Thewildlife of South Africa consists of theflora andfauna of this country inSouthern Africa. The country has a range of different habitat types and an ecologically rich and diverse wildlife, vascular plants being particularly abundant, many of themendemic to the country. There are few forested areas, muchsavanna grassland, semi-aridKaroo vegetation and thefynbos of theCape Floristic Region. Famed for its national parks and big game, 297species ofmammal have been recorded inSouth Africa, as well as 849 species of bird and over 20,000 species of vascular plants.
South Africa is located in subtropical southern Africa, lying between22°S and35°S. It is bordered byNamibia,Botswana andZimbabwe to the north, byMozambique andEswatini (Swaziland) to the northeast, by theIndian Ocean to the east and south, and theAtlantic Ocean to the west, the coastline extending for more than 2,500 km (1,600 mi). The interior of the country consists of a large, nearly flat, plateau with an altitude of between 1,000 m (3,300 ft) and 2,100 m (6,900 ft). The eastern, and highest, part of this is theDrakensberg, the highest point beingMafadi (3,450 m (11,320 ft)), which is on the border withLesotho, a country surrounded by South Africa.[1]
The south and south-western parts of the plateau, at approximately 1,100 to 1,800 m (3,600 to 5,900 ft) above sea level, and the adjoining plain below, at approximately 700 to 800 m (2,300 to 2,600 ft) above sea level, is known as theGreat Karoo, and consists of sparsely populatedshrubland. To the north the Great Karoo fades into the drier and more aridBushmanland, which eventually becomes theKalahari Desert in the far north-west of the country. The mid-eastern, and highest part of the plateau is known as theHighveld. This relatively well-watered area is home to a great proportion of the country's commercial farmlands. To the north of Highveld, the plateau slopes downwards into theBushveld, which ultimately gives way to theLimpopo lowlands orlowveld.[1]
The climate of South Africa is influenced by its position between two oceans and its elevation. Winters are mild in coastal regions, particularly in theEastern Cape. Cold and warm coastal currents running north-west and north-east respectively account for the difference in climates between west and east coasts. The weather pattern is also influenced by theEl Niño–Southern Oscillation. In the plateau area, the influence of the sea is reduced, and the daily temperature range is much wider; here the summer days are very hot, while the nights are usually cool, with the possibility of frosts in winter. The country experiences a high degree of sunshine with rainfall about half of the global average, increasing from west to east, and with semi-desert regions in the north-west. TheWestern Cape experiences aMediterranean climate with winter rainfall, but most of the country has more rain in summer.[2]
A total of 23,420 species of vascular plant has been recorded in South Africa, making it the sixth most species-rich country in the world and the most species-rich country on the African continent. Of these, 153 species are considered to be threatened.[3] Ninebiomes have been described in South Africa:fynbos, succulentKaroo,desert,Nama Karoo,veld,savanna,Albany thickets, theIndian Ocean coastal belt, andforests.[4]
The most prevalent biome in the country is the grassland, particularly on the Highveld, where the plant cover is dominated by different species ofgrass; fires, frosts and grazing pressure result in few trees occurring here, butgeophytes (bulbs) are plentiful and there is a high level of plant diversity, especially on the escarpments.[5] Vegetation becomes even more sparse towards the northwest due to lowrainfall. There are several species of water-storingsucculents, likealoes andeuphorbias, in the very hot and dry Namaqualand area. The grass and thornsavannah turns slowly into a bush savannah towards the north-east of the country, with denser growth. There are significant numbers ofbaobab trees in this area, near the northern end ofKruger National Park.[6]
There are few forests in the country, these being largely restricted to patches on mountains and escarpments in high rainfall areas andgallery forests, and much of the plateau area is covered by grassland andsavanna. Thekaroo occupies much of the drier western half of the country; this area is influenced by its proximity to the Atlantic and has winter rainfall. The vegetation here is dominated by dwarfsucculent plants, with manyendemic species of both plants and animals.Fynbos is a belt of natural shrubland located in theWestern Cape andEastern Cape provinces with a unique flora dominated byericas,proteas andrestios.[7] This area is part of theCape Floristic Region. TheWorld Wide Fund for Nature divides this region into threeecoregions: theLowland fynbos and renosterveld, theMontane fynbos and renosterveld and theAlbany thickets. There is some concern that the Cape Floristic Region is experiencing one of the most rapid rates ofextinction in the world due tohabitat destruction,land degradation, andinvasive alien plants.[8]
The Cape Floral Region Protected Areas is a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site, a group of about thirteen protected areas that together cover an area of over a million hectares. This is a hotspot of diversity of endemic plants, many of which are threatened, and demonstrates ongoing ecological and evolutionary processes. This region occupies less than 0.5% of the area of the African continent yet has almost 20% of its plant species, almost 70% of the 9,000 plant species being endemic to the region. The Fynbos vegetation consists mainly ofsclerophyllous shrubland. Of special interest is the pollination biology of the plants, many of which rely on ants, termites, birds or mammals for this function, the adaptions they have made to the fire risk, and the high level ofadaptive radiation andspeciation.[9] The Mediterranean climate produces hot, dry summers, and many of the plants have underground storage organs allowing them to resprout after fires. A typical species is thesilver tree, which grows naturally only onTable Mountain. Fire kills many of the trees but triggers thegermination of the seeds, founding the next generation of these short-lived trees.[10]
Some 297 species ofmammal have been recorded in South Africa, of which 30 species are considered threatened.[11] TheKruger National Park, in the east of the country, is one of the largest national parks in the world, with an area of 19,485 square kilometres (7,523 sq mi) of grassland with scattered trees. It supports a wide range of ungulates includingBurchell's zebra,impala,greater kudu,blue wildebeest,waterbuck,warthog,Cape buffalo,giraffe andhippopotamus. There are alsoblack andwhite rhinoceroses,African elephant,African wild dog,cheetah,leopard,lion andspotted hyena.[12]
Elsewhere in the country there aregemsbok, alternatively known as oryx,nyala,bushbuck andspringbok. There are seventeen species ofgolden mole, a family limited to southern Africa, five species ofelephant shrew, many species of shrews, thesouthern African hedgehog, theaardvark, varioushares and the critically endangeredriverine rabbit. There are numerous species ofbat and a great many species ofrodent. Primates are represented by theMohol bushbaby, thebrown greater galago, theSykes' monkey, thevervet monkey and thechacma baboon. Smaller carnivores includemongooses,genets, thecaracal, theserval, theAfrican wildcat, theCape fox, theside-striped jackal, theblack-backed jackal,meerkats, and theAfrican clawless otter. Thebrown fur seal and other species of seal occur on the coasts and the waters around the country are visited by numerous species ofwhale anddolphin.[13]
With its diverse habitat types, South Africa has a wide range of residential and migratory species. According to the 2018 edition ofThe Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, 849 species of bird have been recorded in South Africa and its offshore islands. Of these, 125 species are vagrants, and about 30 are endemic either to South Africa, or the more inclusive South Africa/Lesotho/Eswatini region.[14] The endemic species include thesouthern black andblue korhaans, thegrey-winged francolin, theKnysna turaco, theFynbos buttonquail, thesouthern bald ibis, theforest buzzard, theground woodpecker, theCape andDrakensberg rockjumpers, theCape,eastern andAgulhas long-billed larks, thered,Karoo,Rudd's andBotha's larks, theCape bulbul, theVictorin's andKnysna warblers, theDrakensberg prinia, thebush blackcap, theCape sugarbird, thechorister robin-chat, thesentinel andCape rock thrushes, thebuff-streaked chat, thepied starling, theAfrican Penguin, and theorange-breasted sunbird.[15]
Thecommon ostrich is plentiful on the open grassland and savannah areas.[16] Some birds breed elsewhere but migrate to South Africa to overwinter, while others breed in the country but migrate away in the non-breeding season. Migratory species include thegreater striped swallow,white-rumped swift,white stork,African pygmy kingfisher,yellow-billed kite and theEuropean bee-eater.[17]
There is a rich fauna ofreptiles andamphibians, with 447 species of reptile recorded in the country (as compiled by the Reptile Database),[18] and 132 species of amphibian (compiled by AmphibiaWeb).[19] South Africa has the richest diversity of reptiles of any African country. Endemic species include theangulate tortoise andgeometric tortoise, theZululand dwarf chameleon, theTranskei dwarf chameleon and theRobertson dwarf chameleon, theBroadley's flat lizard, thedwarf Karoo girdled lizard, theSoutpansberg rock lizard, and theyellow-bellied house snake.[20]
Also included among the fauna are theNile crocodile, theleopard tortoise, theSpeke's hinge-back tortoise, theserrated hinged terrapin, various chameleons, lizards, geckos and skinks, thecape cobra, theblack mamba, theeastern green mamba, thepuff adder, themole snake and a range of other venomous and non-venomous snakes.[21]
Amphibian diversity reflects the many diverse habitats around the country. Species of interest include the endemicwestern leopard toad and thearum frog, thebronze caco, thespotted snout-burrower and the critically endangeredRose's ghost frog, found only on the slopes ofTable Mountain.[22] Another endangered endemic species is theNatal diving frog.[23]
The following have been designated as national parks in South Africa:[24]
Some animals occurring in South Africa are classified as "endangered" or "critically endangered". These include:[25]
