Tygerberg Nature Reserve
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tygerberg Nature Reserve is a
nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...
in the Tierberg range of hills in the
northern suburbs Northern Sydney is a large metropolitan area in Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on the north shore of Sydney Harbour and Parramatta River. The region embraces suburbs in Sydney's north-east, north and inner north west. Northern Sy ...
of
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. In 1657 the 7 km long range of hills became known as Luipaerts Berghen (‘Leopard’s Mountain’), named for the characteristic spots, or “
heuweltjie Heuweltjies are large mounds above or near the surface of the landscape, a type of soil surface feature that occurs widely in the Western Cape, south-western Cape of South Africa. Their formation has been the subject of a wide range of speculat ...
s”, which dot its slopes and are visible from afar. These are believed to be fossilized
termitaria Termites are a group of detritivore, detritophagous Eusociality, eusocial cockroaches which consume a variety of Detritus, decaying plant material, generally in the form of wood, Plant litter, leaf litter, and Humus, soil humus. They are dist ...
, and occur widely in Shale Renosterveld. Since 1661 the range was known as the Tijgerberghen (‘Tiger Mountain’), "tijger" being the
Cape Dutch Cape Dutch, also commonly known as Cape Afrikaners, were a historic socioeconomic class of Afrikaners who lived in the Western Cape during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The terms have been evoked to describe an affluent, educated sect ...
word for a
leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant cat species in the genus ''Panthera''. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of with a ...
. The southernmost section of the Tierberg range is currently protected in Tygerberg Nature Reserve. The nature reserve represents one of the few surviving pockets of the highly threatened Swartland Shale Renosterveld vegetation type. The 300  ha reserve has an exceptional number of species. There are nearly five hundred different plant species here, twelve of which are threatened with extinction and eight of which exist only in
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
. Three of the plant species of Tygerberg exist only within the boundaries of the reserve itself. In addition, there are over a hundred bird species and a variety of wild mammals, reptiles and amphibians. The Plattekloof Dam is located just west of the hills, and is being restored to a natural wetland. The park hosts the Kristo Pienaar Environmental Education Centre with its library and resource centre. This is a popular venue for school excursions and education programmes. TATygerberg, crop.jpg, Aerial view: the Plattekloof and Welgemoed (above) suburbs flank the reserve, while the N1 highway skirts the hill's southern limit. Swartland Shale Renosterveld at Tygerberg Reserve Cape Town.jpg, Highly threatened Swartland Shale Renosterveld in Tygerberg Nature Reserve


See also

*
Biodiversity of Cape Town The biodiversity of Cape Town is the variety and variability of life within the City of Cape Town, excluding the Prince Edward Islands. The terrestrial vegetation is particularly diverse and much of it is endemic to the city and its vicinity. Te ...
*
List of nature reserves in Cape Town The City of Cape Town, South Africa has numerous nature reserves within the city limits. City of Cape Town The City of Cape Town manages the following nature reserves in the Cape Town metropolitan area: Temp North region * * * * * * * ...
* Swartland Shale Renosterveld


References

{{Cape Town, natural Nature reserves in Cape Town Protected areas of the Western Cape Renosterveld