The Lower Mpushini Valley – A jewel worth conserving
The Lower Mpushini Valley is situated six kilometres from the Ashburton interchange on the N3 national road between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. To get there take the off-ramp on the interchange and turn right into Pope Ellis Drive. Continue on this road and you will pass the Ashburton Training Centre on your left. Continue down the hill untill you pass the Lncaster Quarry. You are then in the valley.
For many years the landowners in the Lower Mpushini Valley have been actively involved in conserving their precious natural environment. In order to formalise this the Lower Mpushini Valley Conservancy was formed and registered with Ezimvelo KZN Wildlife.
The Lower Mpushini Valley consists of fairly steep hillsides sloping down into the many drainage ravines that flow into the Mpushini and Msunduzi Rivers. The terrain is fairly rugged and the vegetation ranges from fairly dense valley bushveld in the valleys, through thicket bushveld on the upper slopes and savanna grasslands higher up. In some areas the vegetation consists almost exclusively of acacia thorn trees. These are the pioneer species which provide shelter for the secondary and tertiary tree species which eventually replace them as they die off after they have served their fairly short lifespan. Typical lifespan of acacia species vary from 15 to 30 years.
There is a tremendous biodiversity of plant, animal, bird and invertebrate species in the area.
A small group of Impala
In view of this several property owners recently applied to have their properties proclaimed as “Protected Environments” in terms of the National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act 57 of 2003. These owners have recently been informed by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife that their applications were reviewed by a panel consisting of representatives of KZN Wildlife and the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Environment Affairs and that the panel determined that the properties qualify for Protected Environment status in terms of the Act. The panel was of the opinion that “the sites were of biodiversity value and make important contributions to the conservation of species, are valuable for the conservation of habitats, are important to conserve ecological processes and are essential for the conservation of systems that provide ecosystem services.” The proclamation will ensure that the area is protected from the get-rich schemes of property developments that are threatening the very existence of our natural areas. One of the proposed high density housing developments that are threatening the area include the Pinnacle Point development on the farm Belleview consisting of 5500 houses on 500Ha!
The
landowners, residents and visitors to the Lower Mpushini Valley
Conservancy, recognise that they are tasked with a huge responsibility. They have to ensure that future generations will have the same natural resources at their disposal that they have inherited. South Africa’s constitution states that all citizens are entitled to live in a healthy environment. A healthy environment is more than just clean air and water; it is an environment that can sustainably support life. A healthy and sustainable environment doesn’t appear from nowhere. It can’t be created or maintained simply by cleaning up the litter from our rivers and lands. A
healthy environment is created and driven by intact, healthy ecosystems
and natural processes – and these have to be protected.
Biological diversity is the real driving force of any life-sustaining environment. The protection of this biodiversity therefore directly benefits humans. Sustainable living includes biodiversity conservation which cannot be limited to fenced-off areas. Most biodiversity occurs and operates beyond the boundaries of proclaimed protected areas and game reserves.
Our conservancy consists of three main ecotypes. These are the Valley Bushveld proper that occurs in the river valleys and drainage ravines, the Coastal Hinterland Thornveld and Savanna Grasslands. All three of these ecotypes are in dire need of some form of conservation, threatened as they are by farming activities and urban residential development. Both of these activities destroy or severely damage the sensitive ecosystems that occur in these regions. However, old agricultural lands can be restored to some of their former biological states provided that the management is based on ecological concepts such as succession, and the ecology of colonisation.
The ecology of the Lower Mpushini Valley has evolved over many decades and has now reached its climax state.
A mature ecosystem obtains its nutrients and minerals from its own dead matter. All ofthe nutrients in dead plants, leaves, bark and animals are recycled in the soil, from where they become available as nutrients for plants to take up. In our area invertebrates such as millipedes, earthworms and other creatures do much of the recycling, because they consume a lot of the small detritus. These creatures therefore perform one of the most important functions in the in the life processes of our ecosystems.
As an ecosystem evolves so too does the invertebrate community. Although ecological theory dictates that very similar species cannot exist within the same niche, approximately 10 to 12 different species of millipedes happily coexist within the bushveld ecosystem of the Lower Mpushini Valley. These species, with the exception of the pill millipedes, are very similar in size, appearance and habits. Perhaps the Inland Invertebrate Study Project being conducted by UKZN will shed more light on this.
Apart from the millipedes mentioned above, a number of invertebrate groups are important players in the functioning of the ecosystems. These are the beetles (Coleoptera), spiders (Arachnida), dung beetles (Coleoptera and Scarabaeidae), and microscopic soil organisms. There are literally hundreds of beetle, spider and dung beetle species in the valley, each performing essential functions in the food-chain web.
Another important invertebrate group in the functioning of the ecosystems are the termites. In order to illustrate this, the Common Spike Thorn (Maytenus heterophylla) often grows on termite mounds. Now, a termite mound is not a common “ant hill”. It is literally a mound that may be anything up to 15 metres in diameter and a metre above the normal ground level. The reason that plants like to grow on termite mounds is that the mound is damp. One of the reasons for this is that they always occur above a source of underground water. I have personally divined on these sites and found this to be true. Another reason that trees thrive on termite mounds is that the termites store food in their tunnels near the surface which decays and forms excellent compost to fertilise the trees and other plants. Another plant that only grows on termite mounds is the iKowe mushroom (Termitomyces umkowaani). The Common Spike Thorn is one of the main hosts, in our valley system, to the small tree orchid Mystacidium capense that gives off the most beautiful perfume in the evenings. This is due to the fact that it is pollinated by a nocturnal moth. During the day it is completely odourless.
Mystacidium capense orchid
The
basis of all living things in the environment are their
inter-dependence upon each other and upon the components of their
habitat such as the air, soil, minerals, wind and water.
During the spring and summer months the valley literally teems with butterflies of many species. These
creatures are important to the survival of our ecosystem in that they
are responsible for pollinating a large number of the plants that grow
here. Their larvae also perform an important task in that they prune the leaves off plants and thus stimulatefresh growth.
The valley also supports a large bird population. To date, over 150 species have been recorded including the Nerina Trogon, Ground Hornbill, African Fish Eagle, Martial Eagle and Secretary Bird.
Antelope also abound in the valley as do the many species of small, often ignored, smaller animals and reptiles.
Conservancy outreach programmes:
There
are a number of outreach programmes that encourage outsiders to share
in the splendours of the natural environment and to gather support for
our conservation efforts. Some of these are:
1. The Bushbabies Environmental Education Project run by
Pandora Long telling childrem about Ntini the Otter
2. The Wilderness Trails Weekend. During this weekend Indigenous gardens, self-guided and guided trails are open to the public.
3. The Aloe Festival. This is held in late June when the aloes are in full flower.
Visitors listening to a talk at the Aloe Festival
