The reserve team at the Strandfontein Aquifer won an award for the ‘Fauna Find of the Year’ for finding a critically-endangered species of butterfly in the Wolfgat Nature Reserve.
The exceptionally rare butterfly, which was thought to only live only in certain pockets of Cape Town, was found last year during a scouting session.
Deputy Mayor Eddie Andrews, who is also a former Mitchell’s Plain councillor, said: “Reserve staff do annual monitoring of the swordgrass habitat in the reserve. During a scouting session at the various patches during October 2024 two individuals of Trida barberae bunta were discovered.”
The butterfly’s common name is Barber’s Cape Flats Ranger, previously known as Kedestes barberae bunta. A critically-endangered species, it was previously known to be found in the False Bay Nature Reserve and Driftsands Nature Reserve. Both of these are no longer conservation areas.
The butterfly is reliant on swordgrass for its life-cycle and has a flight period between September and October.
“It is important to monitor this critically-endangered species as well as the habitat they are found in to best manage the nature reserve in order to ensure their continued survival,” Andrews said.
The find by the Mitchell’s Plain team was significant because the butterflies’ numbers remain low.
“Each individual noted is of great importance,” he said. “The WNR: Strandfontein Aquifer section team was subsequently recognised for their effort through an award for the ‘Fauna Find of the Year’ at the annual Branch Staff Recognition Day.”
Environment management’s Myrna Scholtz told the sub-council 17 meeting she was proud of the team’s find. While relating the Biodiversity Management Branch Annual Report to the meeting she said that the Wolfgat Nature Reserve is a protected area, which is among the city’s reserves that are currently being expanded.
Scholtz added that the Strandfontein Aquifer had received international attention recently when an overseas television station visited the reserve and recorded the City’s iNaturalist Challenge in April.
“So we got some international acclaim at the time.”
