Rietvlei Wetland Reserve
Rietvlei Wetland Reserve | |
---|---|
Location | Table View, Western Cape, South Africa |
Coordinates | 33°50′45″S 18°30′01″E / 33.84579°S 18.50039°E |
Area | 663 ha (1,640 acres) |
Established | 1984 |
Governing body | City of Cape Town |
[1] |
The Rietvlei Wetland Reserve is a 663-hectare (1,640-acre) nature reserve situated in Table View, Western Cape, South Africa. It is managed by the City of Cape Town's Environmental Resource Management Department.[1]
The Rietvlei Wetland Reserve forms part of the greater 880 hectares (2,200 acres) Table Bay Nature Reserve.
Background
Rietvlei is considered as the most important area for waterbirds in the region and is recognized as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International. Official recognition of its importance to biodiversity by the South African government was first afforded in 1984, when it was established as a Nature Area. This was followed by its declaration as a Protected Natural Environment in 1989, and the establishment of the Rietvlei Wetland Reserve in 1993. The first formal management plan for the reserve was developed in 1994, and this has served to guide management activities to the present.[2]
History
The most obvious and dramatic human-induced modification at Rietvlei was the dredging of the entire north-west section between 1974 and 1976. Seawater was pumped into the pans to facilitate the operation and a vast area was dredged to a depth of 9 metres (30 ft). The ecological consequences were profound and irreversible. A sizable portion of Rietvlei's shallow ephemeral pans was changed into a permanent deep-water lake, which resulted in a total change in ecological character for this portion of the system.[3]
Features
Visitor facilities
Rietvlei Wetland Reserve offers various user activities, including several types of water sport recreation, bird watching, picnic, fishing and outdoor environmental education opportunities. The Rietvlei Education Centre hosts a range of environmental education programmes and utilises the two bird hides and the short footpath for field excursions.
The Milnerton Aquatic Club leases an area of land inside the nature reserve from where they promote windsurf, sail, power- and radio-controlled boating.
Habitats
A range of natural and semi-natural habitats exist in this fluctuating
The Diep estuary
The Diep River flows through the Rietvlei wetland and the Milnerton Lagoon, which together have generally been considered to comprise the Diep
Biodiversity
Birds, amphibians, reptiles and mammals
A total of 173 species have been recorded at Rietvlei, of which 102 are
- Updated from South African Biodiversity Database <http://www.biodiversity.co.za/> as species present on site on 2011/01/10 (surveys incomplete)
- Indigenous - rare and endangered
- Anthropoides paradiseus (blue crane) (Vulnerable) (VU)
- African marsh-harrier) (Vulnerable) (VU)
- Indigenous
- lesser swamp-warbler)
- Actitis hypoleucos (common sandpiper)
- Alcedo cristata (malachite kingfisher)
- Alopochen aegyptiacus (Egyptian goose)
- Anas capensis (Cape teal)
- Anas erythrorhyncha (red-billed teal)
- Anas smithii (Cape shoveler)
- Anas sparsa (African black duck)
- Anas undulata (yellow-billed duck)
- Anhinga rufa (African darter)
- Apus affinis (little swift)
- Ardea cinerea (grey heron)
- Ardea goliath (Goliath heron)
- Ardea melanocephala (black-headed heron)
- Ardea purpurea (purple heron)
- hadeda ibis)
- little rush-warbler)
- Bubulcus ibis (cattle egret)
- water dikkop)
- Calidris alba (sanderling)
- Calidris canutus (red knot)
- Calidris ferruginea (curlew sandpiper)
- Calidris melanotos (pectoral sandpiper)
- Calidris minuta (little stint)
- Karoo scrub-robin)
- Ceryle rudis (pied kingfisher)
- Charadrius hiaticula (common ringed plover)
- Charadrius marginatus (white-fronted plover)
- Charadrius pallidus (chestnut-banded plover)
- Charadrius pecuarius (Kittlitz's plover)
- Charadrius tricollaris (three-banded plover)
- Chlidonias leucopterus (white-winged tern)
- Columba guinea (speckled pigeon)
- Corvus albus (pied crow)
- Egretta alba (great egret)
- Egretta garzetta (little egret)
- Egretta intermedia (yellow-billed egret)
- Elanus caeruleus (black-winged kite)
- Estrilda astrild (common waxbill)
- Euplectes orix (southern red bishop)
- Falco rupicolus (rock kestrel)
- Fulica cristata (red-knobbed coot)
- Ethiopian snipe)
- Gallinula chloropus (common moorhen)
- African black oystercatcher)
- African fish-eagle)
- Himantopus himantopus (black-winged stilt)
- Hirundo albigularis (white-throated swallow)
- Hirundo rustica (barn swallow)
- Larus cirrocephalus (grey-headed gull)
- Larus dominicanus (kelp gull)
- Larus hartlaubii (Hartlaub's gull)
- Limosa lapponica (bar-tailed godwit)
- Macronyx capensis (Cape longclaw)
- Megaceryle maximus (giant kingfisher)
- Merops apiaster (European bee-eater)
- Microcarbo africanus (reed cormorant)
- Microcarbo coronatus (crowned cormorant)
- Milvus migrans (black kite, yellow-billed kite)
- Motacilla capensis (Cape wagtail)
- Netta erythrophthalma (southern pochard)
- Numenius arquata (Eurasian curlew)
- common whimbrel)
- black-crowned night-heron)
- Oxyura maccoa (Maccoa duck)
- Pelecanus onocrotalus (great white pelican)
- Phalacrocorax capensis (Cape cormorant)
- Phalacrocorax lucidus (white-breasted cormorant)
- Philomachus pugnax (ruff)
- Phoenicopterus minor (lesser flamingo)
- Phoenicopterus ruber (greater flamingo)
- Platalea alba (African spoonbill)
- Plectropterus gambensis (spur-winged goose)
- Plegadis falcinellus (glossy ibis)
- Podiceps cristatus (great crested grebe)
- Podiceps nigricollis (black-necked grebe)
- African purple swamphen)
- Pternistis capensis (Cape spurfowl)
- Recurvirostra avosetta (pied avocet)
- Rostratula benghalensis (greater painted-snipe)
- Spatula hottentota (blue-billed teal)
- Spilopelia senegalensis (laughing dove)
- Sterna balaenarum (Damara tern)
- swift tern)
- Sterna caspia (Caspian tern)
- Sterna hirundo (common tern)
- Sterna sandvicensis (sandwich tern)
- Sterna vittata (Antarctic tern)
- Tachybaptus ruficollis (little grebe)
- Tadorna cana (South African shelduck)
- Thalassornis leuconotus (white-backed duck)
- Threskiornis aethiopicus (African sacred ibis)
- Tringa glareola (wood sandpiper)
- Tringa nebularia (common greenshank)
- Tringa stagnatilis (marsh sandpiper)
- blacksmith plover)
- Vidua macroura (pin-tailed whydah)
- Alien
- Anas platyrhynchos (mallard)
- Columba livia (feral pigeon, rock dove)
- Numida meleagris (helmeted guineafowl)
- Updated from South African Biodiversity Database <http://www.biodiversity.co.za/> as species present on site on 2011/01/07
- Amietia fuscigula (Cape river frog)
- Amietophrynus pantherinus (western leopard toad)
- clicking stream frog)
- clicking stream frog)
- Cape sand frog)
- common platanna)
- Updated from South African Biodiversity Database <http://www.biodiversity.co.za/> as species present on site on 2011/01/13
- Cape legless skink)
- Afrogecko porphyreus (marbled leaf-toed gecko)
- Bradypodion pumilum (Cape dwarf chameleon)
- Chersina angulata (angulate tortoise)
- Lycodonomorphus rufulus (common brown water snake)
- Knox's desert lizard)
- Naja nivea (Cape cobra)
- marsh terrapin)
- Pseudaspis cana (mole snake)
- silvery dwarf burrowing skink)
- Cape skink)
- red-sided skink)
- Typhlosaurus caecus (Cuvier's blind legless skink)
- Updated from South African Biodiversity Database <http://www.biodiversity.co.za/> as species present on site on 2011/01/10
- Indigenous
- Cape clawless otter)
- Felis caracal (caracal)
- small grey mongoose)
- large grey mongoose)
- Hystrix africaeaustralis (porcupine)
- Mus minutoides (African pygmy mouse)
- Myosorex varius (forest shrew)
- Raphicerus campestris (steenbok)
- Raphicerus melanotis (Cape grysbok)
- Alien
- domestic dog)
- domestic cat)
Invertebrates and fish
- Updated from South African Biodiversity Database <http://www.biodiversity.co.za/> as species present on site on 2010/12/31
- Indigenous
- Anguilla mossambica steinitzi (longfin eel)
- Caffrogobius nudiceps (barehead goby)
- Galaxias zebratus (Cape galaxia)
- Lithognathus lithognathus (white steenbras)
- southern mullet)
- flathead mullet)
- white stumpnose)
- Alien
- Cyprinus carpio (carp)
- mosquito fish)
Plant communities
Five distinctive wetland plant communities occur: perennial wetland, reed-marsh, sedge-marsh, open pans and sedge pans. The perennial wetland is characterized by scant aquatic vegetation, dominated by
- Updated from South African Biodiversity Database <http://www.biodiversity.co.za/> as species present on site on 2011/02/02
- Indigenous
- Alternanthera sessilis
- Amellus tenuifolius
- Ammophila arenaria
- Arctotheca populifolia
- Arctotis hirsuta
- Arctotis stoechadifolia
- Athanasia dentata
- Atriplex semibaccata~
- Bolboschoenus maritimus
- Brunsvigia orientalis (candelabra flower)
- Carissa macrocarpa
- Carpobrotus acinaciformis
- Carpobrotus edulis
- Ceratophyllum demersum~
- Chasmanthe aethiopica (suurkanol)
- Chrysanthemoides incana
- Chrysanthemoides monilifera(bitoubos)
- Cladoraphis cyperoides
- Conicosia pugioniformis~
- Cynanchum africanum
- Cynodon dactylon (couch grass, kweekgras, kweek)
- Cynosurus echinatus
- Cyperus textilis
- Dasispermum suffruticosum
- Didelta carnosa~
- Ehrharta longiflora
- Ehrharta villosa~
- Euclea racemosa
- Ferraria crispa
- Ficinia indica
- Ficus natalensis~
- Gladiolus griseus
- Grielum grandiflorum
- Helichrysum niveum
- Helichrysum patulum
- Hermannia pinnata
- Hermannia procumbens~
- Indigofera complicata
- Ischyrolepis eleocharis
- Juncus kraussii~
- Kedrostis nana~
- Lavatera arborea
- Lemna minor
- Limonium equisetinum
- Limonium scabrum~
- Lolium multiflorum (Italian ryegrass, annual ryegrass)
- Lolium rigidum
- Ludwigia adscendens diffusa
- Lycium ferocissimum
- Lythrum salicaria
- Malva parviflora~
- Metalasia muricata
- Moraea flaccida
- Moraea miniata
- Morella cordifolia
- Myoporum tenuifolium (manatoka)
- Nylandtia spinosa (skilpadbessie bos, tortoise berry bush)
- Olea capensis
- Olea europaea africana
- Othonna coronopifolia
- Passerina ericoides
- Pelargonium gibbosum
- Persicaria lapathifolia
- Phragmites australis
- Phylica ericoides~
- Pistia stratiotes
- Plantago coronopus
- Plecostachys serpyllifolia
- Psoralea repens
- turkeyberry)
- Rhus glauca (blou taaibos)
- Rhus laevigata
- Rhus lancea
- Rhus lucida~
- Romulea tabularis
- Rumex crispus
- Rumex lativalvis
- Ruschia macowanii
- Ruschia tumidula
- Salicornia meyeriana
- Salvia africana-lutea
- Sarcocornia capensis
- Sarcocornia natalensis~
- Sarcocornia pillansii~
- Schoenoplectus scirpoides
- Senecio burchellii
- Senecio halimifolius (tabakbos)
- Sideroxylon inerme~
- Sparaxis bulbifera
- Sporobolus virginicus
- Stenotaphrum secundatum(buffalo grass)
- Tetragonia decumbens
- Tetragonia fruticosa
- Tetragonia spicata
- Thamnochortus spicigerus
- Thinopyrum distichum
- Trachyandra filiformis
- Triglochin bulbosa
- Typha capensis (bulrush, papkuil)
- Xanthium strumarium
- Zantedeschia aethiopica
- Zygophyllum morgsana
- Alien
- rooikrans)
- Port Jackson willow)
- Avena sativa
- red water fern)
- Commelina benghalensis (blouselblommetjie)
- Cortaderia selloana (pampas grass)
- water hyacinth)
- Eucalyptus lehmannii
- Lolium perenne
- Paspalum vaginatum
- kikuyu grass)
- Schinus terebinthifolius
Threats
The effects of the nearby Century City Development on Blouvlei, which used to support a large
See also
- Diep River
- Cape Town
- City of Cape Town
- Biodiversity of Cape Town
- Diep River Fynbos Corridor
- Milnerton Racecourse Nature Reserve
- List of nature reserves in Cape Town
- Cape Lowland Freshwater Wetland
References
- ^ Nature reserves Archived 2011-08-09 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Peak Practice, 2008. Estuary Management Plan for the Diep Estuary, December 2008. C.A.P.E. Estuaries Programme report.
- ^ a b c d e BirdLife International (2010) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Rietvlei Wetland Reserve. Downloaded from "BirdLife International - conserving the world's birds". Archived from the original on July 10, 2007. Retrieved March 22, 2014. on 28/12/2013
- ^ Milnerton Aquatics Club : welcome
- ^ Sanccob
- ^ a b c d e f South African Biodiversity Database
External links
- City of Cape Town Nature Reserves
- City of Cape Town - Environmental Resource Management Department
- Friends of Rietvlei
- SANCCOB
- Milnerton Aquatic Club
- BirdLife site fact sheet - Rietvlei Wetland Reserve
- ekapa ioisa - North Reserves - Rietvlei Wetland Reserve
- Birds in Reserves Project - Rietvlei Wetland Reserve
- Southern African Birding - Birding Spot Wiki - Rietvlei Wetland Reserve
- South African Biodiversity - Rietvlei Wetland Reserve