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Species Cards

Sideroxylon inerme

The white milkwood is a protected South African tree found along the southern and eastern coasts, where it dominates parts of the Western Cape’s coastal forests.

White Milkwood

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Scelotes sexlineatus

It serves as an important model species for studying specific stages of limb development within the genus Scelotes, representing an intermediate limb development stage (forelimb digits = 0; hindlimb digits = 2), and for investigating the genomic evolution of vertebrates.

Striped Dwarf Burrowing Skink

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Stigmochelys pardalis

The leopard tortoise is a keystone species in South African savannas, grazing, dispersing seeds, and shaping microhabitats.

Leopard tortoise

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Tropidophora ligata

South Africa's indigenous terrestrial snails are valuable bioindicators due to their restricted ranges and microhabitat specialization. Habitat loss threatens many species, highlighting the need to understand their diversity and ecology.

Smooth shuffler

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Anthropoides paradiseus

The Blue Crane, South Africa’s national bird, is an important part of the country’s rich avian diversity and holds cultural significance.

Blue Crane

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Moraea fugax

An important traditional food source with potential as a wild crop, and crucial for understanding the variability within what is likely an undocumented species complex.

Klipuintjie or Soetuintjie

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Euphorbia radyeri

The blounoorsdoring , blue euphorbia in English, is a drought-tolerant succulent valued in ornamental horticulture for water wise gardens. Its stems can be used as emergency livestock fodder after the latex has dried to reduce toxicity.

Blounoorsdoring

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Euphorbia mauritanica

The yellow milk bush a is toxic to livestock and sometimes confused with another succulent shrub used as forage, but it is valued as a drought -tolerant ornamental. In southern Africa, members of the Euphorbiaceae face increasing threats from illegal trade, highlighting the need for urgent conservation.

Yellow milk bush

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Aloidendron pillansii

These plants are valued for their age, resilience, and strong association with the Richtersveld, and are highly sought after for their architectural form, increasing their trade value in arid regions.

Giant Quiver tree

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Metacucujus sp.

This beetle lineage is involved in the pollination of endangered cycads, and the resulting sequence data will inform taxonomic resolution and support our work on host specificity and the recovery of pollinator mutualisms.

Cycad cucujid beetle

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Euphorbia dregeana

The Euphorbiaceae family is facing increasing threats in southern Africa due to poaching for illegal trade, with over 30 species currently classified as threatened and another 30 species either lacking sufficient data or yet to be evaluated.

Bergmelkbos

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Erotylid sp. nov. MS 6

This cycad fungus beetle is a pollinator of highly endangered cycad species. Genome sequencing will assist in accurate species identification and classification, as well as in determining host specificity, thereby informing targeted conservation and recovery plans.

Cycad fungus beetle

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