Nuwejaars Wetlands SMA

Home
South Africa
Bredasdorp
Nuwejaars Wetlands SMA

In the Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area (SMA), 25 landowners and local communities protect this Overberg biodiversity hotspot. www.nuwejaars.com

The Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area (SMA) consists of 25 landowners, including the Elim community, living in the Overberg region in South Africa. Together we've taken private land, bordering on the Agulhas National Park, and committed it to conservation, fighting climate change, farming sustainably and uplifting all who live here. The Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area operates

through its Section 21 Not-For-Profit company, the Nuwejaars River Nature Reserve. Our vision is: To create a sustainable ecology, which ensures the protection of the Nuwejaars Wetlands Ecosystem, enhances the heritage and culture of the sub-region, generates benefit for all stakeholders, helps meet social and environmental requirements, and encourages community lifestyles compatible with environmental sustainability.

11/06/2026

💛 The bird with the golden throat

Cape Longclaws may not be the rarest birds in the Nuwejaars landscape, but they're among our favourites.

These little ambassadors of wetlands and damp grasslands show just how healthy landscapes support far more than just the headline species. There's a whole cast of remarkable creatures living alongside us.

Photo: LoveGreen

05/06/2026

🌿 As temperatures rise and rainfall patterns shift, species need to be able to move across the landscape in search of suitable habitat.

That's why restoring ecological corridors is so important.

Across the Nuwejaars Wetlands, we're helping reconnect wetlands, rivers and natural habitats, creating pathways for water, wildlife and plants to move through the landscape.

This World Environment Day, climate action includes giving nature the space it needs to adapt; to help secure connected and resilient landscapes.

and

This work is supported by WWF South Africa, , and .

04/06/2026

🦔🐍🦉 Every day, many animals attempt a journey they have made for thousands of years. Now a road lies in the way.

Records submitted to our Nuwejaars iNaturalist project have revealed a sobering picture of wildlife road mortality across the landscape.

Since the project launched two years ago, 119 observations of 49 species have been logged. While not every observation relates to roadkill, these records provide important insight into the impact our roads are having on wildlife. And they represent only a fraction of the true toll.

This represents an individual animal that didn't make it home, crossing to reach water, searching for food, or moving between fragments of habitat.

The data helps us understand where wildlife is most vulnerable – and where conservation interventions may be needed.

The next time you drive through the Nuwejaars landscape:

🚗 Slow down
🌙 Be extra vigilant at dawn, dusk and night
📱 Record wildlife sightings on iNaturalist – including those that didn't make it

These observations help us better understand the story of our roads; and how we can make them safer for wildlife.

29/05/2026

🎓🌿 Connecting research and landscape conservation

The Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area recently welcomed student researchers from The University of the Western Cape, led by Dr Sumaya Clarke.

The field visit formed part of ongoing research into the hydrology of the catchment, including groundwater, river flow and water chemistry measurements across the landscape.

As part of the visit, NWSMA CEO Ross Kettles presented to the group on the Nuwejaars landscape, the wetlands, and the importance of collaborative conservation and water stewardship in the region.

Partnerships between conservation organisations and universities play an important role in building knowledge, helping to ensure we understand and protect these complex wetland systems.

22/05/2026

🐟 This Biodiversity Day, not all news is good news.

The Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area has teamed up with the Overberg Renosterveld Trust to investigate fynbos fish distribution in the Kars River system – and the findings are concerning.

Two of the main strongholds of the Agulhas redfin (𝘗𝘴𝘦𝘶𝘥𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘶𝘭𝘩𝘢𝘴) have now been overrun by invasive banded tilapia.

For a species already under immense pressure, this is a serious threat.

It also makes the conservation work taking place in these rivers all the more important – and all the more urgent.

Join Eugene Hahndiek (Overberg Renosterveld Trust) and the NWSMA’s Breyton Murtz as they explain what’s happening in the Kars River system, and why protecting our freshwater biodiversity matters.

This work is funded by the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund and .

Fynbos Fish Trust
South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Makhanda, Eastern Cape
CapeNature
Freshwater Research Centre
Grootvadersbosch Conservancy

19/05/2026

🌿 Stitching a landscape together…

And it all happens through corridors – and the work to restore those corridors.

Thanks to support from WWF South Africa, restoration taking place across the Nuwejaars Wetlands is helping to rebuild the natural corridors that allow water, wildlife and plant life to move across the landscape.

Over the past year, this work has:
✔ restored key ecological corridors
✔ cleared invasive plants at scale
✔ supported local jobs
✔ brought children closer to nature
✔ strengthened one of South Africa’s most important wetland systems

And it’s part of something bigger – a 47 000-hectare landscape that is also working as a connected conservation corridor.

👉 Read the full story: https://nuwejaars.com/stitching-together-a-landscape-through-corridors/

Our thanks also to key donors who help co-fund this restoration work, including , and .

15/05/2026

🐆 The leopard of the fynbos

The leopard is the last of the Big Five to still roam freely in the Western Cape. But this Endangered Species Day, we’re hoping to learn more about the threats to one of the Overberg’s most elusive residents.

That’s why we’re excited to once again partner with the Cape Leopard Trust, which will soon launch a repeat camera trap survey across the Overberg – including within the Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area, to get an up-to-date leopard population density estimate.

The previous survey, conducted between 2021 and 2022, estimated leopard density in the Overberg at just 0.64 leopards per 100 km². That’s the lowest recorded across the Cape Leopard Trust’s monitoring sites.

Even so, leopards still persist in mixed farming and natural landscapes in this region, which shows the value of working landscapes like the Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area.

We’re especially interested to see how leopard populations may have responded to ongoing habitat restoration in the Nuwejaars landscape, as well as the severe wildfires experienced across the Overberg during the past fire season.

20/04/2026

🐟 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐟𝐢𝐧

It was a little outside our usual wetlands comfort zone – but the Nuwejaars Fynbos Fish Project team recently swapped wetlands for renosterveld landscapes, partnering with the Overberg Renosterveld Trust to monitor for the Agulhas redfin.

With guidance from the ORT’s Eugéne Hahndiek, our team, Breyton Murtz and Deon Newman, surveyed several new sites across this landscape.

While no Agulhas redfin were recorded on this visit, the surveys still revealed a healthy population of the Data Deficient species, Cape kurper (𝘚𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴) – including a standout individual measuring an impressive 140 mm.

Fieldwork like this helps us better understand where species occur – and where they no longer do – informing conservation planning across the broader landscape. This work is funded by the Mohamed Bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund.

Species Conservation Fund

15/04/2026

📰 𝐍𝐮𝐰𝐞𝐣𝐚𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐖𝐞𝐭𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

From national publications to international media platforms, the Nuwejaars Wetlands Special Management Area is gaining recognition for its work restoring wetlands and protecting biodiversity.

These independent media features help highlight why this landscape matters for biodiversity, water security, climate resilience and people.

Take a look at some of the recent coverage: https://nuwejaars.com/nuwejaars-wetlands-in-the-media/

Address

Bredasdorp

Telephone

+27768336341

Website

https://www.nuwejaars.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Nuwejaars Wetlands SMA posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Nuwejaars Wetlands SMA:

Shortcuts

Want your organization to be the top-listed Non Profit Organization in Bredasdorp?