Biodiversity (1 - SRK Consulting

Psammophis
notostictus
Karoo Whip or
Sand Snake
huge boulders in
the first rays of the
sun and inside an
old tyre.
Sight record Under man-made
rupiculous habitat
10.5 Discussion
Despite the site visit being conducted in mid-winter, when many poikilothermic
herpetofauna are inactive, 6 species were observed. The diurnal western rock skink was
found in fair numbers on and under natural and man-made rupiculous habitat. Quite a
few Anchieta’s agamas were found on boulders on the south side at the foot of
Windhoekberg where they were basking in the first rays of the sun. A single specimen
was also found inside an old tyre. A single giant ground gecko specimen was caught
under a corrugated iron sheet plate. A single Bibron’s tubercled gecko specimen was
caught under a wooden panel near disused workers accommodation. A single Karoo
Whip or Sand Snake was found under a wooden panel near disused workers
accommodation. A few very fast-moving Namaqua sand lizards were observed in the
sand dunes.
All the species listed in Table 2 should be abundant on the study site and elsewhere in
its range.
The study site is situated in an area of habitat transitions - the northern edge in South
Africa of the Nama-Karoo and Bushmanland habitat, the western edge of the Kalahari
savanna, the southern edge of the Gariep River drainage and the eastern edge of
Namaqualand. Three of the four habitats for herpetofauna occur on the study site. Three
Red Data species may possibly be found on the study site.
The habitats considered most sensitive on the farm are the red dunes and areas of deep
sand, the mountains and their gravel skirts, and the Koa River washes and pans. This
leaves the open grassy plains, with shallow soils of mixed gravels and sands, as the
least sensitive and most widespread habitat on the farm and surrounding areas. It is
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