Maalgat Trail #2: Fab Slabs and . . . Rockjumpers!?
The cache, a small camo-taped tablet pot, is hidden just off the trail about 2/3 of the way along it to the its end at the Maalgat rock pool. It is at a location adjacent to and overlooking an impressive, extensive open area of sandstone rock slabs which in the past have been and sometimes (in times of full flood) parts of which still become the riverbed.
The slabs have several curious large round fluvial potholes drilled into them over the years by abrasive forces arising from fast-flowing water – all the subject matter of the EarthCache here.
To Reach the Cache Location: for information on access to the trail/cache, including relevant waypoints, see GC9B7YT Holey Rocks!.
As I was searching for a suitable cache location, I spotted a movement on the rocky slopes above the river and quickly glimpsed what I thought was a pair of Cape Rock-jumpers, but before I could whip out the bins to confirm this, they had moved on.
Maybe my mind was already focused on rock-jumpers as the Maalgat Rock Pool, another 200m along and at the end of the trail is the place where rock-jumpers of the human kind may be seen from time to time leaping of the rock slabs above the river into the deep icy-cold waters of the pool!
Whatever the case, rockjumpers (Chaetops frenatus) are known to occur in Cederberg so it is always good to keep your eyes open for this uncommon bird which was declared Bird of the Year 2021 by Western Cape Birding.
With its red eyes and striking colouration, it is one of South Africa’s most recognisable bird species. Restricted to fynbos, it is a major economic asset to the country, with birdwatchers from all over the world travelling here to see it, as well as the other endemic species restricted to the Cape Floral Kingdom. With its sister species, the Drakensberg Rockjumper, this bird family is restricted to South Africa and Lesotho.
It was chosen as an ambassador for the Fynbos biome: the unique plant kingdom found only in South Africa. There are 7 other bird species only found here: Cape Sugarbird, Orange-breasted Sunbird, Protea Canary, Cape Siskin, Victorin’s Warbler, Agulhas Long-billed Lark and Hottentot Buttonquail.
The Fynbos biome extends from the northern Cederberg through the Cape Fold Mountains, to Port Elizabeth, with fragments as far as Makhanda/Grahamstown. It is generally well protected within Western Cape CapeNature reserves but there are major concerns regarding the spread of alien tree species like pines and wattles, as well as increased fire frequencies as a result of climate change.
The latter creates habitat that is favourable to the species by opening up the habitat as it likes to forage by 
hopping around on the ground. This is a reason that it is mostly associated with high alpine areas and mountainous terrain within the Fynbos, where vegetation is naturally sparse and low.
Ironically, several studies have indicated that it is vulnerable to climate change rather than benefitting from it, with decreases in range and reporting rate according to the Southern African Bird Atlas Project.
Its vulnerability seems to be due to a several factors. Firstly, their physiology relies on water-loss to keep cool – strange for a bird living in a region with dry summers. Juveniles and chicks are particularly vulnerable to heat stress whereas adults simply stop foraging when it gets too warm.
Range modelling shows the species is restricted to cooler regions of the Fynbos (notably at higher altitude). Also its nests on the ground are especially vulnerable to predators like the Boomslang.
It is thus the first SA species to be given a threatened conservation status (Near Threatened according to the IUCN red list) due to the direct and indirect effects of climate change.
It is therefore also an ambassador to numerous other animal species similarly restricted in where they occur because of a ‘climate envelope’. While some birds can adapt to climate change by moving to a location with more a favourable temperature, this is not possible for species restricted to the highest altitudes as they can’t move further up.
Other species facing similar challenges include the Ground Woodpecker and Sentinel Rock-thrush, as well as high altitude grassland specialists like the Endangered Rudd’s and Botha’s Larks and Drakensberg Rockjumper.
During 2021 efforts will be made by BirdLife to promote awareness about the Cape Rockjumper inter alia through production of an informative poster, learning resources for schools, magazine articles, social media posts, presentations to interested groups.
See here for more info on this lovely but vulnerable species and here for a poster. See here for a short video on rockjumpers near Rooi Els and here for a great video of chicks in a nest.