Cape Fynbos Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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Cape Floral
Kingdom
Fynbos grows in a 100-200 km wide coastal belt stretching from
Clanwilliam on the West coast to Port Elizabeth on the Southeast
coast. It forms part of the Cape floral kingdom, where it accounts
for half of the surface area and 80% of the plant varieties. The
fynbos in the western regions is more rich and varied than in the
eastern regions of South Africa.
Of the world's six floral kingdoms, this is the smallest and
richest per area unit. Contrast it in size with the Holarctic
kingdom, which incorporates the whole of the northern hemisphere
apart from the tropical regions. The diversity of fynbos plants is
extremely high with over 9000 species of plants occurring in the
area, around 6200 of which are endemic, i.e. do not occur anywhere
else in the world, this level of variety is comparable with
tropical rainforests or large islands and is unique in a relatively
dry continental area. Of the Ericas, 600 occur in the fynbos
kingdom, while only 26 are found in the rest of the world. This is
in an area of 46,000 km² - by comparison, the Netherlands, with an
area of 33,000 km², has 1400 species, none of them endemic. Table
Mountain in Cape Town supports 2200 species, more than the entire
United Kingdom. Thus although the Fynbos comprises only 6% of the
area of southern Africa it has half the species on the
subcontinent, and in fact has almost 1 in 5 of all plant species in
Africa.
Five river systems dissect the Cape floral kingdom: the Oliphants
River of the Western Cape; the Berg River which drains the West
Coast Forelands plain that stretches from the Cape Flats to the
Olifants; the Breede, which is the largest river on the Cape; the
Olifants River (Southern Cape), Gourits and the Groot Rivers which
drain the Little Karoo basin and the South Coast Forelands; and the
Baviaanskloof and Gamtoos Rivers to the east.
Flora
The name fynbos is Afrikaans for fine bush and refers to the fine,
needle-like leaves of many fynbos species. The majority of the
plants are evergreen sclerophyll (hard-leaf) plants. The
characteristic fynbos plant families are proteas, ericas, and
restios. Proteas are represented by many species and are prominent
in the landscape as one of the few large-leaf plant types,
generally with large striking flowers which may be pollinated by
birds. Ericas or heaths are generally smaller plants with many
small, tubular flowers and needle-like leaves. The grass-like
restios - only a few species of which are known outside the fynbos
area - grow in wetter areas. More than 1400 bulb species occur
among the fynbos, of which 96 are gladiolus and 54 lachenalias.
Areas that mainly consist of ericas are known as
Renosterveld.
Fire
Fire is a necessary stage in the lives of almost all fynbos plants,
and is common during the dry summer months. Many of the seeds
germinate only after the intense heat of a fire. In readiness for
fire, most proteas retain their seeds on the bush for at least one
year, a habit known as serotiny. They do this in structures which
resemble the original flowerheads. In some species these structures
are strikingly beautiful and long-lasting, which accounts for their
use in dried floral arrangements. Around 30% of plants in the
Fynbos produce seeds with an elaiosome which attract ants that
carry the seeds into their burrows. In this way, the seeds are
protected from fire. This relationship is an example of
myrmecochory (the distribution of seeds by ants) Perhaps the
continual renewal of the foliage by fire and myrmecochory has
generated the explosion of plant speciation in the Cape.
Ecoregions
The fynbos area has been divided into two very similar ecoregions,
the lowland fynbos (below 300m) on the sandy soil of the west coast
and the montane fynbos of the Cape Fold Belt.
The Lowland Fynbos and Renosterveld experiences regular winter
rainfall, especially to the west of Cape Agulhas. The ecoregion has
been subdivided into nine areas: the West Coast Forelands from the
Cape Flats to the Olifants River (Western Cape); the Warm Bokkeveld
basin around the town of Ceres; the Elgin Valley around the town of
Elgin; the sandy Agulhas Plain on the coast; the Breede River
valley around the town of Worcester; the South Coast Forelands from
Caledon west to Mossel Bay; the south-eastern end of the Little
Karoo; Langkloof valley; and the Southeastern Coast Forelands west
from Tsitsikamma to Port Elizabeth.
The flora of the lowlands contains a high number of endemic species
and tends to consist of larger plants than that of the hillier
areas, including restios and proteas such as King Protea (Protea
cynaroides) and blushing bride (Serruria florida). Particular types
of lowland fynbos include: the shrubs and herbs of the coastal sand
dunes; the mixture of ericoids and restoids with thickets of shrubs
such as Maytenus and other (Celastraceae), Sideroxylons and other
(sapotaceae) and Rhus and other (Anacardiaceae) on the coastal
sands; the classic fynbos of the sandplains of the West Coast
Forelands, and the Agulhas Plain; the grassy fynbos of the hillier
and wetter areas of the South and South-Eastern Coast Forelands;
areas where fynbos and renosterveld are mixed; coastal renosterveld
on the West and South Coast Forelands; and the inland renosterveld
of the drier inland Little Karoo and Warm Bokkeveld.
The area is also home to a large number of endemic animals that
have adapted to life in this area include the monkey beetles which
pollinate Ixia viridiflora. There are endemic species of fish in
the five river systems in the area. Endemic reptiles include a
number of tortoises and the chameleon-like Arum frog (Hyperolius
horstockii).
The same level of floral variety including all three characteristic
fynbos families is found in the Montane Fynbos and Renosterveld,
the areas above 300m a total of 45,000 km2 of the Cape Fold
Mountains, but ericas predominate. Original flora is more intact in
these higher and wetter areas, which contain more protected areas
and important water sources, than in the lowlands but agriculture
and global warming are stll threats. The region includes: in the
west the mountains from the Cape Peninsula to the Kouebokkeveld
Mountains; the south coast hinterland from Elgin to Port Elizabeth;
the mountains north of the Little Karoo from Laingsburg to
Willowmore; and the inselberg hills within the Little Karoo. About
half of these areas are originally fynbos and about half
renosterveld.
Many different microclimates occur so the flora changes from west
to east and varies with altitude up the hillsides away from the
coast and according to compass direction. Lower elevations are
covered with protea fynbos with ericas taking over further up.
Plant species include pincushions (Leucospermum). The wildlife
includes a number of endemic bees, beetles, horseflies and ants,
and birds such as Cape Sugarbirds and the Orange-breasted Sunbird.
Many of these birds and insects are important and specific
pollinators for the fynbos, such as the Mountain Pride butterfly
(Aeropetes tulbaghia) which only visits red flowers such as Disa
uniflora and pollinates 15 different species. Larger animals
include the antelopes Cape Grysbok (Raphicerus melanotis), Common
Duiker (Sylvicapra grimmia), and Klipspringer (Oreotragus
oreotragus).
Economic
Uses
Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and Honeybush (Cyclopia intermedia)
are of economic importance, grown and harvested in large quantities
in the Cederberg area, and making up an important export. Proteas
and other floral species are grown in many areas and their flowers
harvested for export. Restios continue to be used for thatching as
they have for hundreds or even thousands of years.
In many areas with Mediterranean climates, fynbos species are
popular garden plants, in particular aloes and geraniums, and in
cooler regions are used as window plants.
Threats and
Conservation
Large parts of the fynbos region have been inhabited for centuries.
The lowland areas are prone to be developed for agriculture and
viticulture or through the urban expansion along the coast
especially around Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, and only a small
portion is protected. Fynbos areas are also threatened by the
spread of alien species, in particular wattle and acacia species
from Australia, as well as pine plantations in the Cape Fold hills.
Many species have gone extinct, and more than 1000 are endangered.
Their conservation is a priority, and reserves have been
established in many areas. Fynbos areas are a popular attraction
for tourists, especially in the vicinity of Cape Town, and are also
important recreational areas for locals. The Western Cape coast is
travelled by the Garden Route while large areas of natural fynbos
can be seen in Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden in Cape Town
and Table Mountain National Park which covers most of the Cape
Peninsula and in Tsitsikamma National Park to the east. There are a
number of published hiking routes from Cape Town and other towns
such as Elgin. The centre for visiting the Little Karoo is the town
of Oudtshoorn.
Refs: Wikipedia
Park at the given Parking
Co-ordinates.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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Nyfb BBCF, fbeel V sbetbg gb chg va n crapvy fb qbag sbetrg lbhe cra.
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