Page 302 - Atlas Sea Birds Ver1

Northern Cape – (Diamond Coast Colonies)
1. Buchu Twins
Coordinates: 28.756 S; 16.557 E
Status: Breeding
Description: This colony, the northernmost in South Africa,
is on the mainland of Alexander Bay. It was discovered in
the 1970s (Shaughnessy 1982) and the first aerial survey of
it was conducted in 1984. It was named after a nearby pair
of inselbergs, which are the major topographical features of
the adjacent Namaqua coast (Desmet and Cowling 1999).
The colony falls within a Critical Biodiversity Area (Harris
et al. 2022) and is situated on a steep and predominantly
rocky stretch of coast. Pupping occurs on the slope and on
adjacent coastal boulders. Surveys conducted soon after
discovery of the colony indicated that it was then mostly
used by immature seals (Oosthuizen and David 1988). It
is now a fully-fledged breeding colony stretching c. 1.4 km
along the coast. An average of 3,824 pups were counted An aerial view of the Buchu Twins seal colony
on four surveys conducted between 2011 and 2020.
Conservation status: The colony is not protected under Description: A small rocky island at the entrance to Port
any legislation but is situated in a restricted diamond min- Nolloth Harbour. Although seals no longer breed at the is-
ing area. land, they often haul out there.
Eco-tourism: None. Conservation status: The island is not protected.
Harvesting status: No harvesting was conducted at this
locality. 4. Kleinsee
Coordinates: 29.568 S; 16.991 E
2. Cliff Point Status: Breeding
Coordinates: 29.092 S; 16.818 E Description: This mainland breeding colony is the largest
Status: Breeding in South Africa in terms of both extent and pup production.
Description: This is a mainland colony on a mining prop- It lies north of the mining town of Kleinsee and the Buffels
erty along a rugged portion of the Geelwal Karoo coast River mouth and is relatively young (Best and Shaugh-
(Elferink 2005). It was discovered by scientists in 2004, nessy 1979). Seals were noted hauling out in the area in
when over 12,000 pups were counted. Officials at the mine the 1950s but their numbers were only sufficient to justi-
confirmed that the colony had been in existence for at least fy harvesting in 1967 (Rand 1972). The colony stretches
eight years prior to 2004. The area occupied by seals is along about 3 km of coastline (David and Wickens 2003).
predominantly rocky although there are some sandy sec- Its northern section is on a sandy beach while the southern
tions. Most pupping takes place on rocky substrate near portion is mostly on rocky terrain. An average of 49,148
the ocean. An average of 9,150 pups were counted on four pups were counted on four surveys conducted between
surveys conducted between 2011 and 2020. 2011 and 2020.
Eco-tourism: None
Conservation status: The colony is not protected under
any legislation but is situated in a restricted mining area.
Harvesting status: No harvesting was conducted at this
locality.
3. Robbe Eiland
Coordinates: 29.258 S; 16.863 E
Status: Extinct

An aerial view of part of the Cliff Point seal colony An aerial view of a section of the Kleinsee seal colony

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