Cherié Forbes starts fieldwork at Groot Winterhoek Wilderness Area

On 4-6 October 2016, a team of UCT's Biological Scientists took to the formally protected Groot Winterhoek Wilderness Area (GWWA) in search of wetlands (potential palaeoecological sites). The team included Abraham Dabengwa, Sam Jack, Matt Britton (UCT alumnus) and the Plant Conservation Unit's recent PhD candidate, Cherié Forbes.

The purpose of the trip was to collect sediment cores to be analysed as a part of Cherié's PhD research. Suitable cores will be examined using various palaeo-techniques to explore long-term environmental change (water quality, sediment erosion, fire, herbivory and biodiversity) in response to climate and land-use variability over the past centuries-millennia. Results will aid in the future management and safeguarding of the GWWA, one of the Western Cape's important mountain catchments, which forms part of the Berg River catchment. A total of 6 sediment cores were retrieved from 5 wetlands of varying sizes and disturbance levels, with the longest core measuring ±4.6 m.

The team are grateful to the staff of the GWWA, especially Jeanette van der Vyver, for their assistance.

Below are some fun pics (supplied by Cherié) from their trip!

From left to right: Abraham Dabengwa, Matt Britton & Sam Jack

From left to right: Cherié Forbes, Matt Britton & Abraham Dabengwa

From left to right: Sam Jack, Abraham Dabengwa & Cherié Forbes