Multidisciplinary SA-USA project publishes a comprehensive field guide on the giant termite mounds (Heuweltjies) of the west coast region.

An international, multidisciplinary team led by the Department of Soil Science has produced a comprehensive guide to the giant termite mounds (heuweltjies) of the West Coast and the environment in which they occur. These regularly spaced earthen mounds are a defining feature of the landscapes stretching from Stellenbosch into Namibia.

Dr Joesph McAulifee, from the Arizona Desert Botanical gardens is the lead author of the guidebook which was created as a translational deliverable for a three-year project that investigated the carbon sequestration potential of heuweltjies. The NSF-NRF funded project involved scientists from three US institutions (Kent State University, University of Texas at Austin and the Arizona Desert Botanical Gardens) and four SA Universities (University of Stellenbosch, University of Pretoria, University of the Western Cape and Nelson Mandela University).

Designed as a comprehensive synthesis of decades of research on heuweltjies and their surrounding environments, the field guide combines scientific detail with accessible explanations for non-specialists. It includes road logs for travellers, as well as “Digging Deeper” sections that explore specific themes such as formation models, age, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, grazing dynamics, and challenges associated with cultivation on and around the mounds The field guide is currently being translated into Afrikaans and will be available in early 2026.

The English version is free to download from SUNScholar