African Oystercatchers on Robben Island, South Africa: The 2019/2020 breeding season in its two decadal context

Wader Study ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 128 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Itxaso Quintana ◽  
Rio Button ◽  
Les G. Underhill
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Robben Island

‘VOICES’, MEANING AND ‘HETEROGLOSSIA’ IN PRISONERS OF HOPE (1995)

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-96
Author(s):  
Khatija Bibi Khan
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Documentary Film ◽  
Textual Analysis ◽  
Political Prisoners ◽  
The Future ◽  
Human Capacity ◽  
Robben Island ◽  
Former Inmates

The documentary film Prisoners of Hope (1995) is a heart-rending account of 1 250 former political prisoners in the notorious Robben Island prison in South Africa. The aim of this article is to explore the narratives of Prisoners of Hope and in the process capture its celebratory mood and reveal the contribution that the prisoners made towards the realisation of a free South Africa. The documentary features interviews with Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, Ahmed Kathrada and other former inmates as they recall and recount the atrocities perpetrated by defenders of the apartheid system and debate the future of South Africa with its ‘new’ political dispensation led by blacks. A textual analysis of Prisoners of Hope will enable one to explore the human capacity to resist, commit oneself to a single goal and live beyond the horrors and traumas of an oppressive and dehumanising system.

scholarly journals Foraging range and habitat use by Cape Vulture Gyps coprotheres from the Msikaba colony, Eastern Cape province, South Africa

Koedoe ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Morgan B. Pfeiffer ◽  
Jan A. Venter ◽  
Colleen T. Downs
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Movement Ecology ◽  
Kernel Density ◽  
Eastern Cape Province ◽  
Eastern Cape ◽  
Convex Polygons ◽  
Density Estimates ◽  
Kernel Density Estimates

Despite the extent of subsistence farmland in Africa, little is known about endangered species that persist within them. The Cape Vulture (Gyps coprotheres) is regionally endangered in southern Africa and at least 20% of the population breeds in the subsistence farmland area previously known as the Transkei in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. To understand their movement ecology, adult Cape Vultures (n = 9) were captured and fitted with global positioning system/global system for mobile transmitters. Minimum convex polygons (MCPs),and 99% and 50% kernel density estimates (KDEs) were calculated for the breeding and non breeding seasons of the Cape Vulture. Land use maps were constructed for each 99% KDE and vulture locations were overlaid. During the non-breeding season, ranges were slightly larger(mean [± SE] MCP = 16 887 km2 ± 366 km2) than the breeding season (MCP = 14 707 km2 ± 2155 km2). Breeding and non-breeding season MCPs overlapped by a total of 92%. Kernel density estimates showed seasonal variability. During the breeding season, Cape Vultures used subsistence farmland, natural woodland and protected areas more than expected. In the non-breeding season, vultures used natural woodland and subsistence farmland more than expected, and protected areas less than expected. In both seasons, human-altered landscapes were used less, except for subsistence farmland.Conservation implications: These results highlight the importance of subsistence farm land to the survival of the Cape Vulture. Efforts should be made to minimise potential threats to vultures in the core areas outlined, through outreach programmes and mitigation measures.The conservation buffer of 40 km around Cape Vulture breeding colonies should be increased to 50 km.

scholarly journals A phylogenetic approach towards understanding the drivers of plant invasiveness on Robben Island, South Africa

2013 ◽  
Vol 172 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bezeng S. Bezeng ◽  
Vincent Savolainen ◽  
Kowiyou Yessoufou ◽  
Alexander S. T. Papadopulos ◽  
Olivier Maurin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Plant Invasiveness ◽  
Robben Island

Artificial nests enhance the breeding productivity of African Penguins (Spheniscus demersus) on Robben Island, South Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 112 (2) ◽  
pp. 97-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard B. Sherley ◽  
Barbara J. Barham ◽  
Peter J. Barham ◽  
T. Mario Leshoro ◽  
Les G. Underhill
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Artificial Nests ◽  
Spheniscus Demersus ◽  
Robben Island

scholarly journals Reproduction performance of beef cattle mated naturally following synchronization in the Central Bushveld bioregion of South Africa

2015 ◽  
Vol 44 (5) ◽  
pp. 70-74
Author(s):  
SM Grobler ◽  
MM Scholtz ◽  
JPC Greyling ◽  
FWC Neser
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Beef Cattle ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Recovery Period ◽  
Beef Cows ◽  
First Year ◽  
Natural Mating ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Calving Season ◽  
Main Component

The estimated calving percentage of beef cattle is 62% in the commercial sector of South Africa. Fertility is regarded as the main component influencing total herd efficiency in beef cattle. If the long calving seasons can be shortened and the calving percentage increased, more and heavier calves with a more uniform age can be weaned. Cows calving earlier in the season also have an extended “recovery period” and have the opportunity to calve in a better body condition during the next season, compared to cows calving late in the season. Cows that calve early also have a better chance of conceiving in the next breeding season and are generally seen as the more fertile animals. Research has been undertaken to evaluate the effect of oestrous synchronization followed by natural mating on the calving rate and calving distribution of multiparous beef cows. In this trial Bonsmara cows were mated naturally after synchronization over a period of four years (2009 - 2012) in an extensive production system on natural sour-mixed bushveld. The synchronized cows calved earlier during the 2009 calving season and cows in anoestrus started cycling again. The average days-to-calving after the start of the breeding season was 243 days for the synchronized cows and 267 for the non-synchronized cows. The calves born from the synchronized cows were therefore, on average, 24 days older than the calves born from the non-synchronized cows. From 2010 onwards the difference declined and it seems the biggest effect was obtained during the first year of synchronization.Keywords: Beef cattle, Marikana thorn veld, natural mating, oestrous synchronization

A system dynamics approach to modelling multiple drivers of the African penguin population on Robben Island, South Africa

2014 ◽  
Vol 277 ◽  
pp. 38-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Weller ◽  
Lee-Anne Cecchini ◽  
Lynne Shannon ◽  
Richard B. Sherley ◽  
Robert J.M. Crawford ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
System Dynamics ◽  
African Penguin ◽  
Robben Island

scholarly journals Novel methods reveal shifts in migration phenology of barn swallows in South Africa

2011 ◽  
Vol 279 (1733) ◽  
pp. 1485-1490 ◽  
Author(s):  
Res Altwegg ◽  
Kristin Broms ◽  
Birgit Erni ◽  
Phoebe Barnard ◽  
Guy F. Midgley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Environmental Variability ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Breeding Population ◽  
Migratory Bird ◽  
Recent Climate ◽  
Breeding Grounds ◽  
Barn Swallows

Many migratory bird species, including the barn swallow ( Hirundo rustica ), have advanced their arrival date at Northern Hemisphere breeding grounds, showing a clear biotic response to recent climate change. Earlier arrival helps maintain their synchrony with earlier springs, but little is known about the associated changes in phenology at their non-breeding grounds. Here, we examine the phenology of barn swallows in South Africa, where a large proportion of the northern European breeding population spends its non-breeding season. Using novel analytical methods based on bird atlas data, we show that swallows first arrive in the northern parts of the country and gradually appear further south. On their north-bound journey, they leave South Africa rapidly, resulting in mean stopover durations of 140 days in the south and 180 days in the north. We found that swallows are now leaving northern parts of South Africa 8 days earlier than they did 20 years ago, and so shortened their stay in areas where they previously stayed the longest. By contrast, they did not shorten their stopover in other parts of South Africa, leading to a more synchronized departure across the country. Departure was related to environmental variability, measured through the Southern Oscillation Index. Our results suggest that these birds gain their extended breeding season in Europe partly by leaving South Africa earlier, and thus add to scarce evidence for phenology shifts in the Southern Hemisphere.

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