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Species Cards

Sclerocarya birrea

Sclerocarya birrea is an economically and culturally important African tree, valued for products such as Amarula Cream Liqueur, cosmetic oil, and its traditional medicinal uses, while also supporting rural livelihoods.

Marula

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Trinervitermes sp. Nov

Trinervitermes sp termites are widely distributed across the summer-rainfall regions of southern Africa, particularly in savanna and grassland ecosystems.

Snouted harvester termites

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Chetia brevis

The historical distribution of the Chetia brevis included 85km of the Lomati tributary of the Incomati River. Due to invasive species and pollution, this population has crashed and can now only be found in a 2.5km stretch of the river system.

Orange-fringed largemouth

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Vachellia xanthophloea

This indigenous tree species is important due to its resistance to the polyphagous shot hole borer (PSHB), as recognised in the 2023 FABI replant list.

Fever tree

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Searsia lancea

Searsia lancea is a hardy, fast-growing indigenous tree important for dryland ecosystems and urban greening due to its resilience. Despite its ecological value and widespread use, genomic resources are lacking, and genome sequencing would support conservation, restoration, and climate adaptation research.

Karee

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Scelotes mirus

It serves as an important model species in specific limb development stage in Scelotes genus (full limb digit development stage, with forelimb digit = 5, hindlimb digit number = 5) to study genomic evolution of vertebrates.

Montane Burrowing Skink

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Scelotes limpopoensis

It serves as an important model species in specific limb development stages in the Scelotes genus (intermediate limb development stage, with forelimb digit = 2-3, hindlimb digit number = 4) and is used to study genomic evolution of vertebrates.

Limpopo burrowing skink

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Scelotes anguinus

It is a key model species in the Scelotes genus for studying limbless development (forelimb digits = 0; hindlimb digits = 0) and vertebrate genomic evolution.

Algoa Dwarf Burrowing Skink

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Parechinus angulosus

Parechinus angulosus, the Cape urchin, plays a critical ecological role along South Africa's rocky shores, influencing algal distribution and maintaining community balance through its grazing activities.

Cape urchin

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Panthera leo

Lions are classified as vulnerable. The white lion is a naturally occurring colour variant caused by a recessive gene (leucism), not albinism.

White lion (African lion)

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Panthera leo

Lions are classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. They face threats such as habitat loss and human-lion conflicts.

Tawny lion (African lion)

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Chersina angulata

The angulate tortoise (Chersina angulata) is an endemic keystone herbivore of South Africa's Cape region, shaping vegetation structure and seed dispersal in the Cape Floristic Region.

Angulate tortoise

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