This September, Wild Rescue is inviting the public to explore the remarkable flora and fauna on our Southern Cape doorstep
STILL BAY – September is Biodiversity Month, an annual opportunity to delight in the extraordinary variety of life on Earth while highlighting the urgent need to protect the ecosystems on which we all depend.
At Wild Rescue nature reserve the period will be marked with a programme of events every weekend designed to encourage people to immersively experience and appreciate our native environment and species.
“Biodiversity is often discussed as something distant – something found in rainforests, national parks or remote wilderness areas,” says Gill Simpson, founder & director of Wild Rescue. “But biodiversity is right beneath our feet. It is in the fynbos, in the insects flying between flowers, in the animals moving through the landscape and in the countless relationships between species that keep ecosystems functioning. Ecology is the story of these relationships – between plants and pollinators, predators and prey, soil and roots, insects and flowers, animals and the landscapes that sustain them. No species exists in isolation. Each is part of a larger community of interdependent life. Biodiversity is not simply a catalogue of species; it is the intricate narrative of how those species live together. And that is the story we will explore this September: the remarkable connections between every species within the living landscape. ”
The series of events will take visitors on a journey from the familiar and spectacular, to the easily overlooked.
Two trails, two extraordinary botanical stories
The programme begins with two special guided walks exploring different facets of the Southern Cape’s remarkable fynbos biodiversity.
On Saturday, 5 September, specialist guide Martjie Fourie will lead a guided walk along the reserve’s Protea Trail – exploring the diversity of proteas, their ecological relationships and the fascinating adaptations that have enabled them to thrive in the Cape Floral Kingdom.
On Saturday, 12 September, local Still Bay botany expert Christina Mars will lead a guided walk along the Renosterveld Trail. Renosterveld is one of the most threatened vegetation types in the Cape Floristic Region, yet its often understated appearance conceals an astonishing diversity of plants, including species found nowhere else.
Both walks run from around 10:00am to 2:00pm, with an introduction at 10:00am and the trail walk commencing at approximately 10:30am. The walks will take place at a comfortable pace, allowing the specialist guides to stop and share their knowledge and insights.
The cost is R100 per person, payable on arrival. Bookings are essential. The booking includes full-day access to the reserve, with visitors welcome to bring a packed lunch or picnic basket. Coffee and tea will be served at the Wild Rescue education centre.
Looking closer at the little things
On Saturday, 19 September, Wild Rescue will turn its attention to one of the most fascinating groups of animals on the planet: insects.
Insects pollinate plants, recycle nutrients, help decompose organic matter, influence populations of other organisms and provide food for countless other species. Scientists have described around one million insect species, while estimates suggest that the actual number may be between 5.5 and 20 million – leaving much left to discover.
The afternoon & evening event, ‘The Hidden Lives of Insects’, will feature entomologist and researcher Handré (Renier) Basson, Senior Field Officer for the Endangered Wildlife Trust Drylands Conservation Programme operating via Stellenbosch University – and renowned lepidopterist Hermann Staude, author of the book Southern African Moths & their Caterpillars.
The programme includes a presentation on beetles, a bug walk, a light buffet dinner, a presentation on moths and a moth observation after dark. The event begins at 3:30pm and continues beyond 8:00pm.
Cost: R250 per person. Bookings are essential.
Experiencing biodiversity up close
The month’s programme concludes with special Guided Animal Sanctuary Visits on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 September.
Visitors will accompany the Wild Rescue team on their sanctuary rounds, meet rescued leopard tortoises and vervet monkeys, and hear the stories behind the animals in their care.
Visitors will also discover the fynbos, birds, pollinators, small antelope and other species that contribute to the reserve’s impressive biodiversity. After the guided visit, guests can spend the remainder of the day exploring the hiking trails, photographing the fynbos or enjoying a picnic.
The Sanctuary Guided Visits run from 10:00-11:30am or later, with a R50 per person donation supporting the care of the sanctuary animals. Places are limited to ensure a peaceful experience for both visitors and wildlife, and bookings are essential.
A month to look closer
The message running through Wild Rescue’s Biodiversity Month campaign is simple: biodiversity isn’t only about the big, beautiful or charismatic animals. A healthy ecosystem depends on thousands of species – including the plants we barely notice, the insects we typically ignore or take for granted, and those creatures that may never appear on a wildlife poster.
Slow down, look closer and discover the living abundance of the landscape.
All events take place at Wild Rescue nature reserve, Portion 35, Klipfontein Farm No. 414, between Still Bay and Riversdale.
For Walks and Sanctuary Tours bookings and enquiries:
Email: info@wildrescue.co.za
WhatsApp: 078 875 5776
For the Insect Event:
Email: bookings@wildrescue.co.za
WhatsApp: 063 292 1144