BASIC HEDGEHOG CARE 🐾

BASIC HEDGEHOG CARE
Hedgehogs are wonderful pets who are easy to care for! My first hedgehog joined the family in November of 1995 and since then the family has blossomed to about 50 permanent resident hedgies. We have also raised over 200 litters of babies. So, we feel we can say we do have some experience in raising hedgehogs, though there is still so much to learn about our prickly buddies. The aim of this page is to provide a basic care sheet that says the minimum you'll need to know in order to properly take care of a hedgehog. Please feel free to reproduce this care sheet in part or in whole, just be sure to give credit to the source. Thanks!

HOUSING:
A metal or plastic cage (like those made for guinea pigs or ferrets) works great, or a 20 gallon or larger aquarium. Make sure that the cage gas at least 2 square feet of floor space, and that the cage bottom has no wire grates that little hedgehog feet can fall through and get hurt on. Clean the cage at least once a week, and odour won't be a problem. For more ideas on cages, have a peek here or read the cage reviews.



Provide a hiding place or cover for the hedgehog to hide under, so that it will be less nervous. Large "critter logs," a shoe box or Kleenex box with a side cut out, or a "hedgebag" (available from Hedgehog Valley) work well.

You will want to keep the housing in a warm area of the house. Hedgehogs are from a warm environment and need to stay warm, but not too hot (about 68F to 85F is usually a good range). Reptile heating pads can work well in the winter, but make sure that the pad is not under the entire cage so that if your hedgehog starts to overheat, it can move to a cooler spot.

Unless you are attempting to breed hedgehogs, keep males and females separate. If a female has babies while there are other hedgehogs in the cage, it is likely to cause her stress and either she or the other hedgehog are likely to eat the babies. Also, hedgehogs can get pregnant when they are as young as 8 weeks old, but this is not healthy for them. A female hedgehog should not be bred until she is at least 6 months old. For more thoughts about breeding, check here.

In the wild, hedgehogs are solitary animals. In captivity, some hedgehogs will accept (or even crave) the companionship of other hedgehogs, but don't necessarily assume this is the case. Hedgehogs can have lethal room-mate disputes, so if you decide to try to house two hedgehogs together, be sure to observe them closely (or at least be within earshot to separate them in case of fights) for at least the first 24 to 48 hours. Hedgehogs can emit a blood-curdling scream when upset or hurt, but they can also get into fairly quiet tussles, so be careful.

BEDDING:
Add a one to two inch layer of pine, aspen, ground corn cob, or other small animal bedding to your hedgehog's home. Don't use cedar because the aromatic oils can cause respiratory illness or death in hedgehogs (and many other small animals). There really is no such thing as a perfect hedgehog bedding, so you may want to experiment. Some folks report great results with Astroturf, which they remove to wash on a daily or every-other day basis, and plain newsprint has been used with satisfaction, too. A recent innovation is the use of pads made of vellux material, which also requires frequent washing.

TOYS:
Hedgehogs need lots of exercise, as they tend to become obese with inactivity. A large wheel (11" diameter or so) is recommended. Be sure that the running surface of the wheel is solid, so that the hedgie is not at risk for slipping and breaking legs.

Most hedgies are pretty curious and love toys they can push, chew, or manipulate. Some of the things ours have enjoyed include solid rubber balls, small toy cars, large plastic toy trucks, toilet paper tubes, and rawhide chews. I've even seen a hedgie spend half the night pulling a price tag off of a plastic flower pot bottom! Be creative, but always try to think safe.

DIET:
Diet is an area where there is still considerable controversy. We still don't know exactly what a hedgehog needs, but there have been preliminary studies at the Bronx Zoo. Information presented at the 1998 Go Hog Wild Hedgehog Show and Seminar indicated that hedgies need a diet that consists of good protein and is low in fat. A fibre content of approximately 15% (preferably from chitin, but hedgehogs can utilize fibre from plant sources, too) is optimal. It was found that at this time, no single food fully meets the optimal nutritional requirement for hedgehogs. Many of the hedgehog foods on the market do a pretty good job of meeting most of the needs, but a good quality commercial cat food didn't seem too much off the mark, either, according to the statistics given in the presentation.

The message I walked away with was that we should choose carefully so that our hedgies get a diet that has good quality proteins in it, is low in fat, and provides a good source of fibre. It was noted that hedgehogs require approximately 70 to 100 calories per day, but that they can eat many times this. So, if your hedgie appears to be getting fat on what you are feeding him or her, you may want to limit the quantity that you make available. Hints for helping out overweight hedgies can be found here.

I give my hedgies a diet that is mainly dog food, but offer treats as well, especially treats with fibre in them (rice, beans, baby foods, pasta, as well as meal worms and crickets). Mixing in baby oatmeal flakes is a great way to add fibre, too. My herd really likes Spike's Delite Hedgehog Food

So, what do I feed my hedgehog?
I have seen verifiable reports of individual (or groups) of hedgehogs fed a single cat food that have been diagnosed with nutritional problems. Based on these reports, IAMS cat food alone, Fred Meyer cat food alone, or Science Diet Lite alone do not appear to be good bets for your pet's diet. I'm a firm believer that a varied diet is as helpful for hedgehogs as it is for humans. Thus, my hedgies' mainstay is a mix of foods. Typically, our mix includes a large proportion of Nature's Recipe Puppy and Authority Adult Cat, with smaller amounts of other foods such as Eagle, Pedigree puppy, Spike's Delite, Maxx Nutrition, Purina One, and Eukanuba mixed in. We mix in baby food oatmeal flakes with the dry food, in order to increase the fibre content, and try to offer treats several times per week to increase variety.

HANDLING:
The more you handle your hedgehog, the more it will get used to you is a good rule of thumb to remember.

At first, your hedgehog may be scared. It may ball up or puff air and click its tongue to scare away any potential predator (you). Approach your hedgehog slowly and quietly to gain its trust. Pick up your hedgehog from underneath to avoid the quills. You shouldn't need gloves to pick it up, even if it is scared, since you can slide your fingers underneath to distribute the weight. If you are afraid of being pricked, then take a pair of gloves and get them smelling like you (tuck them under your pillow for a couple of nights, or put them in your shirt for a while) so the hedgie will associate your smell with being picked up.

The article at http://hedgehogvalley.com/hatesme is something I consider required reading for all prospective hedgehog owners.

HEDGEHOGS ON THE NET:
The Hedgehog World & Chins-n-Quills Bulletin Boards are my favourite resources on the net.

Try plugging the word "hedgehog" into any search engine and see what comes up!

Follow the links from this and other hedgehog websites, and have fun!

ONE LAST NOTE:
Don't be surprised if your hedgie starts shedding a lot of quills when he or she is between about 8 and 12 weeks of age. This is a normal process, and is known as "quilling." The hedgehog is simply shedding baby spines and you should be able to see new adults spines pushing through the skin. To be on the safe side, though, you may want to check for mites or fleas. Signs of mites include crustiness around the quills and seriously dry looking skin. Fleas can be treated effectively with Frontline spray on and several options are also available by prescription for treating mites. Ask your vet for more information. When adolescent hedgies are "quilling" they may be somewhat grumpy, but should return to normal temperament once the quills are in.

This care sheet was written by Antigone M. Means-Burleson of Hedgehog Valley

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African Bee (Apis mellifera Scutellata)

African Honey Bee drinking water at my wildlife pond

We have two colonies of bees living on our smallholding and during summer my wildlife pond is a great attraction for them. Water is very important to a hive. Bees rarely store water, but bring it in as needed, so it is vital to provide fresh water to them continuously. They also use water to control the humidity of the colony, not just the temperature. Besides my pond, I have various containers around the garden for them. They’re a bit of a nightmare to photograph, don’t sit still for very long and even crawled up my phone a couple of times when I got too close! They are actually fearless little creatures, with no fear for their own safety, everything is done with the colony in mind.

South Africa is home to two sub-species or races of honeybees which are indigenous to the country: Apis mellifera Scutellata (or “African bee”) and Apis mellifera Capensis (or “Cape bee”). The Cape bee is generally confined to the western and southern Cape regions particularly referred to as the Fynbos region running in an imaginary line between Vredendal on the western Atlantic coastline across to Willowvale on the eastern Indian Ocean coastline. The African bee covers the region to the north of this area although there is hybrid zone overlapping the two regions where A.m. capensis and A.m. scutellata hybridize.

A couple of bees sipping water from the safety of a log placed in the pond

The African bee is an aggressive bee with a hardy strain and capable of producing large crops of honey. It has more of a yellow striped abdomen compared to A.m. capensis. Only the queens are fertile; worker bees are infertile when the queen is present. (Not to be confused with the Africanized honeybee (AHB) found across south, central, and north America).

The Cape bee tends to be a more docile bee (although can also become aggressive when provoked), distinguished from the African bee by a darker abdomen and are sometimes referred to as “black bees”. It has a unique characteristic in that the worker bees (females) have the ability to produce both male and female offspring and thus able to re-queen a colony which has become queenless.
—Info from SABIO (South African Bee Industry Organisation)

"HONEY BEES are not pests; they are a highly developed species of the animal world and contribute significantly to the sustainability of the eco-system in all areas – urban environment, farming areas and bush lands. In Africa alone there are an estimated 3000 species of bees and throughout the world some 20,000 different species.

Scutellata is the infamous “African Killer Bee” which is well known for its ferociousness and hard work. Its ferocity is ingrained from centuries of adapting to the harsh hot African sun, and constant irritation of robbing by vandals intent on stealing its plentiful supply of honey without regard to professional care and attention. A properly managed hive of African bees can be easily and meekly handled with the proper care, equipment and patience. It is these bees which have become notorious as the African Killer Bee in South America and southern North America after they were introduced from a Pretoria apiary for experimental breeding purposes.

Capensis was restricted naturally to the Western and Eastern Cape regions until unsuspecting and ambitious Western Cape Pollinators introduced them to the Transvaal region in the 1980’s. Cape Bees are unique in that the worker bees are able to reproduce their own kind through egg laying, whilst Scutellata does not do this. The Cape Bees are also invasive bees which roam and invade the more prolific and productive Scutellata hives where they take over and eventually destroy the Scutellata swarm. The introduction of the Capensis Bee into the Scutellata region created total havoc amongst the beekeeping industry in that region. A Scutellata hive with Cape Bees has to be destroyed to prevent the spread of the Cape Bees to other hives."
- This info from "Southerns Beekeeping Association"

Easy ways to give Honey Bees water

1. Frisbee With Rocks - Put a frisbee full of clean rocks (find them in your yard) underneath a faucet outside, turn the faucet on so it drips once per minute. Over the day it will fill up and provide fresh water for the bees.
2. Glass Pebbles - Most art stores have those bags of glass pebbles you can buy. Buy 1-2 bags of these pebbles and put them in a large (6 or more inches) but shallow container. Fill this with fresh water daily and place it near your garden or outside in a natural area of your yard. Bonus if you put some water-loving plants like cattails, water loving ferns, etc
3. Birdbath - Take over the bird bath and decorate with twigs, rocks, pebbles, and wine corks. Add some green ferns or moss to add a bit of colour.

Bees use water for

1. Cooling - In the heat of summer it is used for evaporative cooling. Similar to human-designed air conditions, the bees spread a thin film of water atop sealed brood (baby bee cells) or on the rims of cells containing larvae and eggs. The workers inside the hive then fan vigorously, setting up air flow which evaporated the water and cools the interior of the hive.
2. Humidity - Worker bees use water to control the humidity of the colony, not just the temperature. 
3. Utilise Stored Food - Bees need water to dilute stored honey that has crystallized (become too high in glucose) or in the case where a beekeeper feeds them dried sugar crystals, they need water to dissolve the sugar. Without water, they can't access these food sources.
4. Larvae Food - Another type of bee in the hive is the nurse bee, who feeds the developing larvae. They consume large amounts of pollen, nectar, and water so that their hypopharyngeal glands can produce the jelly that is used to feed the larvae. A larvae diet can consist of water up to 80 percent the first day of larval growth and about 55 percent on the sixth day.
5. Digestion - They need it in the digestion and metabolization of their food, as do most organisms.

(This info from Seedles)

For the past few months, the pond has been leaking badly, losing half its water in just a couple of days. So I stopped filling it every day and left it until it reached a level where the water wasn't dropping any more. You can see the line (brown area) just below the water where the leaking stopped. I then applied a few coats of eco-friendly pond sealer, waited a couple of days to let it dry and then re-filled the pond. It's not leaking much now, but I still have not totally stopped the leaking!  I still have to have a small amount of water flowing into the pond daily to keep it filled. At this point I'm giving up and waiting to see if it gets any worse. The leaking I mean. If it does, I have two options - empty the pond COMPLETELY and gunite it like a swimming pool or - close it up! That would be a disaster for all the water-loving birds I have in my garden as well as all the insects and other little reptiles living in the area.

The water lilies don't seem to have suffered any adverse effects from being exposed to the sun for a few days, and started flowering as soon as the pond was full again. The water looks lovely and crystal clear against the black back-drop of the sealer and it has enticed me a couple of times to take a plunge. Swimming with all the frogs and naiads (dragonfly larvae) is really exciting!

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Caring for your Leopard Tortoise

Torti

It’s a late-Autumn afternoon and the day is balmy. It’s just after 3pm and in a couple of hours it will be cold, that nip that is not yet icy yet but cold enough to send my tortoise, her name is Torti and she’s a Leopard Tortoise, scuttling for some shelter. And she doesn’t surface until late the next morning, weather permitting and if there’s lots of sunshine. Hibernation is close for her and soon she will only venture out for short periods during the next couple of winter months.



Whilst tortoises in our climate here in South Africa do not strictly “hibernate”, they do go through a “slowdown” of all activity. They will sleep more and eat less and generally just “park off” each day. Some will dig themselves into a “burrow” and remain there for long periods. Besides cover that I offer, Torti has several places in her enclosure where she prefers to spend the colder days. Other than a general health check every now and again, I leave her alone but do check daily to see if she might have come out and then offer her some food.


One of Torti’s hide-outs


Another one of Torti’s hide-outs

Torti was rescued from certain death, as she was destined for the pot, having been caught by some locals, who also use certain body parts of tortoises for “muti”. (Muti is a term for traditional medicine in Southern Africa as far north as Lake Tanganyika. The word muti is derived from the Zulu word for tree, of which the root is -thi. In Southern Africa, the word muti is in widespread use in most indigenous African languages, as well as in South African English and Afrikaans where it is sometimes used as a slang word for medicine in general.)

She arrived scarcely bigger than my hand and in the 7 years she has been with me, has grown to a fair size.



Besides the fact that I enjoy her company, the only reason she is still with me is the fact that I’m afraid she will be caught again as well as the raging veld fires we have every winter, which almost certainly means death for any tortoises in its path.


Torti’s enclosure – 28m x 10m

If you are considering keeping a tortoise, these large tortoises need a large area if confined in an enclosure, though it is preferable to give them the run of your garden if possible. If you cannot do this (which I couldn’t, nothing was safe from Torti’s voracious appetite, especially the Echeverias!) and have to construct an enclosure, work on a minimum of a 6m x 4m area for two tortoises.



Tortoises are wanderers and in the wild occupy a home range of from 1 to 3 square kilometres. Few sights are more pathetic than seeing one trudge endlessly around the perimeter of its pen in either dust or mud, compliments of the weather.


Torti’s enclosure last summer – lots of indigenous grasses to feed on as well is Kikuyu

The area should be sunny, and well planted with different grasses and plants for natural feeding. A lack of exercise leads to muscular problems and should be avoided. An arid grassy area is much preferred, with dry sandy areas for sunbathing. This tortoise requires large amounts of grasses in its diet, and it is a common mistake in captivity to feed exclusively on ‘wet’ kitchen food. On the correct diet their droppings should be well formed and fibrous.

Just a short note on safety – please check your enclosure regularly for any bits of plastic, plastic bags, bits of string or any other harmful objects that might somehow end up in the enclosure that could harm your tortoise.



A thatched umbrella in Torti’s enclosure offers me a space where I can sit and enjoy Torti’s antics, do a couple of sketches and Torti often utilises the shade here during the hottest summer days.



Some Leopard tortoises will utilize a sleeping area constructed out of poles with a roof, or a drum on its side, but many, like Torti, prefer to creep under large grassy plants such as Pampas grass, where they are sheltered from any adverse weather. However, she is often found in her Zulu hut, above, either sheltering from the sun or on very cold days.



They are commonly kept as pets and adapt well to captivity in most areas barring coastal Natal where the humidity affects them adversely. But it is of the utmost importance that you pay close attention to their diet and keep it as natural as possible. It is a common mistake in captivity to feed exclusively on ‘wet’ kitchen food. Too much kitchen food leads to diarrhoea and other digestive problems and should be avoided. On no account should dog/cat food be provided – these are high in protein which results in shell deformities and in the long term, in kidney disease. In the veld, the leopard tortoise will stuff its huge body with just about anything it comes across, be it grasses, succulents, aloes, fungi, wild fruits and berries, millipedes, snails, faeces (especially an hyena’s), reptile and birds’ eggs and the corpses of small animals such as frogs and mice.


Torti having breakfast under the thatch umbrella

There is a lot of diet information for your tortoise on the internet, but a diet that has served me well for the past 7 years that Torti has been with me, is as follows :

Lettuce –
although the general consensus is to NOT feed lettuce, lettuce is high in nitrates and is converted in the mouth into compounds that produce nitric oxide – a potent antibacterial chemical. The “disinfectant” effect of this chemical was tested and salivary production was high enough to kill even E.coli 0157 (the deadly bacterium that is so often responsible for outbreaks of food poisoning). Along with a good balanced diet it can actually be beneficial in small portions. What is NOT recommended is a diet of lettuce alone as this will not provide all the nutrients your tortoise needs.

Celery – both the stalks and the leaves

Carrots

Baby Marrow

Apple – in small amounts as it is considered a “soft” food

Chopped cooked chicken – I have heard that you can give them the bones, but I don’t, too scared they might get stuck in her throat, especially chicken bones.

Sliced cucumber

Sliced butternut/pumpkin

2 or 3 Echeveria elegans leaves

Kalanchoe

Geranium leaves

Raw egg and some egg shell



Not all of this is offered in one go – I take turns using 5 or 6 of the ingredients for one meal, which is normally served early in the morning.


Indigenous grasses

In addition, she has access to various grasses and weeds in her enclosure, including Kikiyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum), Dew grass (Eragrostis pseudo-obtusa), Beesgras (Urochloa pantcoides), Dandelion (Taraxacum) and Veld grass (Ehrhartacalycina).


Dandelion


Salsify

Weeds like Taraxacum officinale (Dandelion), Tribulis terrestris (common dubbeltjie), Salsify and Galinsoga parviflora (Small flowered quickweed) is also available in her enclosure.

A further variety of foods includes a variety of leafy greens such as collard greens, mustard greens, red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, dandelion greens, hibiscus leaves and flowers, green onions, spinach, green beans, zucchini, frozen mixed vegetables, timothy hay, and alfalfa. They can also be fed almost any other vegetables. Fruits should only make up about 10% of their diet.



The pond has is very shallow on all sides, offering rocks and logs to make climbing out easily in case of an emergency and gradually deepens towards the centre.

Leopard tortoises readily drink standing water. A shallow water dish may be provided, but check it daily, and clean it as required. The size of the water dish doesn’t really matter, however it shouldn’t be too deep where the tortoise could get stuck in the dish. Torti has access to fresh water in a dish as well as the pond which is situated in her enclosure. Leopard tortoises love to swim and, judging by the length of time Torti often spends in the water, she loves it!


Torti basking on a sunny sand spot

Leopard tortoises (Geochelone pardalis pardalis) live between 50 and 100 years in the wild and can weigh as much as 100 pounds (about 45kgs) and measure 26 inches (68cm) front to back. The difference between a male and female tortoise is the male has a cup-like depression toward the forward half of the plastron (the bottom shell or “stomache”). It’s there so he can mount the female without having to stand on his tail to fertilize her. The female’s plastron, like Torti’s, is flat.



Torti also shares here enclosure with a frequent visitor – Molly, the Mole Snake. She is extremely welcome as we have a real problem with rats. After Molly’s stay of a couple of days, there is nary a rat to be seen anywhere!



In late Autumn and winter, the indigenous grasses offer Torti lots of shelter from the elements. Only the Kikuyu grass is mowed, the rest is allowed to grow wild.

It is of course against the law to keep reptiles in captivity without a permit and in happier instances the owner of a newly acquired tortoise will apply for one. An official from Nature Conservation will then make sure that the facilities in which the reptile is to be kept are adequate and that the captive will be fed a proper diet.

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Speckled Mousebird

Two Speckled Mousebirds (Colius striatus) having a go at an apple I put out regularly for all the fruit-eating birds in my garden.

A few years back I had rescued a baby Mousebird that had dropped from its nest. It became very tame and stayed with me for almost a year before joining a mate in the garden.  It turned out to be a most wonderful year in my life. She was adorable and loving, clinging to my chest as I worked in the garden, sometimes jumping down to have a sand bath. Did you know Mousebirds don’t bathe in water like other birds? They scrabble in the sand like chickens, getting a good exfoliation and rid of any parasites they might pick up.

Mousebirds get their name from their soft fluffy greyish or brownish feathers that are more like fur than feathers, a long thin tail that is twice the length of their body, and they have mouse-like habits; scurrying around in brush and trees in search of food. They are highly intelligent, curious, and playful.

Mousebirds are also quite fearless; they will chase any birds already feeding on the apple and completely ignore the (very aggressive) Fiscal Shrike, at their own peril, I sometimes think!

:;

Land slugs

Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc.

A Slug feeding on a little piece of mushroom I offered him.

Slugs aren't toxic (and are mostly just meat and skin), they in fact have no way of harming you unless you eat them. Considering that you are a rational human being who doesn't put slimy, gross bugs into your mouth, this shouldn't be a problem. It may, however, be an issue for your pets.

Slugs provide a crucial food source for other wildlife (Thrushes just love them!) andmany species are key composters, helping to breakdown decomposing vegetation. Unlike snails, they are not a serious threat to your garden plants, coming out of hiding after dark in search of food, mostly decomposing vegetation as mentioned above. If you have paving in your garden, you will often see the silver, slimy trails they leave behind.

Bread is not actually good for slugs or snails, but she managed to snag this little piece before I could remove it. Please also note that salt is CERTAIN DEATH for slugs and snails, so if you are interested in having these fascinating little creatures in your garden, please do not feed anything containing salt. Thank you. 

When in motion, it is about 35 to 50mm (1.5 inches long). Adult slugs overwinter and can lay clutches of eggs when environmental conditions are right. A slug's life expectancy is from 6 - 12 months, according to Google, and some up to 18 months.

Slug eating mushroom — see breathing hole (pneumostome) on right-hand shoulder.

I decided to keep Ms. Slug overnight and after she’d had her fill of mushroom and lettuce, my slug decided to have a nap. However, after about 3 hours she started walking around (or should I say sliding), so I released her back into the garden. 

Slugs will sleep on and off for several hours at a time but then might stay awake for 30 hours without a break.

It has been about a week since our first encounter and since then she’s appeared every evening at dusk, snacking on the mushrooms and other vegetables I leave out for her.  

Image from Wiki

Close up, admire the telescopic eye and feeler stalks on the head; peer into the large breathing hole, or pneumostome, down the right side of the body (like snails, slugs are not bilaterally symetrical); and admire the rhythmic muscular ripples on its belly as a large, moist slug glides smoothly and effortlessly up a sheet of glass.

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Giant African Land Snail

 

A Giant African Snail (Lissachatina fulica) found in my garden. KwaZulu Natal is South Africa’s Texas, everything is bigger! 

This is one of the most damaging snails in the world because it consumes at least 500 types of plants and can cause structural damage to plaster and stucco structures. This snail can also carry a parasitic nematode that can lead to meningitis in humans.

However, Google says “snail therapy” is suitable for both young and aging skin, helps to fight a variety of aesthetic defects. Reviews indicate that Achatina mucus has a beneficial effect on the skin and does not cause side effects.

7-10 cm (3-4 in.) (Shell length)

Gaudy Commodore

Precis octavia male or Gaudy Commodore in my garden. The wingspan of the Gaudy Commodore is 50-63 mm, and the colours of the males and females are the same. The females lay eggs on shoots of specific host plants, mostly grassland plants in the mint family, including Plectranthus, which is obviously why it chose to visit me. 

The Gaudy Commodore breeds twice a year and the subspecies Precis octavia sesamus has a wet season form and a dry season form. In this photo, taken now in late winter in August, the dry season form colouration can be seen. In the wet season form the colouration is predominantly red-orange. The two forms are so different that it is hard to believe that they are forms of the same species of butterfly. 

The caterpillars of the Gaudy Commodore are about 45 mm in length and they are tawny brown in colour, banded with black. They carry branched spines along the length of their body and a pair of spines on the head. 

Even those who don’t like caterpillars tend to like butterflies, perhaps forgetting that caterpillars are the larvae of butterflies? 

Info from “Letting Nature Back In”

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Françoise Hardy - Dans le monde entier (1965)

My all-time favourite..  (17 Jan 1944 - 11 June2024 - RIP)

I don't normally do obituaries, especially if they're not fauna or flora related, but this lady held a special place in my heart when I was growing up.

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South African Paper Wasps—Vespidae

 Don’t reach for the Doom!

These are the most common wasps and all species build papery multi-celled nests of chewed wood pulp and saliva. 

They are highly social. So if you see a paper wasp nest under the eaves, do not reach for the Doom. They are not aggressive and will not attack you. They are keeping the ecosystem in your garden in equilibrium, by preying on insect larvae and aphids.

They gather fibers from dead wood and plant stems, which they mix with saliva, and use it to construct nests made of gray or brown papery material. The resultant wood pulp is remarkably strong.

“Paper wasps have an interesting lifestyle. The nests are usually founded by a single queen. A mated female from the parental nest emerges in spring and starts building the nest. She becomes the queen and is soon joined by other mated females from the same nest to form a colony. The late-comers are relegated to the worker caste. After the queen has started construction of the first hexagonal cell of the nest, the worker females add more concentric circles of cells to enlarge it.

The queen will lay all the eggs. The worker females are destined to be the workers – building the nest, hunting for food and minding the offspring.”

— Read more here :

(The pics are of 4 different wasps and they are all chewing wood on my wooden clothes drying rack.)

Black Snow

It’s sugar cane burning season in South Africa and here in KwaZulu Natal, it starts late-winter (July/August) and continues into early-summer. 

 

Before the sugar cane can be harvested, it must first be burned to remove the outer leaves and make it easier to cut.

While this process is necessary for the sugar cane industry, it can have some negative effects on the environment and human health. The burning of sugar cane releases large amounts of smoke and particulate matter into the air, which can cause respiratory problems and other health issues for people living nearby.

At the start of the sugar cane burning season in Southern Africa, many residents brace themselves for what has become known as ‘black snow.’ This term refers to the thick, black smoke and soot that fills the air as sugar cane fields are burned to prepare for harvest.

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