Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Cederberg
The Cederberg mountains are located near Clanwilliam, approximately 300 km north of Cape Town, South Africa at about 32°30′S 19°0′E / 32.500°S 19.000°E. The mountain range is named after the endangered Clanwilliam cedar (Widdringtonia cedarbergensis), which is a tree endemic to the area. The mountains are noted for dramatic rock formations and San rock art. The Cederberg Wilderness Area is administered by CapeNature.
Cederberg is now the generally accepted spelling for the area, which combines the English (Cedarberg) and Afrikaans (Sederberg) variants.
The Cederberg mountains extend about 50 km north–south by 20 km east–west. They are bordered on the west by the Sandveld, the north by the Pakhuis Mountains, the east by the Springbok Flats and the south by the Kouebokkeveld Mountains and the Skurweberge. The main access road, the N7, runs to the west of the range. The nearest towns are Citrusdal to the southwest and Clanwilliam to the north. The area is sparsely populated.
There are several notable mountains in the range, including Sneeuberg (2026 m) and Tafelberg (1969 m). Tafelberg (Afrikaans for "Table Mountain") should not be confused with the Table Mountain in Cape Town. Notable landmarks include the Maltese Cross, Wolfberg Arch and Wolfberg Cracks.
The dominating characteristic of the area is sharply defined sandstone rock formations (Table Mountain Group), often reddish in colour. This group of rocks contains bands of shale and in recent years a few important fossils have been discovered in these argillaceous layers. The fossils are of primitive fish and date back 450 million years to the Ordovician Period.
The summers are very hot and dry, while the winters are wetter and cold with typical annual rainfall in the low-lying areas of less than 700 mm. The higher peaks receive a dusting of snow in winter. Summer days are typically clear and cloudless. Due to the clear skies most of the year, it makes an excellent site for skywatching and has its own amateur observatory.
The predominant vegetation is Mediterranean fynbos in the wetter south and west, changing to semi desert scrub in the north and east. The endangered Clanwilliam cedar (Widdringtonia wallichii) of the family Cupressaceae and the snow protea (Protea cryophila) of the Proteaceae are endemic to the area, found only in more remote areas high up in the mountains.
The area's apex predators are the felids leopard (Panthera pardus) and caracal (Caracal caracal). Other mammals include the rock hyrax (Procavia capensis) or "dassie", meerkats (Suricata suricatta) and other mongooses (Herpestidae), larger antelopes (e.g. bontebok Damaliscus pygargus dorcas and gemsbok Oryx gazella), the vulnerable Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra), and chacma baboons (Papio ursinus). There are also many birds, small mammals, reptiles and insects.
Hub AI
Cederberg AI simulator
(@Cederberg_simulator)
Cederberg
The Cederberg mountains are located near Clanwilliam, approximately 300 km north of Cape Town, South Africa at about 32°30′S 19°0′E / 32.500°S 19.000°E. The mountain range is named after the endangered Clanwilliam cedar (Widdringtonia cedarbergensis), which is a tree endemic to the area. The mountains are noted for dramatic rock formations and San rock art. The Cederberg Wilderness Area is administered by CapeNature.
Cederberg is now the generally accepted spelling for the area, which combines the English (Cedarberg) and Afrikaans (Sederberg) variants.
The Cederberg mountains extend about 50 km north–south by 20 km east–west. They are bordered on the west by the Sandveld, the north by the Pakhuis Mountains, the east by the Springbok Flats and the south by the Kouebokkeveld Mountains and the Skurweberge. The main access road, the N7, runs to the west of the range. The nearest towns are Citrusdal to the southwest and Clanwilliam to the north. The area is sparsely populated.
There are several notable mountains in the range, including Sneeuberg (2026 m) and Tafelberg (1969 m). Tafelberg (Afrikaans for "Table Mountain") should not be confused with the Table Mountain in Cape Town. Notable landmarks include the Maltese Cross, Wolfberg Arch and Wolfberg Cracks.
The dominating characteristic of the area is sharply defined sandstone rock formations (Table Mountain Group), often reddish in colour. This group of rocks contains bands of shale and in recent years a few important fossils have been discovered in these argillaceous layers. The fossils are of primitive fish and date back 450 million years to the Ordovician Period.
The summers are very hot and dry, while the winters are wetter and cold with typical annual rainfall in the low-lying areas of less than 700 mm. The higher peaks receive a dusting of snow in winter. Summer days are typically clear and cloudless. Due to the clear skies most of the year, it makes an excellent site for skywatching and has its own amateur observatory.
The predominant vegetation is Mediterranean fynbos in the wetter south and west, changing to semi desert scrub in the north and east. The endangered Clanwilliam cedar (Widdringtonia wallichii) of the family Cupressaceae and the snow protea (Protea cryophila) of the Proteaceae are endemic to the area, found only in more remote areas high up in the mountains.
The area's apex predators are the felids leopard (Panthera pardus) and caracal (Caracal caracal). Other mammals include the rock hyrax (Procavia capensis) or "dassie", meerkats (Suricata suricatta) and other mongooses (Herpestidae), larger antelopes (e.g. bontebok Damaliscus pygargus dorcas and gemsbok Oryx gazella), the vulnerable Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra), and chacma baboons (Papio ursinus). There are also many birds, small mammals, reptiles and insects.