Great White Sharks to be culled in Western Australia- not G' mate
Today I received a rather alarming status on my Facebook profile about the plan to begin the culling of Great White Sharks in Western Australia. Not only does this plan (which looks like it is going to be put into action) mean that Western Australia is on the verge of a serious ecological mistake it also makes m...
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Environmental concerns
Does the bus service on Fish Hoek make any sense?
A few days ago I was walking with my family past the traffic circle in Fish Hoek, just before the Memorial Gardens when two battle weary taxis chugged, sputtered, coughed, and rattled their way past us- nose to tail. Both these collections of scrap metal and gaffer tape were chock full with punters heading away from Fish Hoek.
The taxis were closely followed by a very large ...
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I’ve seen my first southern right whale of the season
It wasn't doing anything exciting, just hanging around on the surface- and it took me a while to identify it, too often in the past I have been fooled by floating debris, such as huge rafts of kelp and it was early evening with the setting sun casting shadows on the water.
Then, after an eye watering stint of staring- poof, a tell-tale v-shaped puff of water- a Southern Right ...
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Cape Clawless Otters- Safari part 1
Recently I was on a beach between Glencairn and Simons Town. It was one of those autumn days that really defines the season on the Cape Point Peninsula, periods of warm sunshine interspersed with sharp, heavy rain showers.
I was mooching along the sand, just above the tide line, looking at a set of dog prints when they intersected a second set. At this point I noticed that t...
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Is Cape Town & Cape Point Water Safe to Drink
' Is Cape Town and Cape Point Drinking Water Safe?' -
The Cape Town city authorities keep telling us it is, however it has been hard to miss recently that the water quality seems less than desirable on the Cape Point Peninsula. There have been several times in the last few months that the water from the taps has had a distinctive ‘earthy’ smell to it. It is so strong a smel...
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Shark Nets At Fish Hoek Beach
I guess that it was inevitable that the negative publicity surrounding a recent shark attack would lead to shark nets at Fish Hoek beach.
Tourism is in a general slump in the area which is inevitably having a knock effect for the rest of the economy. Certainly the portrayal of Fish Hoek beach as being a place that you will get eaten by a great white shark will not have h...
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Cape Point Peninsula Tortoises Under Threat
Poachers Now Targeting the Cape Point Tortoise Population
I have received a most disturbing press release from the Minister of Local Government,Environmental Affairs and Development Planning (in full below). Apparently the humble tortoise is now the target of poachers. Luckily we live in a very busy, built up area so there are a lot more eyes and ears available than in rural...
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Air Jaws in Fish Hoek
Things have been a little busy with work so I havn't been out and about much recently, and I can't imagine that you would like an account of the inside of my workshop. With that in mind I have to admit that I wasn't there for what happened in this account, it is second hand information, but still, I wish I had seen it and I will probably spend the rest of my life watching out f...
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Massive Water Waste at Zandvlei Caravan Park
Cape Point Peninsula Caravan Park wastes approximately '50 tonnes' of water a day!
So far this winter has been unusually dry and mild on the Cape Point Peninsula, we have had far below the average rainfall and if this continues our water reserves are likely to be dangerously low come the end of summer. We need to be very careful with our water usage and even then it seems like...
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Cape Point Peninsula National Park- Mountain Zebra Foal Born
Mountain Zebra Foal Born In Cape Point National Park
I read today with great interest that a Mountain Zebra foal was born in the park on Tuesday (19th July).
More accurately the new arrival is a Cape Mountain Zebra [Equus zebra zebra], one of two species of mountain zebras (the other being the Hartmann's Mountain Zebra [Equus zebra hartmannea]). If you are ever confronted b...
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