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Species Cards

Melianthus comosus

The brightly coloured red flowers produce an abundance of black nectar that attracts sunbirds, Cape white eyes, bees and butterflies.

Kruidjie-roer-my-nie

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Senecio coronatus

Some populations of this species in the Barberton region of South Africa have evolved the ability to hyperaccumulate nickel, making this species ideal for a comparative genomics approach to understand the evolution of this extreme phenotype.

Woolly grassland senecio

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Cyclopia maculata

Cyclopia maculata is endemic to South Africa and has historically been used by the Khoi-San for its medicinal properties. Today, it is popular as a herbal infusion and consumed locally as a beverage.

Honeybush

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Microhodotermes viator

The Southern harvester termite is ecologically important in South African arid and semiarid ecosystems, particularly the Succulent Karoo and Nama Karoo biomes.

Southern harvester termite

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Gazania rigens

The species is of global importance in horticulture and is a common, ecologically important coastal dune and rock pioneer species on the southern and eastern South African shoreline.

Botterblom

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Hypoxis hemerocallidea

The species is a widely used medicinal plant in South Africa, well known for its immune-boosting properties. The rootstock is used to treat tuberculosis, urinary tract infections, prostate issues, rheumatoid arthritis and depression.

Yellow Star

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Gazania ciliaris

Gazania is a floristically important indigenous genus distributed throughout South Africa but with its centre of diversity in the Cape floristic region. Gazania hybrids are globally important in horticulture.

Treasure Flower

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Pelargonium sidoides

It is a well-known medicinal plant and is used by the pharmaceutical industry for the treatment of bronchitis. It is also utilized for a variety of folk-medicinal purposes, including the treatment of sore throats and congestion. Its tubers are harvested in the wild and exported for the international herbal medicine trade.

Black Pelargonium

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Avonia quinaria

This succulent it is an essential component of the diverse Karoo flora of South Africa. Its capacity to thrive in harsh, arid environments suggests a deep evolutionary history that merits further investigation.

Red-flowered Avonia

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Bijlia dilatata

The Red List of Southern African Plants notes that the species is range-restricted species (EOO 260 km²) and 'declining due to ongoing habitat loss and degradation'.

Clay Prince Albert vygie

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Celtis africana

The fruit and seeds of the white stinkwood (witstinkhout in Afrikaans) are consumed by various animals, including baboons, monkeys, doves, parrots, louries, thrushes, bulbuls, and weavers.

White stinkwood/Witstinkhout

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Amitermes hastatus

Amitermes hastatus plays a significant role in South African biodiversity as a key decomposer in the fynbos biome, one of the world's biodiversity hotspots.

Black mound termite

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