Projects Coordinator at the Virtual Museum, says it is exciting as citizen science contributes to the discovery of new species and helps determine new populations of species where they never occurred before. The forest leopard butterfly ( Phalanta eurytis ), for example, was mapped in 2018 in Port Elizabeth, 230km from its furthest southern distribution. In 2017, Jean Hirons photographed a Ceres streamjack damselfly ( Spesbona angusta)
in Sedgefield in the Western Cape. This species was thought to be extinct until citizen science proved otherwise. Next time you visit any of our national parks and nature reserves, keep in mind that there are awesome critters to be seen right in camp. You do not have to go out on a game drive or traverse the highest peak to contribute. Take a day to see what you can discover right under your nose, even in your garden at home. Nature is all around us, we just need to open our eyes. Five species to keep an eye out for next time you visit a national park include the red copper butterfly in the West Coast National Park, the southern foam nest frog in the Kruger National Park and the Karoo burrowing scorpion in the Karoo National Park. Swellendam’s Bontebok National Park is great for broad scarlet dragonfly, and Mokala National Park near Kimberley is home to the neddicky. Of course, there is so much more to see than just these five. Challenge yourself and see how many more animals you can find. See if you can snap and map at least 30 distinct species next time you take a walk around a rest camp. More than 2 600 people have already registered to be a part of the Virtual Museum, and the number of contributions by citizen scientists is well on its way to over a million records. At present, there are 18 different projects within the Virtual Museum.
Malawi
Mozambique
View across Mt Mulanje. Credit: Julian Bayliss
Stretching from Malawi to northern Mozambique, the proposed South East Africa Montane Archipelago (SEAMA) encompasses over 30 ancient granite mountains that have long acted as refuges for plant and animal life. However, the full scale of the biodiversity trapped within these “islands in the sky” has only recently been uncovered. Led by Professor Julian Bayliss of Oxford Brookes University, the team’s groundbreaking research involved around 100 specialists from research institutions around the world. Their findings, published in the journal Scientific Reports, provide conclusive evidence that the SEAMA region constitutes a singular ecoregion based on factors like geology, climate, and most importantly - the astounding number of endemic species found nowhere else. To date, the surveys have documented over 220 plant and animal species unique to the region, including 127 endemic plant species as well as 45 vertebrate and invertebrate species. But the most significant discovery was made in Mozambique’s Mount Mabu, where researchers uncovered the largest expanse of mid-elevation rainforest in Southern Africa. Mount Mabu is home to numerous species new to science, recognised as hosting the peak of biodiversity within the entire ecoregion. Other mountains, such as tiny Mount Lico were also found
Newly discovered crab from Mt Namuli. Credit: Julian Bayliss
New species of mistletoe from Mt Namuli. Credit: Julian Bayliss
As the first comprehensive assessment of the SEAMA’s biodiversity, the study provides a blueprint for enhanced conservation across the politically fragmented ecoregion. By illuminating the SEAMA’s evolutionary uniqueness, scientists now hope to accelerate collaborations between Malawi, Mozambique and beyond - helping to strengthen landscape-scale stewardship of Africa’s newest biodiversity jewel in its time of greatest need.
Scan the code to upload your photos to the Virtual Museum
How to do this is explained under the Help and Documents link. Your photos will help to make a difference for biodiversity conservation in South Africa.
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