A herd of eland
Mountainlands Nature Reserve has suddenly transformed from drab winter to vibrant summer after recent rain. Flowers flash their colours in the bright green grass and from time to time the distinctly sweet fragrance of Pavetta edentula (large-leaved brides bush) drifts through the air. The wildebeest and zebras seem particularly playful, bucking and racing while snorting impala rams chase each other through the veld. Seeing eland walk lazily down a mountain while a herd of kudu move up behind them completes a tranquil picture.
Spot the game
This is also the time when the striking succulent, Aloe knipofioides can be spotted in grassland that burnt in winter. The plants are usually sparsely distributed in Mpumalanga, Eswatini, to northern and southern Kwazulu-Natal.
Aloe kniphofioides
