Herbarium specimens indicate that Moraea aristata is a northern Cape Peninsula endemic. It was recorded adjacent to Table Mountain between the present day Cape Town CBD and suburb of Rondebosch. Like sister species in the Peacock Moraea group, it prefers heavier soils and would have been found growing on Peninsula Shale Renosterveld, and likely also in nearby similar vegetation types.
The genus Protea is one of the most well-known and charismatic of the Cape Floristic Region’s (CFR) Fynbos Biome. The King Protea (Protea cynaroides) is South Africa’s national flower. Proteas are exported as cut flowers all over the world, prized for their beauty, diversity and longevity. They are often depicted in artwork and are popular garden plants. Members of the genus are also known as sugarbushes.
There are many stories of species only just holding on against extinction. One that stands out is that of Moraea aristata. This enigmatic Irid has long been admired. First described in the mid-18th Century by colonial botanical explorers, it quickly found its way into European collections, many of which still persist today. Historical records indicate this Peacock Moraea has always been a narrow endemic. Its natural distribution is the flats adjacent to Table Mountain, between present day Cape Town CBD and Rondebosch.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be the last in the world of your kind? There are many species who have experienced this fate in the hands of people. The most famous of these is Lonesome George, a giant tortoise of the Pinta subspecies from the Galapagos Islands. Despite the best efforts of conservationists, when Lonesome George died in 2012 at the age of approximately 102, the Pinta Island subspecies of giant tortoise died with him. I was lucky enough to meet Lonesome George at his last home at the Charles Darwin Research Centre during a stint of volunteering in the Galapagos Islands during my teens, and it is a memory that has stayed with me.
This week at Notes from a Cape Town Botanist, we have a guest post from Environmental Educator Wendy Hitchcock about some of her wonderful work at Lower Tokai Park. Today she writes about exploring this wonderful area with grade four learners from Oakley House, a school catering for children with special needs. The first aim of the outing was to develop map-reading skills and looking for landscape features to orientate themselves in the Park. The second was to introduce them to the idea of biodiversity and what it means.
This week the normally quiet Cape Town suburb of Tokai has been the centre of attention. It has made front page news in the papers and social media has been buzzing. Placard waving protestors, their families and their dogs lined the side of Orpen Road with residents queuing to sign petitions. Tears have been shed and emotions have been running high.