Awesome South Africa’s National Symbols

Dasha van Zijl on 29 October 2015
Awesome National Animal

The Springbok - a lithe and beautiful antelope, standing at only approx. 75cm in height and weighing in at approx. 40kg. The Springbok’s name is derived from its jumping display when running (pronk in Afrikaans). Should you see them, snap your camera quickly as they are also the fastest of the antelopes and can reach speeds of approx. 80km/h.

Running from the middle of their back to their tails is a pocket-like skin flap. Should they be excited or frightened they lift this flap in order to warn other Springbok, as the white hairs underneath stand up as a conspicuous crest. Both the male and females have horns, but the females are shorter and thinner.

Many, many moons ago the Springboks would migrate in herds consisting of over 1 MILLION individuals! Farmers would sit for days watching the herds pass over their lands. Unfortunately today most are confined to game reserves....or....on the reverse side of a Kruger Rand.

The Springbok also lends its name to our Awesome South African Rugby team – affectionately shortened to “the Bokke”

Awesome National Tree An age old family line the Yellowwood has the honour of being our national tree, having grown here for over 100-million years. The base of the trunk often reaches 3m in diameter with a height of approx. 40m.

While you are visiting Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens to view the Proteas, you will be able to tick off another national symbol as the Yellowwood trees grow along the Yellowwood Trail, leading to Table Mountain. Else you will find them in the ravines of the Drakensberg up to the Soutpansberg and The Blouberg in Limpopo. Awesome National Flower The King Protea (or Giant Protea) is the largest of the Protea family (of which there are approx. 1,400 varieties) and makes up an important part of the Cape Floral Region (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).

Scientists have found that the Protea is an ancient flower dating back around 300 million years!

It’s specific name ‘cynaroides’, meaning ‘like cynara’ (the artichoke) was given due to the artichoke-like appearance of the flower-heads and its common name is from ‘Proteus’, the Greek god who changed his appearance whenever he wanted, as there as so many varieties.

Should you wish to snap a few pictures yourself of these beautiful flowers in bloom, then head on over to the Cape Town surrounds: • Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens • Drive either from Cape Point to Kommetjie or Noordhoek to Constantia • In November – Cape Point

Our Awesome South African cricket team is named after this flower.

Awesome National Fish The Galjoen was the choice as it is found only on the coastline stretching from Namibia to Durban. Not only is it the national fish, but also a highly prized sports angling species – but it is illegal to either buy or sell these fish. They are reserved purely for recreational fishers and the fishers must be in possession of a recreational permit.

Awesome National Bird This title goes to the elegant Blue Crane. Should you wish to see this bird you would need to travel to South Africa, as its distribution is almost solely restricted to South Africa. Common in the Karoo, but can also be found in the Highveld and grasslands of KwaZulu-Natal.

While being tall (approx. 1m) the Blue Crane is in fact the smallest species of crane. A ground-dwelling bird they live and feed in flocks of up to 40 birds. Pairs are monogamous with long-term bonds, once becoming parents, they have an almost non-existent nest, usually just a few small sticks pulled together.

Did you know that the long black ‘tail’ feathers are in fact wing feathers!