Walker Bay Fynbos Conservancy

21/10/2026

The Cape clawless otter (𝘈𝘰𝘯𝘺𝘹 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴) spends most of its days swimming and catching food around permanent bodies of water. Their diet consists of freshwater and saltwater crabs, fish and frogs.

This otter was captured on a WBFC camera trap enjoying a nice roll along the bank of the Uilkraalsriver.

Agulhas Biodiversity Initiative
Conservation At Work

17/10/2026

15/10/2026

𝘌𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘴𝘪𝘢 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘴, or the Satin Spoonfig, has a native range that spans across the Southwestern Cape.
Endearingly, its called the 'Altydvygie' in Afrikaans, as 𝘌𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘴𝘪𝘢 𝘴𝘱𝘱. flowers stay open throughout the night. This ties perfectly into the meaning of this plant's species epithet, as 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘴 translates to "not shutting up".
When the spoon-shaped flowers dry out, they form hard, woody, star-shaped capsules that protect the fruit until ripe. When rainwater flows into the dried casing, it causes the casing to open, releasing many small seeds.

This plant was found on a rocky mountain slope while conducting a biodiversity assessment on a farm in our beautiful Overberg landscape.

Agulhas Biodiversity Initiative
Conservation At Work

09/10/2026

Cape porcupines (𝘏𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘹 𝘢𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴) are one of the largest rodent species in the world. These nocturnal animals mainly feed on underground storage organs such as bulbs, tubers and roots.
Cape porcupines are regarded as ecosystem engineers, as they contribute greatly to the health of ecosystems through their foraging habits. Through these habits, they maintain plant community richness and open up soil surfaces through their digging, increasing the opportunity for germination of other plants.

Here is a special view from one of our camera traps set up in an area that has burnt in the last few months.

Join the Rise of the Fynbos to learn more about life after fire here: https://bit.ly/4rTPM61

05/10/2026

Vast fields glowing with Yellow Irises and Narrowtube Watsonias, interspersed with Blue Tulps, are putting on a grand display on the fire-scarred hills of the conservancy.

The name of the plant family, Iridaceae, is derived from the Greek goddess Iris, who carried messages from Olympus to Earth along a rainbow. The rainbow’s many colours are thought to have inspired Carl Linnaeus who coined the name for the family in 1753.

Fire provides an opportunity for these plants, which once had scant space to flower in old fynbos veld, an open stage to put on a display. One can truly see how apt Linnaeus’ choice of name was for this remarkable plant family.

Join the Rise of the Fynbos to learn more about fire, fynbos and invasive alien plants here: https://bit.ly/4y0yRQ

Agulhas Biodiversity Initiative

30/09/2026

28/09/2026

Flowers, fynbos and… padel balls? 🌸🎾

Mention Stanford in Bloom and Leon Kluge’s award-winning botanical display immediately comes to mind! This year’s Life after Fire exhibit won Gold and Best Exhibit in the Great Pavilion at the .

Apart from being spectacular, the theme resonated deeply with us at Panthera Africa. We too are RISING and transitioning after the fire.

Our co-founder Cat and director Eve visited the display. It gave them a chance to celebrate collaboration, reflect on the fires, learn together and appreciate that there is beauty after fire.

And then Eve found a massive protea made out of padel balls to sit on! We have to hand it to her, she found a brilliant photo spot. 😄

If you’re not familiar with Stanford in Bloom, do read up about it. The town is decorated with flowers and fynbos, with scarecrows in the streets, food stalls and homemade goods bringing visitors together to share the experience.

The show also helps people learn about our local landscape. Overgrown alien vegetation can have a devastating impact on the greater Overberg ecosystem. Lana from has shared her knowledge with our team as she continues clearing on and around our sanctuary. Walker Bay Fynbos Conservancy, a non-profit initiative, was available throughout the show to raise awareness of the need to conserve the region’s fynbos and forests.

Well done to the Stanford Association of Tourism & Business team for hosting an incredible show, and a special thank you to Grootbos Private Nature Reserve and Arabella Hotel Golf & Spa | Southern Sun too! 🤎

If you attended, post your favourite photo in the comments below. We’d especially love to see who else found the padel-ball hand! 👇

17/09/2026

The rock pagoda, 𝘔𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘢𝘹𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘴, is one of the remarkable plants endemic to the Cape Floristic Region.

This member of the Proteaceae family’s distinctive flower heads rise above the foliage, attracting sunbirds that help pollinate the plant as they feed on its nectar.

Rather than relying entirely on seed to return after a fire, 𝘔𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘢𝘹𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘴 regenerates from its underground rootstock, emerging again as the landscape recovers.

And then, after the fire has passed, the rock pagoda flowers again.

Join the Rise of the Fynbos to learn more about the resilience of fynbos after fire at: https://bit.ly/4itJFCB

14/09/2026

The Southern Adder (𝘉𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘢), the smaller cousin of the puff adder (𝘉𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘴), is the only threatened snake species endemic to the Western Cape.
Listed as “Vulnerable”, this snake’s biggest threat is habitat loss due to urban and agricultural land-use change.
Invasive alien plant species may contribute to habitat loss by changing the structure of their available habitat; altering prey availability and basking sites.

Learn more about the effects of invasive alien plants on our endemic fauna and flora here: https://bit.ly/4itJFCB