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17 January 2020 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Leonie Bolleurs
Prof Aliza le Roux and Dr Mpho Romoejane
Prof Aliza le Roux and Dr Mpho Ramoejane (camera-trap expert) at a wetland area in the Golden Gate National Park, searching for the rare white-winged flufftail.

The White-winged Flufftail, a highly endangered bird species, was spotted less than 70 km from the UFS Qwaqwa Campus, home of the Afromontane Research Unit (ARU). In collaboration with BirdLife South Africa, the ARU is conducting a study to find out if this species also made its home in the Golden Gate Highlands National Park.

This rare species has so far only been found at three sites in South Africa.


Study to benefit local community

One of the ARU’s goals is to undertake research that will benefit the local communities, including SANParks. Should it be confirmed that these rare birds are also found in the area, the status of the Golden Gate Highlands National Park in the Important Birding Area (IBA) directory is likely to increase.

Prof Aliza le Roux, Associate Professor in the Department of Zoology and Entomology on the Qwaqwa Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) and affiliated to the ARU, is conducting the study. She is also involved in other wetland studies.

According to Prof Le Roux, it is very difficult to find the bird. In a study, Prof Le Roux, Dr Sandy-Lynn Steenhuisen (botanist in the Department of Plant Sciences), and Dr Ralph Clark (ARU Director) have been deploying song meters in a rolling grid in the wetland areas, recording all bird noises around dawn and dusk. This is a non-invasive method to record bird sounds and helps to maintain the health of wetlands.

With these song meters they are trying to create a soundscape of the wetlands, recording all the sounds of the area by changing the location of the song meters every two weeks to cover the entire 2 km-long wetland area. Soundscape ecology is a fairly new technique and could be an effective way of measuring wetland health in high-altitude settings.

“In contrast with camera traps, song meters do not need a direct line of sight to record the presence of a specific bird – it can pick up songs from 150 m away in all directions. Camera traps may, however, be useful for adding visual confirmation of any bird’s presence, which is useful for a species that has only been heard a few times. In fact, no recording of the White-winged Flufftail’s call is currently in the public domain,” says Dr Le Roux.


Collaboration with Japanese university

Using these recordings from the soundscape, the team identifies the different bird, frog, and insect sounds recorded. According to Prof Le Roux, they are fairly new to the process and she would like to learn more, specifically about the analysis of the song diversity. She is visiting researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) in Japan in early December to investigate the variety of tools available to effectively analyse terabytes of acoustic data. Researchers at OIST have done similar studies on soundscapes in Okinawa along an urban gradient, and their expertise as well as access to a supercomputer could boost this research significantly.

The Qwaqwa area is on the border of the White-winged Flufftail’s expected distribution range.

“Because they and their habitat are threatened,
we are not sure if they are in the area;
and whether they may only be here to breed.”
—Prof Aliza Le Roux,
Associate Professor, UFS.


“If we find that they did make the park their home, they will be more protected, as the park is a conservation area.”


Grasslands

Prof Aliza le Roux and Dr Mpho Ramoejane (camera-trap expert) at a wetland area in the Golden Gate National Park. The wetlands often get trampled, affecting the condition of the area. Interestingly, trampling improves conditions for flufftails, as the cattle open up spaces between the reeds.

Photo: Leonie Bolleurs

News Archive

Almost 2000 degrees and diplomas conferred at Winter Graduation
2015-06-26

Live streaming will be available on: http://livestream.ufs.ac.za/

The 2015 Winter Graduations are almost underway. The highlight on the university calendar for every graduate will take place on the Bloemfontein Campus on 1-2 July 2015. On 1 July 2015, diplomas will be awarded by the Centre of Financial Planning Law (331 in total) and the School of Open Learning (376 in total). On 2 July 2015, a total of 1 220 master’s and doctoral degrees will be awarded to graduates from all seven faculties.

A highlight at this year’s Winter Graduation is the awarding of three honorary degrees by the university. Ambassador Lakhdar Brahimi, Dr Mercy Oduyoye and Mr John Samuel will receive honorary degrees.

On 17 August 2012, Ambassador Brahimi was appointed by the United Nations as the new peace envoy to Syria, replacing Kofi Annan. He is also a member of the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, the first global initiative to focus specifically on the link between exclusion, poverty and the law. Prof Heidi Hudson, Head of the Centre for Africa Studies at the UFS, will receive the honorary degree on his behalf.

Dr Oduyoye is widely regarded as one of the most influential women theologians Africa has produced in recent history. Currently, she directs the Institute of African Women in Religion and Culture at the Trinity Theology Seminary in Legon, Ghana.

Mr John Samuel, who will receive an honorary award, is also scheduled to be a guest speaker at the two ceremonies on 1 July 2015.

Wednesday 1 July 2015:

John Samuel will be the speaker at both ceremonies. He is one of South Africa’s leading education experts with international and national experience, covering a period of more than forty years. He was involved in the founding of the South African Campaign: Public Participation in Education Network (PPEN), established the Centre for Education Policy Development, the Joint Working Group (for The National Party Government and the ANC), the National Education Conference, and the National Education and Training Forum. He also made leadership contributions to the First Education and Training White Paper, the Transformation Strategy for the National Education Department, and the first Green Paper on Higher Education.

John is also Senior Programme Director of the WK Kellogg Foundation in the USA. He has also been the Chief Executive of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, and the CEO of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls.

Thursday 2 July 2015:

Nataniël will be the speaker at both ceremonies. Nataniël is a singer, songwriter, and South African entertainer, who has crossed from the alternative circuit to the stage. For the past 10 years, he has become well-known for his outspoken Kaalkop column in SARIE magazine. His solo career was launched in 1987 and, since then, he has released 16 albums, staged more than 70 original theatre productions, and published 15 books. Over the past two decades, Nataniël has gained the title of South Africa’s leading exponent of the solo stage act. He manages Kaalkop Studio, his lifestyle retail company, and records on his own independent label, Nataniël House Of Music. He is an ambassador for Child Welfare SA, and also heads his own charitable foundation, The Nataniël Progress Project.

 

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