The Bot River Estuary, also known as the Bot River Lagoon, is part of the Bot-Kleinmond Estuarine System in the
Overberg
__NOTOC__
Overberg is a region in South Africa to the east of Cape Town beyond the Hottentots-Holland mountains. It lies along the Western Cape Province's south coast between the Cape Peninsula and the region known as the Garden Route in the e ...
region on the
Western Cape
The Western Cape ( ; , ) is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the List of South African provinces by area, fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , an ...
of South Africa. It became a
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
**
wetland
A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
in 2017. It is within the
Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve
Kogelberg Nature Reserve is a nature reserve of comprising the Kogelberg Mountain Range, to the east of Cape Town, South Africa.
With about 1600 plant species, it contains a floral diversity per unit area that is greater than anywhere else in t ...
.
This wetland is the mouth of the
Bot River
Bot River () is a river in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The Bot River mouth, located at Fisherhaven and Kleinmond, is a Ramsar site. Its tributaries include the Swart River. The river falls within the Drainage system G.
Ety ...
, namesake of the town of
Botrivier
Botrivier is a small town of approximately 10 000 people, situated in the Overberg region of the Western Cape in South Africa.
Village in the former Caledon district, 93 km southeast of Cape Town. It takes its name from the Bot River on the ...
. The lagoon covers almost between
Kleinmond
Kleinmond is a small coastal town in the Overberg region of the Western Cape province, South Africa. It is situated inside a UNESCO-declared Man and the Biosphere Programme, biosphere about 90 km east of Cape Town between Betty's Bay and Herm ...
,
Hawston
Hawston is a village in the Western Cape, South Africa, It is a fishing village north-east of Mudge Point, 5 km north-west of Onrusrivier and 11 km from Hermanus. It is named after C.R. Haw, a civil commissioner of Caledon.
Located in ...
, and Fisherhaven. The lagoon is one of the largest open-water areas along the Western Cape coast and discharges into a shallow, triangular shaped lagoon in a wide valley flanked by mountains known as Botrivier Vlei. The waters of the lagoon are separated from the ocean by a wide dune belt with a height of that is partly covered with coastal grasses and shrubs. The dunes have two narrow berms which are sometimes breached naturally or artificially. The main portion of the lagoon can have a length of up to and a width of around .
The Rooisand Nature Reserve occupies around 60% of the western frontage up to the lagoon. The nature reserve is managed by
CapeNature
CapeNature (officially the Western Cape Nature Conservation Board) is a governmental organisation responsible for maintaining wilderness areas and public nature reserves in Western Cape Province, South Africa.
Parks managed by CapeNature West ...
and is a designated Provincial Nature Reserve. The eastern side of the lagoon is mostly occupied with residential development. The head of the lagoon on the inland side is surrounded by agricultural land.
Ecology
During the dry summer months, the Lagoon is a major refuge for
waterfowl
Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which i ...
, of which 86 species can be found here.
Coot
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usual ...
s come some years in particularly large numbers. The size of the bird population, however, varies drastically year to year based on fluctuations in water depth and quality as well as how connected the wetland is to the sea.
The lagoon is also an important fish spawning ground. 41 species of fish are recorded here, out of which 19 are dependent on such estuaries for their life cycle.
Invasive species
An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...
, especially ''
Acacia cyclops
''Acacia cyclops'', commonly known as coastal wattle, cyclops wattle, one-eyed wattle, red-eyed wattle, redwreath acacia, western coastal wattle, rooikrans, rooikrans acacia, is a coastal shrub or small tree in the family Fabaceae. Native to A ...
'' and
African clawed frog
The African clawed frog (''Xenopus laevis''), also known as simply xenopus, African clawed toad, African claw-toed frog or the ''platanna'') is a species of African Aquatic animal, aquatic frog of the family Pipidae. Its name is derived from the ...
s, are an increasing threat to the wetland. Residents and holidaymakers alike enjoy
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...
,
swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...
,
rowing
Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically a ...
, and
sailing
Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...