A walk in the mountains at Mountain Pastures
I knew that it was going to be a hike with many animal sightings when I came across the Leopard Tortoise (Stigmochelys pardalis) on the way to Mountain Pastures! And that was indeed the case….
I was spending the day on one of the trails on Mountain Pastures farm, where nature is truly ‘at its best’. This trail starts off on the north-facing side of the mountain with spectacular views of the de Hoop valley and mountains in the distance.
Exploring under rocks on the way up, I was delighted to find Harpactira tigrina (common yellow-banded baboon spider), found in silk-lined burrows under rocks. Another rock overturned yielded the beautiful scorpion Parabuthus planicauda, yellowish in colour. Just before reaching the top of the mountain, the small scorpion Uroplectes marlothi was found, well camouflaged with its distinctive bands, between tufts of grass.
The view to the south as one reaches the top of the mountain always ‘takes one’s breath away’! The perfect place to stop, enjoy the tranquillity and views. The trail now runs along the top of the mountain, and one is surrounded by pristine fynbos. The fynbos diversity is high, thus there are always species flowering, no matter what month of the year one hikes. One of my favourite buchu species, Agathosma cerefolium (Anysboegoe) with its typical aniseed-scented leaves and flowers was in flower, as were numerous other fynbos species. Butterflies and dragonflies accompanied me as I strolled along the trail. I found a third scorpion species, the dark-coloured Opistacanthus diremptus, common under rocks on the top of the ridge.
It is always with a ‘heavy heart’ that I have to turn around and head back, but the knowledge that I will be back soon cheers me up!
Written by Dr Joy Coleman (PhD Zoology)
