Index of /depts/fitzpatrick/docs - Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African ...

of different farming methods in the sourveld grasslands ofKwaZulu-Natal, the valley thicket of the Eastern Cape, theNama Karoo and the Bokkeveld Plateau aroundNieuwoudtville in the Northern Cape. The week-longworkshops were attended by a wide range of ecologistsand resource economists that had been working in theseareas.• We found that the notion of “conservation farming” differsconsiderably from area to area, depending on theecosystem characteristics and types of threats tobiodiversity. This also meant that different analyticalapproaches were required for different areas.• In some areas, such as Eastern Cape Thicket,conservation friendly farming is also more lucrative, andthe conversion to conservation farming is selfperpetuating.In other areas, such as in KZN grasslands,conversion to other land uses is far more lucrative, andonly tight regulation will prevent unacceptably high lossesof biodiversity. Protected areas are optimal in areas whereendemism is extremely localised, such as on theBokkeveld Plateau. In areas where the ecologicalimplications of alternative farming methods cannot easilybe discerned (e.g. the Nama Karoo), economic analysis ismore difficult. This research is still ongoing.StudentsHilary Anderson (MSc, co-supervised by Theunis de Wet andPaul Fatti, University of Pretoria, graduated June 2003); Aneconometric analysis of the wildlife market in South AfricaRuth Parker (MSc, co-supervised by Mark Botha, BotanicalSociety of South Africa); Incentives for conservation ofRenosterveld on private farmlandWater Resources and Estuarine ConservationA strategy was developed for conserving South Africa’s estuaries.Photo: Barry ClarkOverviewThis programme aims to improve decision making regardingthe allocation of water resources and the management andconservation of estuarine and other aquatic habitats. Researchprojects initiated, ongoing or completed during the reviewperiod included the development of a strategy for theconservation of estuarine biodiversity, and a set of researchprojects designed to improve our understanding of estuarinebiodiversity with a view to improving existing importancerankings.David Knox had apparently sieved one too many samples of stickymud in the Keiskamma estuary. Photo: Barry ClarkHighlights• A report of a complete count of the birds of the formerTranskei Coast (counted Feb 2002) was compiled.• Existing data on invertebrates and birds of Cape estuarieswere collated in a database.• A comprehensive study of intertidal invertebrate fauna wascarried out on 16 warm temperate estuaries.• A review of current estuarine protection mechanisms andon-the-ground effort, as well as a review of the presenthealth of South African estuaries suggested that ourestuaries are not well protected but have been fairlyresilient to past disturbances.• An analysis of threats to South African estuarieshighlighted the proximate and ultimate causes of estuarinebiodiversity loss, and suggests that threats are increasingto unprecedented levels.• In light of the above, a strategy was developed forestuarine biodiversity protection, the main components ofwhich include research and knowledge management,regulation and enforcement, the creation of conditions andincentives that support estuary protection, monitoring andadaptive management and rehabilitation.StudentsDavid Knox (MSc, graduated June 2003, co-supervised byBarry Clark); Assessing the conservation importance ofestuarine intertidal invertebrate communities: a pilot study ofwarm temperate estuaries in South Africa.26 Percy FitzPatrick Institute Annual Report: July 2002 - June 2003