Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
This IBA consists primarily of private farmland in the Fouriesburg, Bethlehem and Clarens districts. The major part of the area is cultivated land, but some large patches of natural grassland and areas of rocky outcrops remain in this matrix. Several areas of sandstone are deeply incised by rivers, creating impressive cliffs. Highland sourveld dominates the vegetation. In the deeper valleys and krantzes, woody communities encroach; dominants in the thickets include
Cliffortia,
Leucosidea,
Buddleja,
Cussonia,
Rhus,
Diospyros and
Protasparagus. On the flatter, deeper soils of the mountain slopes and plateau,
Protea woodland dominates.
See Box for key species. This site supports several breeding colonies of
Geronticus calvus. The larger and better-known colonies occur on the farms Avondzon (13+ pairs), Belleuvue 399 (10+ pairs), Bramley’s Hoek 52 (13+ pairs), Welgelegen 102 (20+ pairs) and on the South African National Defence Force (ZANDF) owned Vaalbank Training Area (22–30 pairs). Many other smaller colonies and individual pairs breed elsewhere in the district, but birds do not remain faithful to these sites.
Geronticus calvus are regularly seen foraging alongside
Grus paradisea,
Balearica regulorum and
Eupodotis caerulescens in the grasslands.
Gyps coprotheres,
Gypaetus barbatus and
Polemaetus bellicosus are occasional visitors to the area, but no longer breed in the IBA. The grassy slopes are home to
Saxicola bifasciata,
Monticola explorator and (on
Protea-covered slopes)
Promerops gurneyi.
Falco naumanni is a regular summer visitor and
Circus maurus a regular winter visitor.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Several conservancies are located within the IBA, including the well-known Bloemhoek (28°36’S, 28°02’E) and Gilboa (28°42’S, 28°03’E) conservancies.
Geronticus calvus are occasionally poisoned inadvertently when they eat grain that has been laced with organophosphates or pesticides. Some birds are taken for traditional medicinal or ceremonial purposes, and humans disturb some breeding birds.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Rooiberge-Riemland (South Africa). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/rooiberge-riemland-iba-south-africa on 26/12/2024.
