One of the beauties of the fynbos is the red everlasting, Phaenocoma prolifera. The bright magenta-red flowers appear in spring and, as the name suggests, last for a very long time, the colour gradually fading through pink as the summer progresses. Strictly speaking it is not the flowers but the…
There is no doubt that among the greatest masters of disguise in the invertebrate world are stick-insects. In the normal course of events, one will not casually spot them just walking through the fynbos. However, I was fortunate to find this one crawling up my leg after such a walk.…
Most proteas are winter or spring flowering, so by mid-summer their spectacle is over. This does not mean to say that the fynbos is then devoid of their unusual shape and form. There are other members of the protea family, Proteaceae, to take their place. At Phillipskop, the most prominent…
The great aspect of photographing plants is that they don’t move away from you, so one can take one’s time getting into the right position. With animals one is never quite sure how long they will hang around once they have seen you. Digital photography has transformed the photographing of…
