Natal Fauna and Flora

Here you will find a overview of Natal Fauna and Flora.
Wild Olive

Wild Olive

Olea europaea subsp. africana Family: Oleaceae Common names: wild olive, olienhout (Afr.), mohlware (NSotho, SSotho), umnquma (Zulu, Xhosa, Swati), mutlhwari (Venda), motlhware (Tswana) SA Tree No: 617 Frost-, drought- and wind-resistant, the wild olive has beautiful...

French Walnut

French Walnut

Schotia brachypetala Sond. Family: Fabaceae Common names: weeping boer-bean, tree fuchsia, African walnut (Eng.); huilboerboon (Afr.); umfofofo, umgxam, ishimnumyane (Xhosa), ihluze, umgxamu, uvovovo (Zulu), molope (Northern Sotho), mulibi, mununzwa, mununzwu,...

Sneezewood

Sneezewood

Ptaeroxylon obliquum (Thunb.) Radlk. Family: Rutaceae Common names: Sneezewood, Nieshout, umThathi (Xhosa SA Tree No: 292 Ptaeroxylon (pronounced 'teroxillon') is a direct Greek translation meaning sneeze and wood; obliquum refers to the oblique leaflets. Umtata in...

Ironwood

Ironwood

Vepris lanceolata (Lam.) G.Don Family: Rutaceae Common names: white ironwood (Eng.); witysterhout (Afr.); Muruvula (Tsonga); Muhondwa (Venda); umZane (Xhosa); umOzana (Zulu) SA Tree No: 261 What a lovely, underrated shrub or tree-a plant that South Africans can...

Coral Tree

Coral Tree

Erythrina lysistemon Hutch. Family: Fabaceae Common names: common coral tree, lucky bean tree (E), gewone koraalboom, kanniedood (A), umsintsi (X), muvhale (V), mophete (Tsw), mokhungwane (Sotho), umsinsi (Z) Fabaceae/Leguminosae (Pea & bean family) SA Tree...

Knob Thorn

Knob Thorn

Senegalia nigrescens (Oliv.) P.J.H. Hurter Family: Fabaceae Common names: knob thorn (Eng.); knoppiesdoring (Afr.); muunga (Tshivenda); mooka (Sepedi); umKhaya (Zulu) Senegalia nigrescens is a deciduous, small to medium-sized tree which occurs in various savanna...

Wild Chestnut

Wild Chestnut

Calodendrum capense (L.f.) Thunb. Family: Rutaceae Common names: Cape chestnut, wild chestnut (Eng.); wildekastaiing, Kaapsekastaiing (Afr.); umbaba, umsitshana (Xhosa); umbhaba, umemezi omhlophe (Zulu), molalakgwedi, mookêlêla (N.Sotho); muvhaha (Venda) Calodendrum...

Flat Crown

Flat Crown

Albizia adianthifolia (Schumach.) W.Wight var. adianthifolia Family: Fabaceae Common names: flat-crown albizia, rough-bark flat-crown, West African albizia (Eng.); platkroon (Afr.); umgadankawu, iGowane, umNalahanga, umNebelele, uSolu (Zulu); umHlandlothi (Xhosa);...

Waterboom

Waterboom

Family: Aquifoliaceae Common names: African holly, Cape holly, wild holly, water tree (Eng.); waterboom, waterhout, without (Afr.); monamane (Northern Sotho); iPhuphuma (Zulu), umDuma (Xhosa); liBota (Swazi); phukgu, phukgile (Southern Sotho); mutanzwa-khamelo (Venda)...

Ifafa Lily

Ifafa Lily

Botanical Name: Cyrtanthus mackenii Common Name(s): Ifafa lily Categories: Bulbs Description: An evergreen bulbous plant, with trumpet shaped flowers in shades of white, yellow and pink. A beautiful addition to semi shaded, moist areas. C. elatus (George lily) is...

Natal lily

Natal lily

The Natal lily, Crinum moorei, with its large, white to pinkish red, open tubular flowers, literally glows in the dappled shade of the century-old plane tree avenue in the KwaZulu-Natal National Botanical Gardens in Pietermaritzburg during midsummer (October to...

Fire-Lily

Fire-Lily

Lilium bulbiferum reaches on average 20–90 centimetres (7.9–35.4 in) of height, with a maximum of 120 centimetres (47 in). The bulbs are ovoid, with whitish large and pointed scales and can reach about 1.5 centimetres (0.59 in) of diameter. The stem is erect, the...

Natal Wild Banana

Natal Wild Banana

[Strelitzia nicolai] The Natal Wild Banana grows up to 12m high and 4m wide. It is an evergreen tree with multi-stems that form dense clumps. The stem is woody and smooth in texture. It is light to dark grey and marked with old leaf scars. Attached to the stem by...

Wild Date Palm

Wild Date Palm

[Phoenix reclinata] The Wild Date palm has feather-shaped leaves. This evergreen palm does not grow much more than 6m in height and often occurs in dense stands, with one or more curving stems rising above the rest. The bark of the Wild Date Palm is dark brown to dark...

Overview

Overview

Indigenous plants are varied and numerous.  A belt of coastland, extending for about 19km (12miles) from the sea, was originally covered with a dense bush of evergreen trees and flowering shrubs.  Clumps of the graceful Wild Date Palm [Phoenix reclinata] and the sub...

White Stinkwood

White Stinkwood

Celtis africana (White Stinkwood) is a tree in the family Cannabaceae. The species is common across large areas of the South and East of Southern Africa, ranging from a tall forest tree to a medium-sized tree in bushveld and open country, to a shrub on rocky soil....

Small Leaf Yellowwood

Small Leaf Yellowwood

Afrocarpus falcatus (syn. Podocarpus falcatus) is a species of tree in the family Podocarpaceae. It is native to the montane forests of southern Africa, where it is distributed in Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, and Swaziland. Common names include common...

Yellow Billed Kite

Yellow Billed Kite

The yellow-billed kite (Milvus aegyptius) is the Afrotropic counterpart of the black kite (Milvus migrans), of which it is most often considered a subspecies. However, recent DNA studies suggest that the yellow-billed kite differs significantly from black kites in the...

Crested barbet

Crested barbet

The crested barbet (Trachyphonus vaillantii) is a sub-Saharan bird in the Lybiidae family. Its specific name commemorates François Levaillant, a famed French naturalist. With its thick bill and very colourful plumage the crested barbet is unmistakable. This small bird...

Spotted Eagle Owl

Spotted Eagle Owl

The spotted eagle-owl (Bubo africanus) is a medium-sized species of owl, one of the smallest of the eagle owls. Its length is 45 centimetres (18 in) and its weight is from 480 to 850 grams (1.1 to 1.9 lb). It has a 100 to 140 centimetres (39 to 55 in) wingspan. The...

Cape Robin

Cape Robin

The Cape robin-chat (Cossypha caffra) is a small passerine bird of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is a mainly resident breeder in southern and eastern Africa from Kenya south to Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. It is a...

African Hoopoe

African Hoopoe

(Upupa epops) The African Hoopoe is widely distributed throughout South Africa. Not a particularly sociable bird, the Hoopoe is generally found either singly or in pairs. There is some debate about whether the African Hoopoe and the Eurasian Hoopoe are 2 species or...

Red Bishop

Red Bishop

The southern red bishop or red bishop (Euplectes orix) is a small passerine bird belonging to the bishop and widowbird genus Euplectes in the weaver family Ploceidae. It is common in wetlands and grassland in Africa south of the Equator. North of the Equator, it is...

Secretary Bird

Secretary Bird

The Secretary bird is a bird of prey, but unlike other raptors it has long legs, wings and a tail. The single species of its family, the bird gets its name from its crest of long feathers that look like the quill pens 19th century office workers used to tuck behind...

Egyptian Goose

Egyptian Goose

The Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca) is a member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. It is native to Africa south of the Sahara and the Nile Valley. The Egyptian goose is believed to be most closely related to the shelducks (genus Tadorna) and their...

African Fish Eagle

African Fish Eagle

The African fish eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer) or – to distinguish it from the true fish eagles (Ichthyophaga), the African sea eagle – is a large species of eagle that is found throughout sub-Saharan Africa wherever large bodies of open water occur that have an abundant...

Cattle Egret

Cattle Egret

The cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis) is a cosmopolitan species of heron (family Ardeidae) found in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species,...

Long Tailed Widow

Long Tailed Widow

The long-tailed widowbird (Euplectes progne), also known as the “Sakabula,” is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. The species are found in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and...

Blesbok

Blesbok

Affinities and status Although the blesbok is a close relative of the bontebok (Damaliscus pygargus dorcas) and can interbreed with it, the offspring being known as the bontebles or baster blesbok, the two species do not share the same habitat in the wild. The blesbok...

Gemsbok

Gemsbok

The Gemsbok is a large antelope of striking appearance with long, spearlike horns. It has a thick, horselike neck with a short mane and a compact, muscular body. A defined pattern of black markings that contrast with the white face and fawn-colored body are...

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