Rationale
(Changed due to Same category and criteria||Knowledge of criteria)
This species has a large range (extent of occurrence (EOO) ca 90,000 km2) across the Highveld grasslands of South Africa. The region is heavily impacted by habitat transformation due to agriculture and urbanization. However, examination of the National Landcover data from 1990 and 2013 (Geo Terra Image 2015, 2016) shows that the EOO has not contracted over the last decades. Because of the large range and lack of decline in EOO, the species is considered Least Concern.
Distribution
Endemic to the South African provinces of KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and Mpumalanga, with the northernmost record at Blyde River Canyon (Bates et al. 2014). Although the range is large (EOO ca 90,000 km2), there are few records: 16 museum specimens (see Bates 1996) and three sight/photographic records (Jacobsen 1989, Bates et al. 2014).
Population trend
Trend
The species is inferred to be stable given the large range. It should be noted, however, that there are large areas of transformed land within the range and the impacts of this are not yet understood.
Threats
This species may be impacted by transformation of land for agriculture (especially in the area of the northern Free State, see Rouget et al. 2006), timber plantations (especially the central KwaZulu-Natal and northern Mpumalanga populations, see Rouget et al. 2006), overgrazing by livestock causing depletion of sheltering sites and insect prey, and urbanization in some areas. Jacobsen (1988, 1989) also noted the negative effects of cultivation, heavy grazing, regular anthropogenic fires and afforestation.
Uses and trade
There is no known subsistence use or commercial trade of this species.
Conservation
Has been recorded from some protected areas. This is a wide ranging species but is known from very few records. A better estimate of its distribution based on additional records is a first step to understanding whether the threats within its distribution are having an impact on the species and if the Extent of Occurrence is actually declining in a way that is not shown by the National Landcover data (Geo Terra Image 2015, 2016). There are indeed few records but due to the species ecological preferences it may simply be difficult to find. Furthermore, it may be patchy, or intolerant of transformed landscapes and therefore more vulnerable to landcover change. Conversely, it may be able to persist in altered landscapes. Therefore, both distribution information and habitat tolerances would be useful to improve confidence in the assessment of threat status.
