African Wildlife & Environment Issue 79

GARDENING FOR BIODIVERSITY

with taracos (louries) sometimes vociferously leading the pack. Even the Olive Thrush, which is more likely to be seen pulling earthworms out of the ground, regularly hops around feasting on the fallen fruit. Other birds simply feed on the insects attracted to the fruit, which is so abundant that in isiXhosa the tree is referred to as 'free food'. As if all these advantages for the wildlife gardener were not enough, the flaky bark makes an ideal home for many tiny insects and other invertebrates, attracting yet another group of birds. These include woodpeckers that work their way up and down the fissured bark, the longitudinally grooved appearance of which makes it look as though it has been combed. In the wild the leaves are also browsed by game. Although edible, the berries tend to dry the mouth and are not too tasty but, because children are often fond of them, the tree is sometimes

professor of Botany in the ancient Gothic town of Gottingen, home to one of Germany’s oldest and most respected universities. There are no records of butterfly larvae using H. lucida as a food plant, but it does host the caterpillars of at least a dozen species of moth. These include one with the intriguing common name of Indecorous Eggar Bombycopsis indecora . The caterpillars of this moth should be treated with caution because of their stinging hairs, which are no problem for the Red-chested Cuckoo (Piet-my vrou) when feasting on them. H. lucida is also a food source for the larvae of some spectacular emperor moths. One of these, Wahlberg’s Emperor Nudaurelia wahlbergii , is often drawn to lights at night. Another is the Variable Prince Holocerina smilax, which is rarely attracted to lights and thus not often seen by the gardener during its nocturnal flights. However, this species

The flowers are mostly on woody branches

referred to in Afrikaans as 'Kinderbessie'. The name 'Notsung', which is more often used in the Cape than in the rest of the country, is of Hottentot derivation. Sometimes jokingly referred to as 'Hilarious Lucy', the plant’s species name lucida , meaning bright or clear, refers to the shiny, bright leaves. The genus, Halleria , is named after Albrecht von Haller who, in the 1700s, was a

of emperor moth can often be heard, as it flies extremely fast, making a whirring sound with its wings. Interestingly, these moths sham death when handled and can squirt a milky fluid to deter an aggressor! While it can be deciduous or evergreen, H. lucida is mostly semi-deciduous and is very variable in size, depending on growing conditions.

37 | African Wildlife & Environment | Issue 79 (2021)