This year’s AGM was a special occasion as we celebrated 10 years of active project implementation, alongside highlighting the impactful work of the Grootvadersbosch Conservancy across a range of environmental projects. What started with the employment of our first 3 full-time staff members has grown into a thriving organization, now employing 10 full-time, while creating contract work for over 120 people annually.
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A Decade of Alien Clearing
One of our most significant achievements over the past decade has been our alien clearing program. Since 2014, we’ve successfully cleared 18,823 hectares, with follow-ups on 15,870 hectares, creating over 100,747 days of employment. On average, this translates to 43 full-time jobs each year. This program not only provides job opportunities but also ensures the preservation and health of our local ecosystems, protecting them from alien invasive species and providing the natural vegetation to grow back.

​Expanding into Restoration
Thanks to funding from the IKI small grant and IUCN, our restoration projects have expanded over the past year. The restoration work supports sustainable agricultural practices, healthier river systems, job opportunities, and capacity building. These efforts are crucial for climate stability and river security, as well as for maintaining biodiversity. We've trained over 20 people in restoration work where half of the time is spent working within a nursery, how to propagate local indigenous species, how to do cuttings and splitting, and the correct planting methods.
Our work in active restoration spans 3 different sites, including private landowners and public areas, showcasing diversity, in both species and partnerships, which is key to building environmental resilience.

​Keynote Address: River Restoration and Agriculture
Our keynote speaker, Dana Grobler, shared his invaluable insights on river restoration, using his experience with various river systems as an example. Dana’s talk focused on the impact of agriculture on the environment, particularly on river systems, and how sustainable practices can mitigate these effects. He emphasized the importance of understanding river geomorphology and the natural flood zones to implement effective restoration strategies. His close collaboration with landowners has resulted in improvements to their local environment and enhanced the health of their rivers.
Through the removal of invasive species and better management of sediment transport, Dana's efforts have shown how landowners can contribute to restoring riparian zones, creating a balance that benefits both the environment and the agricultural landscape.

​A Journey Through Time with Thys Swart
Another highlight of the day was a nostalgic trip down memory lane, presented by one of our members, Thys Swart. Thys captivated the audience with stories about the rich history of theGrootvadersbosch Valley, dating back to the 1700s. He shared fascinating tales about the first settlers, the old farms, and how the conservancy has evolved over the centuries. This historical perspective added depth to the celebration and left everyone feeling more connected to the land we are working to protect.

New Projects and Looking Ahead
We’re excited to announce our upcoming three-year project, funded by the Nedbank Green Trust, which will focus on water resource protection in the Tradouw and Huis river systems. This project is a continuation of our partnership with the Gouritz Cluster Biosphere Reserve and aims to further our conservation and restoration efforts in the region.
Additionally, we’ve recently assisted to restoration the Barrydale Caravan Park, which now features a medicinal and useful plant garden, indigenous tree rehabilitation, and a picnic area. This area serves both as a conservation effort and a recreational space for the community to enjoy.
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The Future is Bright
As we look forward, we remain committed to furthering our restoration and conservation work. We are proud of what we have achieved over the past decade and are excited about the future projects we have planned. Thank you to everyone who has supported us on this journey. Together, we are building a more sustainable and resilient environment for the Grootvadersbosch area and beyond.

And as always, we had a wonderful wine tasting the evening of the fabulous Olifantsberg Wines and a fantastic meal from the Grootvadersbosch Farm that Michelle Moodie prepared

Thank you to everyone who attended! 

​Over the last few months, we've been delighted to welcome some exceptional guests, and we're thrilled to share the highlights of their visits along with a plethora of photos!
 
Firstly, we had the honour of hosting the South African Institute of Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), led by Dr. Albert Chakona, Chief Scientist and Senior Research Associate from the Department of Ichthyology and Fisheries Science at Rhodes University. Aileen Anderson, our esteemed General Manager and SASS Guru, joined forces with them for monitoring and DNA sampling of aquatic species in the Gouritz Cluster Biosphere Region (GCBR) and partnered with friends in the Elim area to sample fish in the Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area. This collaboration was both enlightening and memorable, enabling us to address various inquiries, document previously unrecorded aquatic species, and forge new partnerships. For more insights into our partnership with GCBR, check out their article on GCBR Fish Monitoring. Additionally, delve into the SAIAB article for a deeper understanding of our discoveries in Unveiling Nature's Jewel: Exploring the Enigmatic World of the Translucent Goukou Galaxias. And be sure to immerse yourself in the captivating pictures from our expedition!

​Our second visit was from Landcare (Department of Agriculture), during which we had the pleasure of meeting with Rudolph Röscher, District Manager of the Cape Winelands and Hannes Muller District Manager of Eden SRUM. These annual visits entail inspections of our activities, during which Ricardo Januarie (Alien Clearing Manager) and Mzomhle Mtshintshi (Quality Controller) showcased our progress in alien-clearing activities, while Corné Brink (Restoration Manager) talked about our restoration efforts. We also visited our impressive alien clearing project in the Korente Poort Dam area, that we are implementing in partnership with the Korente-Vette Irrigation Board.

​The Grootbos Foundation marked our fourth visit, allowing us to showcase our valley and its fauna and flora species. It was a rewarding experience, during which we also fine-tuned our camera trap system, providing Jessi Venter (Conservation Officer) with invaluable insights (as demonstrated in the pictures) and capturing the magnificent specimens in the valley.

​Our fifth visit welcomed students from The Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS), where international honours students engaged in multiple activities within the conservancy. These activities included monitoring the restoration site near the office to track species regrowth and timing processes within the nursery itself. It was quite an experience for our GVB staff members, and we have learned a lot from this visit! 

​And finally, our last visit was from IKI GRANT themselves. Their visit allowed us to present and showcase our project's progress, achievements, and upcoming goals.

It was with great pleasure that the Grootvadersbosch Conservancy got the opportunity to collaborate with the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) in their mission to collect and conserve seeds from our region to preserve them for a lifetime in the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership (MSBP).

The MSBP is an international program where the main goal is to collect and conserve seeds on a global scale, with over 80 countries involved, including South Africa. The MSBP banks the collected seeds at the Seed Conservation Department at the Royal Botanic Gardens (Kew) where the seeds are dried and kept in freezers under -20°C. These conditions make it possible for the seeds to stay viable for hundreds of years and be available to use when necessary.   
 
The aim of the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership is to collect all plant species for ex-situ conservation and storage in the long term. Priority is given to the protection of threatened plant species to reduce the possibility of total extinction.
 
Field trips and pre-preparations are vital in planning and implementing the collecting of specimens and seeds, targeted species should be determined beforehand, and the team should also be prepared to collect specimens that were not on the targeted list. This will ensure an effective and successful field trip.    

There are multiple collection techniques that can be used when collecting:

• Plucking seeds of branches– a basic yet simple collection method for gathering and selecting fruits that are easily accessible to the collector.
• Pruning clusters of fruits – used if the fruit is out of reach or multiple fruits are present on a branch.
• Stripping – mostly used for collecting grass seeds.
• Shaking branches – effective for collecting dry indehiscent or dehiscent seeds by placing a tarpaulin beneath the plant or holding it while one person shakes the branch prudently.
• Collection from the ground – it may not always be advisable to use this technique because the seeds can be damaged due to pathogens or pests/insects. 

THE MISSION
On the 6th of June, the Grootvadersbosch Conservancy team joined SANBI for the collection of specimens and seeds of the outstanding species that needed to be collected. The SANBI project is led by Naomi Mdayi  and Sibahle Gumede with Yandisa Ndzeku (photographer and collector), Michael Ndovu (photographer and collector), Sihle Mvunyiswa (collector), and Sphephelo Kheswa (collector). They were joined by Goliath Highburg, Jessi Venter, Bella Liebenberg, Rachel Jacobz, and Marius Piek from the Conservancy to assist with local knowledge.

​​We started our journey in the Grootvadersbosch Nature Reserve Forest area where most of the forest-targeted species can be found.
 
Our journey did not go on too long before we spotted the first plant species to collect for the day. The team identified the species together (with the help of reliable identification elements) to ensure that it was the correct species. Naomi and Sibahle filled in the required data in the standard MSBP data sheet that records all the details of the species and its surrounding environment – soil characteristics, geology, slope aspect, and altitude. These are recorded for future restoration implications. It is a time-consuming process but essential to complete onsite to avoid any details being missed. Yandisa Ndzeku, Michael Ndovu, Sihle Mvunyiswa, and Sphephelo Kheswa oversaw the collection of two herbarium specimens for each species collected and of viable seeds where possible, using the previously mentioned collecting techniques. The collected specimens were temporarily put into plant specimen collecting bags and were later pressed in herbarium plant drying pressers.
 
These steps were followed throughout the day’s journey, with the Grootvadersbosch Conservancy team assisting in the identification of plant species and the carrying of specimens.  

​Specimens collected were as follows:
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Anemone vesicatoria – Blisterleaf – Brandblaar
Scolopia mundii – Red pear - Rooipeer
Podocarpus latifolius – Real yellowwood – Opregte geelhout
Canthium inerme – Common turkey-berry – Gewone bokdrol  
Ilex mitis – African holly - Waterboom
Chionanthus foveolatus – Pock ironwood – Pokysterhout
Phylica pinea – Pine Hardleaf
Elegia racemosa – Restionaceae 

​After collection and identification, the specimens are prepared for the herbarium. The process involves carefully placing the plants in a press with layers of press paper, to absorb any excess moisture from the species. This is important to make it a perfect pressed herbarium specimen. Once dried, it will be removed from the press, labelled with other associated data of the collection, and submitted to an Herbaria to confirm that all the data are correct before it is shipped to the MSBP and Royal Botanical Gardens. 

REFERENCES: 

​SANBI, 2023. MILLENIUM SEED BANK. Available at: https://www.sanbi.org/biodiversity/foundations/biosystematics-collections/millennium-seed-bank/ [Accessed on 5 July 2023] 

We recently had a visit from a team of researchers from the Grootbos Foundation. The aim of this field trip was to collect tissue samples of Southern Dainty Frog (Cacosternum australis).The Grootvadersbosch area is the paratype (specimen aiding in defining taxonomy of a species) locality from the study that originally described this species (see Channing et al., 2013).

Top: The Striped stream frog (Strongylopus fasciatus) are agile jumpers. Clicking stream frogs  make a short, hollow tapping sound that can be quite monotonous. Their calls remind me of lots of people snapping their fingers in succession. We found this species at two sites (Strawberry Hill Farm and near Honeywood dam entrance). They can call from both slightly elevated positions and tucked away in grass patches. Calls are high-pitched, piercing chirps that remind me of a wheel that needs some grease.

​Middle and Bottom: The Clicking stream frog (Strongylopus grayii) is a common species. Interestingly, we found two colour variants  within the area. The common variant (middle) was found at Strawberry Hill Farm dam. Calling from the muddy sides of the water body from sparse grasses, whereas  the other variant (bottom) was found in a rocky river stream in Grootvadersbosch Nature Reserve.

The common platanna (Xenopus laevis) predominantly occurs in water. Their powerful back legs have sharp claws that allow them to tear their prey apart like leopards, grabbing small animals with their mouths and tearing it with an overhead back kick. Back legs also aid this animal in burying itself under the soil whilst under water to escape predation or lay in wait for prey.

Thanks to Paula Strauss  and Michael Fabricius for sharing their findings and we look forward to welcoming them back to the area for more interesting discoveries.