Birds and butterflies on show
The Renishaw Hills mature lifestyle village has been designed with a focus on conservation and natural habitat rehabilitation.
RENISHAW Hills mature lifestyle village was the venue for this year’s Botanical Society of South Africa’s Winter Gardens show, where visitors were able to witness the magnificent bird and butterfly life it is home too.
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Located within the Mpambanyoni Conservation Development on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, this estate boasts some of the area’s most diverse indigenous flora and fauna – largely due to the work done by Dr Elsa Pooley and her team.
“The Renishaw Hills mature lifestyle village has been designed with a focus on conservation and natural habitat rehabilitation,” explained Phil Barker, managing director of Renishaw Property Developments.
“Elsa and the Renishaw Hills landscaping team have established some of the region’s finest indigenous gardens, resulting in a rich biodiversity, with residents enjoying an abundance of local bird and butterfly species.”
One such resident is Mary Lindsay, a butterfly enthusiast who has photographed more than 100 butterfly species at Renishaw Hills.
To date, Mary has photographed 343 different species in 30 different locations, many of these in and around the area.
She’s even managed to identify some unusual residents, such as the Forest Queen, which isn’t often found so far down the coast.
Another enthusiast of winged creatures is Renishaw Hills’ resident, Tim McClurg, whose interest in birds and butterflies originated during his upbringing in Zimbabwe.
“My interest in natural history led me to a career in ecology and an understanding that effective environmental management is critically dependent on species identity. I have recently adopted digital photography as a non-invasive tool to identify species.”
“The positive steps being taken to plant indigenous flora and restore degraded habitats bodes well for the future,” said Tim.
Tim said there were many amazing bird viewings from the estate including crowned eagles, long-crested eagles, black sparrowhawks, jackal buzzards, Lanner falcons, ospreys and little sparrowhawks.
“The pair of nesting crowned eagles near the Renishaw Chapel is particularly exciting. The presence of so many raptors is encouraging and suggestive of a robust ecosystem.”
The community organises a number of social groups and activities with plans in place to establish a formalised birding and butterfly group.
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