Dinner is served!

SHOULD WE FEED HEDGEHOGS?



Many of us who put out food for hedgehogs would like to know more about our night-time visitors and how the food affects their lives. How far do they come to feed? How much do they eat? How important is this extra food supply? And are we discouraging them from their natural diet? The answers to some of the most commonly-asked questions are based on a survey of "garden hedgehogs" carried out by a team f biologists.

Hedgehogs don't necessarily live in the garden where they are fed. They may live nearby, or some distance away; some hedgehogs may come half a kilometer to the food bowl.

They certainly don't move their nests to get nearer to the regular food supply. It's not proven that, when they set out on a night's foraging, that they head straight for the food bowl and sometimes might not pitch up at all.

Hedgehogs are not "faithful" to one food bowl. They are likely to visit several gardens, and don't behave as if they "own" the feeding site; they don't squabble with one another when they meet there either.

the hedgehogs' appetites vary. In the survey, the most food eaten at one visit was 94g, more than one-tenth of the hedgehog's body weight. The most eaten in the course of an evening was 157g, but the average was 7g for every minute they spent at the bowl.

People are sometimes concerned that putting out artificial food will discourage hedgehogs from eating enough natural food. And how much is "enough" natural food? One thing is certain - even though hedgehogs may welcome the food we provide, they still seek out natural food even after a hearty meal at the bowl!

And what happens when the regular food supply is interrupted - when we go on holiday, for example? The hedgehogs don't seem to mind - they continue to forage for natural food in the area, as they have done all along!

Info from "Everything You Want To Know about Hedgehogs - Dilys Breese"

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Kiepersol (Cabbage Tree)

The Kiepersol in my bathroom court-yard flanked by two bamboo poles

The Highveld Cabbage Tree (Cussonia paniculata subspc. sinuata) is an evergreen tree that grows up to 4m tall. The Common Cabbage tree has long grey stems with smooth bark. Flowers from April to May and fruits from June to September.

This evergreen tree makes a beautiful focal point in a garden as it has an unusual shape, interesting gnarled bark and stunning, large, grey-green leaves. Plants show up especially well in a layout where rocks are used. Gardeners growing indigenous South African plants favour them greatly for their unique appearance. Their strong root system helps stop soil erosion on steep slopes and they tolerate wet soil quite well. They can grow to up to 5 meters (16ft) in height and are native to South Africa.

The wood is soft and light and was used for the brake-blocks of wagons. The leaves provide good fodder for stock and the Zulu name refers to this tree as goats' food. The roots are succulent and edible, mashed roots have also been used in the treatment of Malaria.

Afrikaans Name:
Berg Kiepersol

Zulu Name :
Umsengembuzi

Cussonia paniculata_sinuata occurs inland at altitudes up to 2 100 m. It is often found in rocky places from the mountains of the Karoo and Eastern Cape through KwaZulu-Natal and Free State into Gauteng and further north. It grows in crevices filled with natural organic humus and compost. It is commonly found near Johannesburg and Pretoria. It is frost-tolerant and drought resistant.

Uses: Leaves are browsed by Kudu and domestic stock. Baboons eat the young shoots. Ripe fruit is eaten by Bulbuls, Louries, Starlings, Barbets and Mousebirds.

Medicinal Uses: Decoctions are used to treat madness, convulsions, amenorrhoea, heart pains, venereal disease and pains of the uterus.


Leaves of the Cabbage Tree (C. paniculata_paniculata)

Growing Cussonia paniculata
The best method of propagation is by means of seed harvested from fresh ripe fruits. Sow seed as soon as possible as it loses much of its viability within 3 months. However, seed sown in summer months will germinate faster (in about 4 weeks) than seed sown in winter (7 weeks to germination). Make sure seed trays are at least 15 cm in depth to allow the small tubers to form. Do not allow seed to become waterlogged or dry out. Keep seed and seedlings in a semi-shaded area. Seedlings can be transplanted at about 4 months, but be very careful not to damage the fleshy roots when transplanting.

One can grow Cussonia paniculata from a cutting, but this is not advisable because it does not make the proper, fleshy, underground rootstock that it forms when grown from seed.
Growing info from http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantcd/cussoniapan.htm

Cussonia spicata (Natal cabbage tree, 5m) is a shapely tree with the same interesting foliage as the Highveld version. In summer, green flowers are borne that look like 20cm long candles.

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Hemachatus haemachatus - Rinkhals

One of the sketches I did of our blue gum forest in my Moleskine watercolour Sketch-book

In the past couple of weeks I've had to temporarily give up my sojourns into our Blue gum forest at the bottom of our property where I go to sketch and paint, due to all the rain we've had, which has resulted in a larger than normal number of snakes that I encounter while trying to settle in to sketch.

While you're concentrating on a specific tree, it's rather disconcerting hearing the leaves rustle and then seeing a Rinkhals (Spitting Cobra) nonchalantly sailing in your direction. It means either sitting dead still, hoping he's not going to notice you, or it's a mad scramble trying to get out of the way (and then alerting him to your presence), sending easel or sketchbooks and water flying through the air!

In the past 2 weeks I have already rescued and evicted two Rankhalses from my garden (the pleasure of my garden only to be enjoyed by Mollie, my resident Mole Snake or the Brown House Snake - all others like the Rinkhals and the various Adders are summarily evicted!). Chrissie, my gardener, immediately takes a short-cut home when she sees I'm busy catching a snake for safe delivery to a dam nearby us.


Rinkhals - Hemachatus haemachatus

The Rinkhals is a member of the Cobra family and is also a spitting cobra. It is the smallest of the cobras reaching only about 1.2m or about 4 ft in length. It is a venomous elapid species found in parts of southern Africa. It is one of a group of cobras that has developed the ability to spit venom as a defense mechanism. Rinkhals are unique amongst African cobras in being ovoviviparous. They give birth to 20-35 young, but as many as 65 babies have been recorded. The Rinkhals is unique also, compared to cobras, as it has keeled scales.

The spitting range is up to 2,5 m. If venom enters the eye it should be washed out immediately, to prevent damage to the eye. The venom of the Rinkhals is neurotoxic - causing nervous dysfunction - and it can cause death from respiratory paralysis, although this is rare. Anti-venom is an effective antidote against the toxin.


Rinkhals feigning death

If cornered, a Rinkhals will feign death and will roll over on it's back melodramatically, open it's mouth and let the tongue hang out, all this to discourage whoever may be hovering over it - heaven forbid you touch it then! It will either make a sudden getaway or give a nasty bite. I have witnessed this behaviour personally and I must tell you, it's utterly convincing!

Although sometimes seen on cloudy days, it is mainly nocturnal and feeds mostly on small vertebrates, especially toads. It is closely related to cobras, but its scales have a prominent central ridge or keel, and are not smooth.

Rinkhals can be variable in colour but most specimens are olive, brown or black in colour with a creamish, yellowish or white cross bands on the ventral side of the neck. The belly is mostly greyish or dark coloured. Some specimens are brownish or blackish from colour with on the back white, creamy or yellow-orange cross-bands the ventral side is still dark coloured and these individuals still have the white cross bands on the throat. The body is short and strongly build, the Rinkhals cobras scales are keeled which makes him the only African Elapid with keeled scales.

The uniform brown colour resembles the mole snake, which does not, however, rear up and spread a hood. However, it will lift itself slightly off the ground to get a better view, as you can see from my photograph of Mollie below.


Mollie, my resident Mole Snake at the pond while it is being cleaned, wondering what all the ballyhoo is about!


Mollie dropped her skin a couple of weeks ago, 1.7m! which now takes pride of place in front of the TV. Unnecessary to say, Lydia refuses to even dust this area, a job which is now left up to me.


Rinkhals rearing up

This species is only known from Southern Africa. It occurs in isolated populations in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. In South Africa is this snake known from the south cape through Swaziland, Orange Free State, Natal, Transkei, Lesotho and Southern Transvaal.

This snake is mostly found in grassland and moist savanna. But will also live in rocky areas and near humans. They are also known to live close to permanent water holes and scrub.

In the wild do Rinkhals mostly eat toads but also small rodents, birds, lizards and even snakes. In captivity can Rinkhals been fed on dead or live rodents which they often take without a problem. Also chicks and eggs are known to be accepted in a captive situation.

The Rinkhals, the Mozambican Spitting Cobra and the black necked spitting cobra, are the only snake species in southern Africa that 'spit' venom. The Rinkhals is the least effective of the three, even although it seems to hurl the poison forwards, the reared part of its body often hitting the ground with an audible thud during the exercise.

Season's Greetings 2009!

A very merry festive season to all and may 2010 be all you expect of it!

Black Velvet Spider

If you want to live and thrive, let the spider run alive.
~American Quaker Saying

This black Velvet Spider has lived in the bark of an old log in my garden for approximately 2 years now and she lets me coax her out for a photographic session every now and then. These spiders are robust and deliberate in the way that they walk and she even allows me to gently stroke her abdomen and thorax, which is covered in thick, smooth, velvety hairs.

The velvet spiders (family Eresidae) are a small group (about 100 species in 10 genera) of almost totally Old World spiders (exception: a few species are known from Brazil).

Velvet spiders are found under rocks or bark resting in a sheet of dense white silk and are often confused with baboon spiders. They can live up to 5 years. Free living but rarely leave the safety of their webs.

Description:

12mm to 15mm in length. These robust spiders colouration may be from black, grey or a rich red. Body covered with hairs which give them a velvety appearance, hence their name. The abdomen is often lighter in colour than the rest of the spider. Abdomen may have 4 dimples on the top. The eyes are close together and the mouthparts are very robust looking for a spider that size. Legs are short and strong and they are widespread throughout Southern Africa.

Web:

These spiders build their webs under rocks, under loose bark. Their retreats consist of flat candy floss like dry sheets of silk. The silk is tough and has interwoven prey remains. Their nest-like webs are attached to the ground using silken anchor lines. Silken lines radiate from the entrance to their shelters. These lines are used to detect prey.

Venom:

Even though these spiders can be large in size they very rarely bite. Not much is known about the affects of their venom. It is highly unlikely that this spider’s venom is of importance to humans.

Notes:

Females seldom leave their webs in order to hunt. Instead, they prefer to wait for prey to wander into their webs and radiating silken lines. They prey upon tough skinned insects and other large prey items.
Camera : Fuji FinePix 2800Zoom

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