Latest Arid Lands News
Developing a positive space for locusts in the anthropogenic world
Locust swarms are adorning the Karoo veld again, stirring all sorts of emotions in all and sundry. Such mass events following so shortly on dire droughts are truly awesome, no less now than when Anders Sparrman described this spectacle in 1785 and noted that locusts revitalised the veld by stimulating new growth that followed their passage.
A growing network of African woodlands data: A reflection on the herbaceous training workshop hosted by the SEOSAW in Morogoro, Tanzania
In 2020, the SAEON Arid Lands Node team – led by Dr Helga van der Merwe, Tshililo Ramaswiela and Buster Mogonong – tested the SEOSAW methodology at Benfontein Nature Reserve as part of the EFTEON site development
A fledgling environmental observation platform in the arid lands at the Square Kilometre Array
The establishment of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) presents an opportunity to promote and expand long-term environmental research in the drylands of the Karoo. The National Research Foundation (NRF) now owns about 135 000 ha of land where the highest concentration of the SKA radio astronomy infrastructure will be placed.
Cryptic time niches add complexity to desert habitat
It took 45 years of constant record-keeping, year-in-year-out, to determine why tenebrionid beetles have such extraordinarily high diversity in the Namib Desert. My recent analyses of these records revealed a cryptic complexity of time niches whereby a seemingly plain gravel plain undergoes a series of subtle changes that favour different species over time.
Arid Lands Node’s newest team member hopes to unravel more Karoo ecosystem mysteries
I will be working at the core area of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), which will be the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescope. The postdoctoral research project will use novel approaches to understand the dynamics of Karoo systems and the factors which structure them across the arid region, specifically when subjected to drought.
Rare fairy shrimps slumbering beneath the land speed racecourse on Hakskeenpan
A rare fairy shrimp, Pumilibranchipus deserti, was discovered for the first time in South Africa after being recorded only once from a single locality in Namibia during the 1980s. Unfortunately, the location it was found in, Hakskeenpan, is being subjected to major alterations, which might threaten this population in future.
Kids in Parks
SAEON technicians attended the event and gave presentations on “Facing the harsh realities of climate change”. The learners were fascinated to learn about the causes and impacts of climate change as well as mitigation and adaptation measures. The challenge was to give presentations that also catered for learners with special needs.
