UCT Open Access Journals (Univ. of Cape Town)
Not a member yet
801 research outputs found
Sort by
SABAP2 after nine years, mid 2007 - mid 2016: coverage progress and priorities for the Second Southern African Bird Atlas Project
Get PDFThe Second Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP2) started on 1 July 2007. On 30 June 2016, nine years of fieldwork for the project had been completed. This paper shows the year-by-year coverage maps, and reviews regional progress after nine years. Finally, it describes the priorities for each of the project's 11 organisational regions for the 10th year of the project
OdonataMAP: progress report on the atlas of the dragonflies and damselflies of Africa, 2010 - 2016
Get PDFThe Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) are superb indicators of the quality of fresh water. All communities rely on water, and especially in rural areas water is used directly from rivers. The habitat of the Odonata represents the source of clean and reliable water. So, in a nutshell: "What is the use of dragonflies?" They are a signpost pointing to healthy freshwater habitat, and freshwater is a resource everyone needs. The dragonflies and damselflies are ambassadors for healthy freshwater ecosystems, and they can be used to monitor the quality of these systems. OdonataMAP is generating a data-rich baseline for the study of future changes in aquatic systems, at both local and global scales. So this atlas has the potential to influence government policy on the use of water resources, especially for the rural poor. No other taxon has the potential to be so politically prominent in this way
Feet bathing as a cooling down mechanism in two species of birds of prey
Get PDFIt seems likely that both the Gabar Goshawk and the Lizard Buzzard were using the water of the bird baths to cool down their legs and fee
Bird distribution dynamics 2 - Maccoa Duck Oxyura maccoa In South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland
Get PDFThe global conservation status of the Maccoa Duck Oxyura maccoa was classified as "Near-threatened" in 2007; this is also its regional conservation status in South Africa. The species has been the subject of an intensive species action plan process starting in 2005 and culminating with the formal endorsement and adoption of the International Single Species Action Plan by the Fourth Session of the Meeting of the Parties to the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement in 2008. The aim of the action plan was to "To stabilise or increase natural populations of Maccoa Duck as indicators of sustainable wetland management for the benefit of people in Africa by 2010". One of priority activities listed in the action plan is to "obtain improved population estimates and distribution of the Maccoa Duck". This paper aims to do the latter, by presenting the distribution map from the Second Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP2) for the Maccoa Duck. It also aims to help to understand changes in distribution, and to a lesser extent, changes in abundance, in the quarter-century between SABAP1 (mid-date 1989) and SABAP2 (mid-date for data collection so far falls in 2012)
Growth and development of Croaking Cisticola Cisticola natalensis nestlings
Get PDFThe unusually large size and the characteristic call of the Croaking Cisticola Cisticola natalensis arguably make it one of the more distinctive species in the family. As with many other cisticolas, its biology is poorly known and mainly based on anecdotal observations. This paper describes the growth and development of Croaking Cisticola nestlings at a single nest. Knowledge of nestling development is important for future studies where nestling age estimates are required (e.g. daily survival estimates) and provides valuable insight into the overall adaptive nesting strategies of bird
Supportive structures for play and social inclusion within an urban park: a qualitative descriptive study
Get PDFThis study aimed to determine the extent and the ways in which Amber Park is perceived by its users to either facilitate or hinder play and social inclusion. The study is qualitative descriptive in nature. Purposive sampling for maximum variation was used to select the 16 participants who were interviewed. Inductive reasoning was followed through open coding, allowing for the conceptualisation of raw data. This generated 15 categories, which were further collapsed into 3 themes; (a) A space for valued play (which incorporates how the park meets park users’ occupational needs in a way that provides meaning and value for the users), (b) Play: disrupting class and race (which shows how play equalises power relationships in a unique way), and (c) All welcome, but… (which speaks to latent hegemonic practices and how these dictate behaviour and inclusion). These findings provide new understandings about the way in which an urban park can support valued play by meeting occupational needs, as well as mitigate racial, class and generational divides within a diverse society, and may inform inclusive policies for public spaces
An unusual meal for African Black Oystercatcher Haematopus moquini chicks
Get PDFOn 7 March 2013, while monitoring the oystercatcher nesting site at Noordhoek beach (S34?07' E18?20'), I noticed an earthworm (Oligochaeta) placed over one of the chicks in a pair
Brant's Climbing Mice using weaver nests
Get PDFBrant's climbing mice were found to utilize weaver nests after the weavers had completed breeding, at Zandvlei lake in Cape Town. Mice built their own balls-shaped nests within weaver nests of both Cape and Southern Masked Weavers. In this study the weaver nests were in reeds. Mean nest height for all weaver nests (both species) in the study area was 119.3 cm (range 57-207 cm, n=15) and for weaver nests used by mice mean height was 128.1 cm (57-207 cm, n=8). The main period of climbing mouse occupation of weaver nests was from November to April. In total 9 out of 23 weaver nests at the site contained mice nests, but not all were occupied at the same time, i.e., some mice pairs may have deserted a nest and occupied a new nest. Six nests contained mice during a single visit, indicating that there were a minimum of six pairs utilizing weaver nests. One mouse nest was present in a weaver nest for over six months
Secretarybird Sagittaruis serpentaruis resighted after five years
No full textNew longevity record for the Secretarybird, of 5 years
African Black Oystercatcher fatality as a result of fishing line
Get PDFDetails of African Black Oystercatcher fatality as a result of fishing line, with an Appendix of bird species in the SAFRING database that were found entangled in fishing line or gea