SUMMARY: On a two-night trip to Gourikwa Reserve I photographed Cape Dune Mole-rat, Grey Climbing Mouse and Southern African Pygmy Mouse. I saw nine mammal species (including two introduced species) and four reptile species (including Cape Cobra). Gourikwa Reserve in the Western Cape Province (South Africa) is 365 km east of Cape Town. I was travelling with Chi Phan; our visit was over 25-27 Nov 2024.
Paul Carter – paulcarter@pacapix.com. Posted: 2024 Nov 28.
Contents
A) Mammal list
B) Mammal images
C) Reptile list
D) Site information
E) Trip information
F) References
Abbreviations: FH-20 – Fisherman’s House #20. PH – Photographed. NP – Not photographed. MDD – Mammal Diversity Database. iNat – iNaturalist.
Times are shown in 24-hour format from 0000h to 2359h e.g. 3:49 PM written as “1549h”.
A. MAMMAL LIST
Images are shown in the next section.
- Southern Bushbuck (Tragelaphus sylvaticus). NP. Near FH-20.
- Common Eland (Tragelaphus oryx). NP. Introduced.
- Mountain Zebra (Equus zebra). PH. Introduced. Image below.
- Cape Dune Mole-rat (Bathyergus suillus). PH. One seen on the road up to the “Lookout Point” (marked as Point H on the reserve map); mounds are abundant. iNat post. Images below.
- Grey Climbing Mouse (Poemys melanotis / Dendromus melanotis). Stuart and Stuart (2015) and iNat (2024 Nov) treat as “Dendromus melanotis” but MDD-1/13 treats as “Poemys melanotis”. PH. Common; at least 8 seen near FH-20 and in the open, grassy area 120 meters inland from FH-20. iNat post1 (more reddish than the others) and post2 (the more common greyish pelage). Images of both are below.
- Southern African Pygmy Mouse (Mus minutoides) also known as Tiny Pygmy Mouse. PH. One on the lawn at FH-21 (iNat post) and one on the road between FH-20 and FH-21 (iNat post). Images of both below.
- Xeric Four-striped Grass Mouse (Rhabdomys pumilo). NP. FH-20.
- Southern Vlei Rat (Otomys irroratus). PH. FH-20 and nearby. Common. iNat post.
- Egyptian Mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon). NP. Seen crossing the main entry road.
B. MAMMAL IMAGES
Mountain Zebra (Equus zebra):
Cape Dune Mole-rat (Bathyergus suillus): seen after a 35-minute waiting period.
Grey Climbing Mouse (Poemys melanotis) #1 (Nov 25 2140h): This individual was more reddish compared to the others seen. Seen in short grass; I picked it up and took measurements: Tail 72 mm; Head+body 62 mm; Hindfoot 16 mm; Weight 9 g.
Grey Climbing Mouse (Poemys melanotis) #2 (Nov 25 2323h): This individual became used to my torch light and I spent 20 minutes photographing it from 2 to 3 meters away. Second photo shows the grassy habitat.
Southern African Pygmy Mouse (Mus minutoides) #1 (Nov 26 0003h):
Seen at midnight on the lawn near a cottage. It froze in place after being caught out in the open, so I was able to photograph it from 10 cm away (macro lens) and place a scale bar next to it (see iNat post). Head+body was about 5 cm.
Southern African Pygmy Mouse (Mus minutoides) #2 (Nov 26 0028h):
Southern Vlei Rat (Otomys irroratus):
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C. REPTILE LIST
- Cape Cobra (Naja nivea). PH. Nov 26 1041h. Seen exiting a rodent hole near Gourikwa Villas.
- Angulate Tortoise (Chersina angulata). PH.
- Southern Rock Agama (Agama atra). PH.
- Cape Girdled Lizard (Cordylus cordylus). PH.
D. SITE INFORMATION
Gourikwa Reserve (www.gourikwa.co.za) is a privately owned reserve on land previously owned by the Atomic Energy Board (AEB) and why there is a good, sealed road to the reception area. AEB sold the land in 1994 to a German couple who sold it to the current owners. Gourikwa is a 4.5 hour drive (365 km) from Cape Town Airport and a 1-hour drive (85 km) from George Airport. Rooms can also be booked through booking.com as well as LekkaSlaap.com. The Fisherman’s Houses require a minimum 2-night stay. There are other rooms available for one-night stays. The rooms have good internet. There is no phone reception within the reserve.
E. TRIP INFORMATION
We stayed in Fisherman’s House #20 (-34.3904° 21.7352°), 700 m east of Ystervarkpunt Lighthouse. This was a quiet area with only one other house nearby (unoccupied). It was very windy during on both nights and I only walked on the first night, until 2 AM and only within 200 meters of our cottage.
F. REFERENCES
- iNat (2024): iNaturalist. https://www.inaturalist.org; https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/44971-Dendromus-melanotis
- MDD-1/13: Mammal Diversity Database (2024 Jul 13). Mammal Diversity Database (Version 1.13) [Data set]. Zenodo. Published 2024 July 13. https://zenodo.org/records/12738010
- Stuart C, Stuart M (2015). Stuarts’ Field Guide to Mammals of Southern Africa including Angola, Zambia and Malawi. Struik Nature.
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