| Witteberg | |
|---|---|
 Lundean's Nek | |
| Highest point | |
| Listing | List of mountain ranges of South Africa |
| Coordinates | 30°42′9″S27°28′5″E / 30.70250°S 27.46806°E /-30.70250; 27.46806 |
| Geography | |
  Witteberg Location of the Witteberg in South Africa | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Province | Eastern Cape |
TheWitteberg orWitteberge is a South African mountain range just off the south-west corner ofLesotho. The range, which rises to 2408 metres, stretches for about 60 km (37 mi) fromLundin's Neck in the east toLady Grey in the west. The range lends its name to the Witteberg Series, the uppermostfossiliferous sequence of theCape System of sedimentary rocks in South Africa.
The Witteberg Series (340-375Ma) consists ofclastic, shoreline deposits of shales, sandstones, and quartzites,[1] and lies below the plant-bearing andglacial beds of the LowerKaroo System. The Witteberg Series has yielded fossil fragments ofLepidodendron-like plants and large numbers of theichnogenus known asSpirophyton.[2]
The upper part of the series is also rich inpalaeoniscoid fauna. In 1969,Brian G. GardinerPPLS, former professor of palaeontology at King's College, described 7 newgenera andspecies ofray-finned fish from here –Australichthys longidorsalis,Aestuarichthys fulcratus,Willomorichthys striatulus,Sundayichthys elegantulus,Dwykia analensis,Adroichthys tuberculatus andSoetendalichthys cromptoni (=Aestuarichthys fulcratus). Two newfamilies were also erected, the Willomorichthyidae and the Dwykiidae.[3]
The Witteberge range in the EasternFree State on the north-west corner ofLesotho is an unrelated mountain. 'Witteberg' (white mountain) is a common name in South Africa for any mountain lofty enough to show snowfall during winter.
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