Flowers Of The Month

CYPERACEAE – (Sedge Family) Ficinia nodosa (Scirpus nodosus) (Vleibiesie) Tufted perennial with rigid stems. Spikelets in dense, brown heads. Found on damp sandy flats in coastal areas. Flowers December to March FICINIA = after Heinrich AD Ficinus. (1782 – 1857) German botanist at Dresden nodosus = L. nodus = knot > with nodes > jointed; conspicuously knotted Pycreus polystachyos Tufted perennial. Spikelets yellow-green. Flowers December to April Pycreus = An anagram of Cyperus Polystachyos = Gk. polu = many; stikhos = spike = with many spikes ">	Orphium frutescens - (Candy Sticks, Sea Rose, Teringbos) GENTIANACEAE (Gentian Family) Found in sandy places, often near the sea. Flowers from November to February. An erect perennial 50-80 cm. Flowers in a terminal inflorescence, large and showy. Pink, rarely white. Anthers twisted, opening by pores at the tip when visited by Carpenter Bees. These are the only pollinators as they are heavy enough to set up vibrations to cause the anthers to untwist. ">	Pulicaria scabra (Fleabane) ASTERACEAE (Daisy Family) Erect, single-stemmed perennial to 1 m. Lanceolate leaves. Yellow flowerheads, solitary at branch tips. Flowers December to April - Look for it near the Boardwalks! ">	Amaryllis belladonna - Belladonna Lily, March Lily, Maartlelie AMARYLLIDACEAE - (Daffodil Family) A bulbous geophyte, flowering from February to April. The inflorescence has 2 to 10 trumpet-shaped scented flowers. Pale to deep rose-pink. When the flower dies down, 6 to 12 strap-shaped leaves with rounded tips emerge. You will find this flower in many places round the Wetlands. Amaryllis = A pretty shepherdess mentioned by Theocritus, Virgil, Ovid and Milton. Belladonna = mod. L > Beautiful Lady ">	Chrysanthemoides monilifera – Common Tickberry, Boneseed, Bietou ASTERACEAE - (Daisy Family) A rounded shrub. Young growth slightly woolly. Leaves egg-shaped to lance-shaped. Flowers yellow. (On a sunny day, fresh flowers may smell of chocolate)! Seeds hard and bone-white, dispersed by fruit-eating birds. Flowers from March to October. Note: Introduced to Australia where it has become an invasive weed! Chrysanthemoides (Greek) khrusos = gold; anthemom = flower, -odes = resembling > bearing a resemblance to Chrysanthemum. Moniliferus (Latin) monile = necklace; ferax = bearing > bearer of necklaces ">	Eriocephalus africanus – Wild Rosemary, Kapokbossie ASTERACEAE (Daisy Family) A silver-grey shrub up to 1m high. Grows from Southern Namaqualand to the Eastern Cape. The plant is an important source of aromatic oils for perfumes. The leaves are needle-like and often tufted. Petals of outer flowers, white; central ones purplish. Birds often use the fluffy seedheads in nesting. Eriocephalinus = Gk. Erion = wool; kephale = head > woolly-headed Africanus = African ">
February 2014	December/January 2013	February 2013	March 2013	April 2013	May 2013
Chasmanthe aethiopica – Lesser Cobra Lily, Suurknol IRIDACEAE (IRIS FAMILY) Up to 9 flowers to one side on a rigid spike. Floral tube is arched. Pure scarlet or with yellow-green markings. Leaves sword-shaped and soft. Fruit round, leathery, orange when ripe. Usually grows under trees and in damp places. Common round these Wetlands. Flowers from April to June. Chasmanthe = Gk. khasma = gaping; anthos = flower > referring to the shape of the corolla. Aethiopicus = Ethiopian > referring broadly to an African orogin ">	Muraltia spinosa (formerly: Nylandtia spinosa) Spiny Tortoise Berry POLYGALACEAE (Butterflybush family) Thorny shrub to 1m. Flowers purplish or pink and white. Fruit reddish and fleshy, edible but astringent when ripe. Frequent on sandy flats and lower slopes. Flowers April to October, but mainly June to July. Muraltia = after Swiss Surgeon, botanist and author, Johannes M. von Muralt (1645 – 1733), professor of medicine at Zurich. Spinosus = L. spina = thorn > full of spines ">	Dimorphotheca pluvialis – Rain Daisy, Cape Daisy, Reënblommetjie ASTERACEAE ( Daisy family) An annual plant up to 30cm. Flowerhead solitary. Outer flowers white. Inner flowers yellow with purple tips. Leaves lance-shaped, toothed or lobed. Common on clay or sandy flats and slopes. Flowers August to October. Dimorphotheca = Gk. di = two, morpho = form; theke = case > two distinct types of fruit in the same species; ray florets (outer flowers), have winged, three-angled fruit and disc florets (inner flowers) have flattened , two-winged fruit. Pluvialis = L. pluvialis f. pluvia = rain > growing in rainy places ">	Satyrium odorum (Ruiktrewwa) ORCHIDACEAE (Orchid Family) A perennial plant up to 55cm. Oval leaves. Many yellowish-green flowers sometimes with a purplish tinge. Flowers very fragrant at night. Flowers August to October. Found in the southwestern and southern Cape. SATYRIUM = Gk. Saturos = mythologically the two-horned satyr, half-man, half-goat > flower-lip two-spurred. Odoratus = L. odorifer = odour> fragrant; scented; sweet-smelling ">	ASTERACEAE (Daisy family) A hairy annual plant of variable height. Leaves lobed. Numerous flowerheads on stems. Petals of outer flowers mauve to purple. Flowers July to March. Frequent on flats and mountains especially near the sea. SENECIO = L. senex = old man > the whitish grey, hoary pappus. Elegans = L. elegant = graceful > elegant ">	GERANIACEAE A straggling perennial herb. Leaves much dissected, sparsely hairy above and densely white-hairy below. 1 - 2 flowers in upper axils, white or pink to mauve with dark veins, tips notched. Common on flats and hillsides, mostly near the sea. Flowers August to November. GERANIUM = Gk. geranos = a crane > seedhead resembles a crane’s head and beak. incanus = L. incarnus = hoary with white pubescence > light grey">
June 2013	July 2013	August 2013	September 2013	October 2013	November 2013
Senecio halimifolius (Tobacco Bush, Tabakbos) ASTERACEAE (Daisy Family) A shrub up to 1m high. Leaves lance to egg-shaped narrowing towards the base, margins toothed, blue-green. Flowers yellow and many in a dense flat-topped inflorescence. Frequent in damp places, particularly near the coast. Flowers November to January. SENECIO = L. senex = old man> whitish grey hairy pappus (Hairs round top of ovary). halimifolius = ATRIPLEX halimus; folium = leaf > resembling the leaves of the species ">
December 2013
References:- "Botanical names - what they mean" Deon Kesting & Hugh Clarke (Friends of Silvermine) "Wild Flowers of the Table Mountain National Park" Text: Tony Trinder-Smith Illustrations: Mary Maytham Kidd and Fay Anderson Thanks to Sheila Robinson of Fish Hoek for these informative and colourful posters.

The Silvermine River Wetlands, Bird watching & the Leopard Toad (Bufo Pantherinis)

The Silvermine River Wetlands is a protected area to the north east of Fish Hoek where the Silvermine River forms a small fynbos marshland before it reaches False Bay. The area is marked by excellent paths and is accessible from every direction with a car park just off Main Road in Clovelly, Fish Hoek

The Wetlands are popular with nature lovers who come to see the plants, wildlife and especially the endangered Leopard Toad. It is also popular with birdwatchers due to the range of species that visit and make their homes in the Wetlands (see list below).

Western Leopard Toad(Bufo pantherinus) - (formerly: Bufo pardalus)

This large toad of up to about 140 mm in length has a most attractive dorsal pattern of chocolate brown patches on a bright yellow background. It is endemic to certain low- lying coastal areas of the south-western Cape and has a restricted and fragmented distribution. Besides the Cape Flats and the Cape Peninsula, the western leopard toad occurs in the Pringle Bay- Betty’s Bay – Kleinmond area, and in the Stanford – Gaansbaai - Pearly Beach area.

Although these toads are dependent on wetland habitats such as rivers, coastal lakes, vleis and pans, they spend most of their time out of water, even venturing into suburban gardens to forage. Typical breeding sites have standing, open water, over 50cm deep, with scattered patches of aquatic plants and beds of emergent vegetation such as bulrushes. Breeding usually takes place during August but has also been recorded at the end of July and in September. During this time adult males and females converge on selected breeding \sites and mating takes place, with the females depositing thousands of eggs in the water in long, gelatinous strings. The tadpoles develop into tiny 11-mm-long toads, which leaves the water in their thousands during October, November and/or December. However, relatively few of the offspring develop into adults; most fall victim to a variety of predators (including their own kind) and other hazards

The western leopard toad is threatened through most of its restricted and fragmented distribution area by development and habitat degradation. This has resulted in it being recently (2001) assigned to the IUCN Red List category of “Endangered”. A particular problem facing this species, besides habitat loss, is that, especially during the breeding season, adult toads migrating to breeding sites in urban environments are forced to negotiate roads, walls, canals and similar barriers. During this time, many adults in prime breeding condition get killed by road traffic, which could potentially threaten the survival of local populations in the longer term. Artificial water bodies with steep vertical sides, such as canals and swimming pools, represent additional deathtraps. Other threats at some breeding sites include pollutants, introduced predatory fish (e.g. water hyacinth). Fortunately, however, the species also occurs in protected nature areas such as Zandvlei Nature Reserve and the Cape Peninsula National Park.

The distribution and conservation status of the Western Leopard Toad is monitored by the Western Cape Nature Conservation Board as part of a threatened species-monitoring programme. This helps ensure that appropriate recommendations can be made when and where necessary to promote the conservation and wise management of this species and its habitat.

Bird watching in the Wetlands

• African Marsh Warbler
  African Sedge Warbler
  African Spoonbill
  Black Backed Gull
  Black Crowned Night Heron
  Black Headed Heron
  Blacksmith Plover
  Bokmakerie
  Brown Throated Martin
  Cape Bulbul
  Cape Canary
  Cape Reed Warbler
  Cape Shoveller
  Cape Wagtail
  Cape Weaver
  Cattle Egret
  Common Waxbill
  Crowned Plover
  Dabchick
  Darter
  Egyptian Goose
  Ethiopian Snipe
  European Starling
  Fantailed Cisticola
  Fiscal Shrike
  Giant Kingfisher
  Glossy Ibis

• Greater Striped Swallow
  Grey Headed Gull
  Grey Heron
  Hadeda
  Hartlaub’s Gull
  Laughing Dove
  le Vaillant’s Cisticola
  Lesser Double collared Sunbird
  Little Egret
  Malachite Kingfisher
  Masked Weaver
  Moorhen
  Painted Snipe
  Pied Avocet
  Pied Crow
  Pied Kingfisher
  Pin Tailed Whydah
  Purple Heron
  Red Knobbed Coot
  Red Winged Starling
  Reed Cormorant
  Rock Pidgeon
  Sacred Ibis
  Spotted Dikkops
  Spotted Prinia
  Swift Tern
  Three Banded Plover
  White Necked Raven
  White Throated Swallow