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Official Guide on Sale
New Official Guide on Sale at the park’s shop for R40.00
This 48-page full-colour brochure gives the visitor a complete overview of the park, its fauna & flora, history, new developments, accommodation and activities.
Highly recommended!
Addo Elephant National Park
Vegetation
Addo's vegetation is remarkable because in a relatively small area, five of South Africa's biomes are found. (Much larger parks such as Kruger National have only one biome). Biomes can be defined as the major communities of the world, classified according to their predominant vegetation and characterised by adaptations of organisms to that particular environment. Biomes are characterised by a similar association of species, comparable climates, and consistent soil types.
The original Addo-Elephant area is mainly covered by subtropical thicket (also known as valley bushveld), characterized by impenetrable Spekboom. It was this vegetation that protected the last remaining elephant and buffalo from being wiped out by hunters.
The Zuurberg Mountains harbour deep wooded kloofs and streams. In the exposed higher altitude areas, grassland and fynbos are found. Moving inland over the mountains the area around Darlington Lake turns to succulent Karoo-type (arid semi-desert) vegetation known as Noorsveld. On the seaward side of the original elephant section the Woody Cape section contains a remarkable display of coastal dune-fields and coastal grassy plains. Moving east the Alexandria Forest is an excellent example of pristine temperate forest.
Biomes
The Addo Elephant National Park stretches from Woody Cape (between Bushman's River mouth in the east and Sundays River mouth in the west) in the south, moving northwards across the area originally known as Olifantsplaat and Vetmaakvlakte, across the original elephant enclosure, across to the Nyathi Concession area, encompassing a large part of the Zuurberg mountain range, moving westwards, and then northwards across the Zuurberg to the Darlington Dam area up to the R400 (between Jansenville and Paterson).
The park encompasses five of South Africa's seven biomes: - Forest (Alexandria forest) in the Woody Cape area, - Subtropical Thicket in the original Addo section (also in the Kabouga, Colchester, Nyathi sections), - Grassland in the Zuurberg section, - Fynbos in the Zuurberg section, - Nama Karoo in the Darlington section. Subtropical Thicket is the largest biome in the AENP, covering 69% of the area.
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Forest covers 10% of the area. Nama Karoo covers 7% of the area. Fynbos and Grassland each cover 5% of the area. (The remaining area is covered by the dunefield). In these 5 biomes, 43 distinct land classes have been mapped. 29 of the 43 land classes (67%) have been identified as experiencing a high level of threat. (Potential threats include grazing, agriculture, alien plant infestation, mining and human settlement disturbances).
Biomes can be defined as the major communities of the world, classified according to their predominant vegetation and characterised by adaptations of organisms to that particular environment. Ecosystems are communities of organisms that inhabit specific physical environments. Biomes are composed of several ecosystems and represent a regional community of organisms named after the dominant vegetation. Ecologists do not always agree on the exact number of ecosystems and biomes, as the number will vary depending upon how the biomes are defined, for instance: according to species or according to the particular climate characteristics that are considered.
South Africa is characterised by a wide diversity of plant life and is ranked as the third most biologically diverse country in the world (mainly due to the richness of plant life). Over 18 000 species of vascular plants occur in South Africa, of which over 80% occur nowhere else. This diversity is caused by variations in climate, geology, soils and landscape forms. However, South Africa also has the highest concentration of threatened plant groups in the world. Approximately 3 435 of South African plant groups are considered to be globally threatened by extinction. A further 204 groups are estimated to be threatened at a local level. BIOME % Biome of Total AENP area* % Biome in AENP
| BIOME | % Biome of Total AENP area* |
% Biome in AENP Planning Domain |
% Biome conserved nationally |
| Forest | 10 | 3.93 | 17.89 |
| Fynbos | 5 | 0.48 | 11.86 |
| Grassland | 5 | 0.01 | 2.24 |
| Nama Karoo | 7 | 0.28 | 0.57 |
| Subtropical Thicket | 69 | 8.73 | 4.52 |
Subtropical Thicket:
was formerly classified as a type of savanna but has since been classified as a separate biome. The large diversity of animals is associated with the rich plant diversity.-Contains 112 different vegetation types and comprised of 1558 plant species. 322 of these species (20%) are endemic and found nowhere else.
- Subtropical Thicket covers an area of 48 000km2 stretching from Riversdale in the Western Cape to the Kei River in the Eastern Cape.
- Each vegetation type contains unique plant species.
Dune Thicket:
occurs along the coastal strip in a narrow band. Thicket occurs in the higher rainfall areas and woody species are dominant, grasses are present and there are less succulents.Valley Thicket:
is found in valleys with a high woody component and more succulents.Arid Thicket:
is found in the interior with succulents being dominant and a small woody component.- Adapted to withstand the valley's temperature variations from 7 °C to over 40 °C and unpredictable rainfall (varies between 200mm - 600mm) occurring at any time of the year.
- Few grasses and few large trees. Vegetation varied in height, most shrubs up to 3-4 metres. Taller plants are euphorbias and aloes. Understorey of dwarf succulents and bulbous plants.
- Adaptations to survive severe environmental conditions include:
- Leaves small/absent/leathery/unpalatable.
- Water stored in succulent stems/leaves.
- Thorns and/or poisonous/bitter sap for protection from browsers.
- Ability to tolerate disturbance by trampling animals - drop, reroot quickly and form new plants.
- Underground storage organs which sprout quickly after rains e.g. bulbs, corms, rootstock.
- Flowering not restricted to specific season but after good rains.
- Pollinated by birds and most fruit dispersed by birds.
- Mosaics of vegetation are created in thicket by geological processes, grazing by megaherbivores and by fire.
- 48 species of medium to large mammals occur in this biome (26 herbivores, 16 carnivores, 4 omnivores and 2 insectivores).
- Little is known about the insect species associated with Subtropical Thicket but for every one plant species, there are between 8 and 35 organisms dependent on this species.
- Thicket is crucial in maintaining life support systems. It holds soil well and it keeps rivers clean by holding the very fine soil found on steep river banks. This is important in riverine and estuarine ecosystems.
- - Lichens and mosses play an important role in this biome, providing good ground cover and breaking the energy of raindrops, allowing them to penetrate the soil effectively.
- - Many thicket species have great horticultural potential. Some have already been widely exploited e.g. the strelitzia - a symbol on SA coins, hailed as the emblem of Las Vegas (while actually endemic to SA!); pelargoniums from which all hybrids are descended are widely exploited in European countries (but originally from SA).
- - The Subtropical Thicket biome faces extreme threat from overgrazing, bushclearing for agriculture and inadequate representation in reserves.
(Reference: Stone R., Malan, C & Loedolff, J. 2000. Valley Thicket pamphlet. Botanical Society of South Africa)
Grassland
Grassland is defined as those areas where grasses dominate the vegetation and where woody plants are absent or rare. They occupy 24,1% of the country's surface area. Most grassland occurs in high-rainfall areas, where thunderstorms and hail are common in summer and frost is common in winter. The grassland biome is regarded as the third-richest area in terms of plant species diversity, with a total number of 3 788 species. The most noteworthy species with a wide distribution is rooigras (Themeda triandra).
Fynbos
Fynbos occupies 5,3 % of South Africa with its complement of at least 8 578 species of flowering plants. It is recognised supporting one of the most diverse and distinctive floras in the world. All in all, 5 832 or 68 % of the plant species are endemic. Many of the fynbos plant species are restricted to extremely small distribution ranges, a fact which has rendered them dangerously susceptible to extinction. Fynbos consists of evergreen heathlands and shrublands in which fine-leafed low shrubs and leafless tufted grasslike plants are typical. Proteas, ericas and restios are typical components of fynbos. Trees are rare and grasses comprise a relatively small part of the biomass. The floristic diversity of the fynbos is not paralleled by an equally rich fauna due to the absence of grass and berry-producing plants. Fire is a very important component in fynbos. Most fynbos is highly flammable due to the common presence of flammable oils. Finely wooded fynbos plants are obligate seeders, which means that the whole plant dies after fire and can only reproduce through seed. This distinguishes fynbos from the other ecosystems where fire is common. Many plant species are dependent for pollination on small mammals or birds such as the Cape sugarbird (Promerops cafer).
Both Grassland and Fynbos are fire-dependent and fire-adapted. Research has shown that isolated patches of fire-prone vegetation can lose up to 75% of their species when fires are prevented from spreading to them for long periods. This has implications on management actions since both Fynbos and Grassland in the AENP are surrounded by relatively non-flammable Subtropical Thicket, Forest and Nama Karoo.
Nama-Karoo
The Nama-Karoo covers most of the vast central plateau region of the Western and Northern Cape Provinces. The area forms an ecotone or transition between the Cape flora to the south, and the tropical savanna in the north. Many of the plant species of the Nama-Karoo also occur in the savanna, grassland, succulent Karoo and fynbos biomes. Species that occur in the Nama-Karoo include the sweet-thorn (Acacia karroo), stone plant (Lithops ruschiorum) and blue Karoo daisy (Felicia australis). A rich variety of rodents and reptiles occur in the Nama-Karoo.
Forest
The forests of South Africa include the indigenous evergreen and semi-deciduous closed forests of the coastal lowlands and escarpment slopes and cover only about 0.25% of the land area. With a few exceptions such as the forests of the Knysna area and the KwaZulu-Natal coastal dune systems, forests are small, usually occupying less than 1 000 ha. These forests amount to little more than patches scattered through the higher rainfall areas. The total area of forests in South Africa is probably less than 2 000 km². The forest structure results in reduced light levels in the area beneath the canopy where species such as tree ferns are common. Typical mammals include the bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus) and bush pig (Potamochoerus porcus) and typical birds include the Knysna lourie (Tauraco corythaix). Despite the small land surface area that they occupy, forests have relatively high species richness. Only fynbos exceeds the species richness found in forests.
Alexandria forest (Acocks Veld Type No. 2) or Indian Ocean forest can be distinguished from other forest types by the relatively low percentage of shade-loving trees in the species composition, and is thus phytogeographically distinct from forests in other regions. This veld type is highly threatened with only about 5 % of the original extent of the veld type presently conserved under formal conservation. Woody Cape Nature Reserve represents more than 90% of the Alexandria forest veld type conserved. The Alexandria forest receives the highest rainfall in the AENP, about 600-700 mm per year.
Afro-montane forest
is found in the ravines and valleys in several sections of the park
Wetlands
The term "wetlands" groups together a wide range of inland and coastal habitats - from mountain sponges and midland marshes to swamp forests and estuaries - linked by rivers and streams. These wetlands share common and important functions in river catchments by providing a regular water supply, by filtering the water naturally, by reducing the effects of floods and droughts, and by providing a vital wildlife habitat and superb recreational areas for people.
Most wetlands are characterised by a high water table, water-carrying soil and hydrophytes (water-loving plants), but in semi-arid Southern Africa there are numerous pans that support few if any hydrophytes and that may contain shallow water only once in five or more years.
Wetlands play an important role in maintaining biodiversity since they support an extraordinary variety of plant and birdlife e.g. the red bishop (Euplectes orix), the South African shelduck (Tadorna cana), insects, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, e.g. the striped stream frog (Strongylopus fasciatus), fish and invertebrate species. Wetland plants such as the bulrush (Typha capensis), play an important role in the healthy functioning of a wetland ecosystem by generating organic matter, the primary element for any foodweb. They also provide the soil and water with oxygen, prevent erosion and serve as a filter that purifies the water. These plants provide food, shelter and breeding sites for many birds and aquatic animals such as the hippopotamus.
(Reference: Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism website:
www.environment.gov.za/enviro-info/)
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