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| An adult female golden-brown baboon spider one of two species successfully relocated in a Limpopo experiment. |
Cape Town - Coal miners are often considered
environmental villains for their impact on natural systems, but one
mining company is winning green kudos for a project that is both highly
unusual and a first for the sub-continent: the translocation of
indigenous baboon spiders.
Their experiment, that produced highly positive results, will help others re-establish a fuller range of biodiversity – and hence promote functioning ecosystems – in areas rehabilitated after mining and other highly disruptive industrial activities.
The spider relocation project was initiated by mining group Exxaro Resources near Lephalale in Limpopo, and involved two species: the golden-brown baboon spider (Augacephalus junodi) and burst horned baboon spider (Ceratogyrus darlingi).
These long-lived spiders are common and not
endangered, but are protected by biodiversity legislation because
they’re illegally targeted for the pet trade.
The relocation project team consisted of the
mining company’s ecologist Koos Smit, research manager at its Manketti
Game Reserve Marius Fuls and entomologist Dr Dawid Jacobs.
Smit explained that the project had been
initiated because of construction activities at its Grootegeluk mine
that was being expanded to provide coal for Eskom’s new Medupi power
station nearby.
The spiders had been spotted during the vegetation-clearing phase and it had been decided to move them to a safer area.
There were three parts to the experiment:
- Finding the most effective method of baboon spider relocation by testing different options, including the provision of artificial burrows (200 releases).
- Seeing whether the two species could construct their own burrows after relocation (80 releases).
- Testing the findings by relocating 60 spiders to a rehabilitation site where they had originally occurred but disappeared after industrial disturbance.
The spiders were caught by Lephalale resident
and spider expert Marius Koekemoer and moved to an 800 hectare section
of Manketti.
Soil augers were used to create the 200 burrows
of different diameters, and steel cages were fixed over each burrow to
prevent spiders from escaping and to keep predators out.
The researchers were delighted to find a 95
percent acceptance of artificial burrows within the first week, and the
60 spiders relocated on Eskom’s rehabilitated Matimba power station ash
dump in order to test the results of the research project also fared
well.
“We were surprised and absolutely thrilled with
a 95 percent acceptance rate,” said Fuls, who said that releasing the
spiders without a ready-made burrow was not very successful because they
were usually eaten by predators such as baboons, mongooses, birds and
other spiders before they could build a shelter for themselves.
Eskom was “very excited” by the results. a
construction company had heard about the project and brought through a
number of spiders they’d found while working on a pipeline project in
the Lephalale area, and another mining company had also expressed
interest in the project, he added.
“I’m really proud to have been involved. It’s
given us an opportunity to show that while mining will impact an area,
we do have mitigation methods, thereby giving us an opportunity to meet
our commitment to sustainability.” - Cape Argus
Miners win enviro kudos for saving spiders - IOL SciTech | IOL.co.za
Miners win enviro kudos for saving spiders - IOL SciTech | IOL.co.za
July 29 2013 at 03:30pm
By John Yeld