habitat_narrative

Terrestrial

Tree Hyraxes occur in Afromontane, scarp and coastal forests of the KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces. At the western coastal limit, they occur in milkwood-dominated coastal forests between Alexandria and the Sundays River, as milkwoods (Mimosops caffra and  Sideroxylon inerme) are ideal den and forage trees (Gaylard 1994). Throughout their range, they are dependent on tree cavities, epiphytes or dense matted forest vegetation for shelter during the day. Primarily, they need den trees – tree species that form cavities. For example, in the Pirie Forest, Eastern Cape, only Schotia latifolia, Rhus chirindensis, Andrachne ovalis, Podocarpus falcatus, Strychnos decussata, Cordia caffra and Sideroxylon inerme were used, and were also a preferred food source (Gaylard 1994; Milner & Gaylard 2013). They also prefer trees with multiple cavity entrances (Gaylard & Kerley 2001). Latrines are located in the low fork of a tree or on the ground beside the trunk. Thus, a decrease in numbers in southern Africa has been attributed to loss of structure within habitat, rather habitat loss outright (Castley & Kerley 1993). They are selective browsers, and the species selected are not related to their abundance but may instead be correlated with predator avoidance and the energetics of an arboreal lifestyle (Gaylard & Kerley 1997). Unlike other hyrax species, they are predominantly solitary, with only one adult or an adult female and her young occupying a shelter. They are arboreal and nocturnal (Skinner & Chimimba 2005). The biology and life-history of the species is summarized by Milner and Gaylard (2013).

Ecosystem and cultural services: They are an important prey species for forest predators, such as Crowned Eagles (Stephanoeatus cornatus) (Boshoff et al. 1994). This species has the potential to become a flagship species of eastern forests for biodiversity stewardship programmes.