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Mail & Guardian

Grasslands

latest news & developments
South Africa’s national bird, the blue crane, is struggling to raise chicks in parts of the Western Cape
BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

SA’s national bird faces “ecological trap” in Western Cape wheatlands

A new study has warned of a sharp drop in blue crane chicks in Overberg and Swartland

  • Sheree Bega
4 min read
It might be South Africa’s most threatened endemic bird species but conservation measures to save the enigmatic Botha’s Lark from extinction have started.
BOTHA S LARK

Work to save SA’s most threatened endemic bird species takes flight

There are only about 340 individual Botha’s Larks left in the wild This content is restricted to registered users and subscribers. Get Your Free Account The Mail & Guardian is…

  • Sheree Bega
1 min read
Fossil finds: Lynne Quick and her team extract sediment to analyse pollen grains to assess changes in plant communities to establish vegetation histories. (Photo: Emil Von Maltitz)
ANCIENT POLLEN

More than an allergen, pollen can be used to diagnose climatic changes

Monitoring has focused on health risks, but palynologists are now using it to study climatic changes in various landscapes

  • Tunicia Phillips
5 min read
Restoration: Illegal charcoal production and logging are the main threats to the conservation of Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. (Alexis Huguet/AFP)
AFFORESTATION

Afforestation can hinder fight against global warming if done wrong, study says

A simplistic approach to tree restoration without not properly accounting for the complexities of plant and atmosphere interactions can cause problems

  • Chris Gilili
3 min read
Benefits: The Wagendrift Dam on the Bushmans River, a tributary of the Thukela River. Rehabilitating the Thukela River catchment in KwaZulu-Natal would reduce soil erosion, improve the grasslands and water supply, all of which improves people’s lives. (Heinrich van den Berg/Gallo Africa)
ANCHOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANTS

It pays to save the Thukela River catchment

For each rand spent on rehabilitating the river system, the return is at least R1.70 if not more

  • Sheree Bega
3 min read