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Cowles Dam (26132828)
Gauteng
CWAC status	REGISTERED-COUNTS SUSPENDED
Authority	Private
Management status	PRIVATE LAND
Conservation status	UNPROTECTED
IBA information	SA021 - BLESBOKSPRUIT
Ramsar information
Heritage information
View Cards	Click here

Information
Date_registered
1993-01-17
Brief_description
Part of the Blesbokspruit Ramsar site; a dam, reedbeds, and marsh. With the exception of Southern Pochard and Fulvous Duck (high counts in summer 1994), waterfowl are more numerous in winter. In summer 1993 there were exceptional numbers of Ruff, Greyheaded Gull and White- winged Tern; the winter 1993 count shows large numbers of Dabchick, Sacred Ibis, Yellowbilled Duck, Redbilled Teal and Cape Shoveller; Moorhen were especially numerous in summer 1995, when the high summer biomass reflects the presence of 325 Greater Flamingo; flamingos are otherwise commoner in winter. Formerly an excellent site, but total counts and number of species are declining. In 1997 a large informal settlement was established on the eastern boundary; hunting and fishing are a severe threat; domestic dogs and cats an important threat. Reed encroachment is another big problem. In 2009 counts were suspended due to Sappi closing the area to the public for security reasons.

Spp	Common name	Taxonomic name	Min	Avg	Max	Subregional IBA	RAMSAR
72		Scopus umbretta	1	1.00	1
256		Calidris pugnax	1	66.00	707
269	Avocet, Pied	Recurvirostra avosetta	2	7.00	18
67	Bittern, Little	Ixobrychus minutus	1	3.67	7
212	Coot, Red-knobbed	Fulica cristata	7	93.47	280
50	Cormorant, Reed	Microcarbo africanus	1	8.13	37
47	Cormorant, White-breasted	Phalacrocorax lucidus	1	7.48	45
202	Crake, Baillon's	Zapornia pusilla	1	1.00	1
203	Crake, Black	Zapornia flavirostra	1	5.07	17
52	Darter, African	Anhinga rufa	1	1.55	3
95	Duck, African Black	Anas sparsa	2	2.00	2
101	Duck, Fulvous Whistling	Dendrocygna bicolor	2	36.25	222
91	Duck, Knob-billed	Sarkidiornis melanotos	2	2.50	3
103	Duck, Maccoa	Oxyura maccoa	1	6.00	18
104	Duck, White-backed	Thalassornis leuconotus	1	7.33	19
100	Duck, White-faced Whistling	Dendrocygna viduata	1	19.83	79
96	Duck, Yellow-billed	Anas undulata	2	28.85	259
60	Egret, Intermediate	Ardea intermedia	2	5.67	11
59	Egret, Little	Egretta garzetta	1	1.71	3
61	Egret, Western Cattle	Bubulcus ibis	1	11.79	38
86	Flamingo, Greater	Phoenicopterus roseus	1	71.58	325
87	Flamingo, Lesser	Phoeniconaias minor	12	63.00	127
89	Goose, Egyptian	Alopochen aegyptiaca	1	14.96	156
88	Goose, Spur-winged	Plectropterus gambensis	1	6.71	25
5	Grebe, Black-necked	Podiceps nigricollis	1	8.38	20
4	Grebe, Great Crested	Podiceps cristatus	1	5.82	15
6	Grebe, Little	Tachybaptus ruficollis	2	23.42	203
263	Greenshank, Common	Tringa nebularia	1	1.25	2
288	Gull, Grey-headed	Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus	1	16.00	168
167	Harrier, African Marsh	Circus ranivorus	1	1.20	2
64	Heron, Black	Egretta ardesiaca	1	1.50	3
69	Heron, Black-crowned Night	Nycticorax nycticorax	1	4.33	12
55	Heron, Black-headed	Ardea melanocephala	1	4.83	25
56	Heron, Goliath	Ardea goliath	1	1.00	1
54	Heron, Grey	Ardea cinerea	1	1.82	5
57	Heron, Purple	Ardea purpurea	1	1.94	5
62	Heron, Squacco	Ardeola ralloides	1	3.20	8
63	Heron, Striated	Butorides striata	1	1.00	1
81	Ibis, African Sacred	Threskiornis aethiopicus	1	18.75	132
83	Ibis, Glossy	Plegadis falcinellus	1	17.53	62
84	Ibis, Hadada	Bostrychia hagedash	2	5.05	19
397	Kingfisher, Malachite	Corythornis cristatus	1	1.40	2
394	Kingfisher, Pied	Ceryle rudis	1	1.14	2
247	Lapwing, African Wattled	Vanellus senegallus	1	3.55	7
245	Lapwing, Blacksmith	Vanellus armatus	1	16.03	66
509	Martin, Brown-throated	Riparia paludicola	1	1.00	1
210	Moorhen, Common	Gallinula chloropus	2	16.21	119
361	Owl, Marsh	Asio capensis	1	1.33	2
233	Plover, Common Ringed	Charadrius hiaticula	2	2.00	2
237	Plover, Kittlitz's	Charadrius pecuarius	1	1.00	1
238	Plover, Three-banded	Charadrius tricollaris	1	3.62	10
102	Pochard, Southern	Netta erythrophthalma	2	58.00	441	250
197	Rail, African	Rallus caerulescens	1	4.00	9		-1
258	Sandpiper, Common	Actitis hypoleucos	1	2.00	3
251	Sandpiper, Curlew	Calidris ferruginea	2	2.00	2
262	Sandpiper, Marsh	Tringa stagnatilis	1	4.83	10
264	Sandpiper, Wood	Tringa glareola	1	6.18	20
94	Shoveler, Cape	Spatula smithii	2	26.61	122
250	Snipe, African	Gallinago nigripennis	1	12.25	31
85	Spoonbill, African	Platalea alba	1	1.50	2
270	Stilt, Black-winged	Himantopus himantopus	1	11.19	39
253	Stint, Little	Calidris minuta	1	6.50	10
208	Swamphen, African	Porphyrio madagascariensis	1	5.50	36
99	Teal, Blue-billed	Spatula hottentota	1	29.62	86
98	Teal, Cape	Anas capensis	1	10.03	55
97	Teal, Red-billed	Anas erythrorhyncha	1	28.41	150
305	Tern, Whiskered	Chlidonias hybrida	1	2.88	10
304	Tern, White-winged	Chlidonias leucopterus	1	35.38	240
10008	Wader, Unidentified	N/A N/A	2	2.00	2
686	Wagtail, Cape	Motacilla capensis	1	5.95	20

Friday 19 April 2024 11:50
FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology
Department of Biological Sciences - University of Cape Town

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

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Cowles Dam (26132828)

Gauteng

Information