Table Mountain 1: Wolley-Dod's Waai Vley
Introduction
A.H. Wolley-Dod collected numerous species in an area which appears to be close to today's Echo Valley. He calls it "Waai Vley" and I wanted to compile all the mentioned taxa to try and pin it down. There was some evidence to suggest to me that it is not exactly the same area as Echo Valley, rather lying slightly to the east along the trail from Smuts track to Echo Valley proper. So I investigated.
Other information
There is a koppie known as Waaikoppie towards the top of Echo Valley. It is likely that the names are related. I considered that it was possible that Waaivlei could instead be the very marshy area to the north of Waaikoppie, as distinct from the lower Echo Valley.
There is also information about a rain gauge at Waaivlei but, although there are some old maps showing the location of gauges in the area, I wasn't able to confirm which is which.
The closest thing to a smoking gun is a 1926 article by K.H. Barnard (A study of the freshwater isopodan and amphipodan crustacea of South Africa)
The streams on the top of the mountain, however, are the home of Phreatoicus and the “ blind” species of Gammarus. In two of the old valleys, Waai Vlei (Pl. VI, fig. 1) and that at the top of Kasteels Poort, Phreatoicus and G. capensis and auricularius abound.
As promised a plate is attached in the appendices and even more remarkably, for the edification of those who have not walked here, a street view photo can confirm the location as the head of Echo Valley, close to the crossroads.
This also happens to be the most recent reference to Waaivlei that I could find - maps from around the 1930's already show Echo Valley. I wonder what prompted the name change?
It is possible that the name could have been used by different people for slightly different areas but Barnard's other textual descriptions do line up well with Echo Valley rather than the higher lying area north of Waaikoppie (which, by the way, is the koppie protruding at the right of Barnard's photo; the second from the right in the colour image).
Wolley-Dod's references
For posterity, the following lists the references to Waai Vley in WD's work with William Henry Harvey. The idea here is that the different species mentioned here would triangulate the area as it is unlikely that their occurrence ranges would overlap in many suitable places. He also gives elevations which can be used to hone in. I have given WD's name in bold and where this is now known under a new name, it is listed next.
Heliophila dentifera; Heliophila meyeri meyeri; Mountain slopes, rare; East slopes DP; Waai vley; plentiful after a fire at top of Skeleton ravine
Argyrolobium lanceolatum; Argyrolobium lunare sericeum; Flats and hill slopes, rather common; Seen in Waai vley and near summit of Table Mountain, but very rarely so high
Rochea jasminea; Crassula obtusa; Dry places on mountain plateaux, local; Lower plateau, Skeleton ravine, Waai vley
Staavia glutinosa; Mountain slopes and plateaux, rather rare; Skeleton ravine, lower plateau, Waai vley
Hermas capitata; Damp rocks on mountains, occasional; Waai vley; Steenberg; Constantiaberg; Klaasjagersberg
Helichrysum humile; Edmondia pinifolia; Mountain slopes and rocks, occasional; Waai vley; Kasteel poort; Kalk Bay mountains, plentiful on Constantiaberg
Osmites dentata; Osmitopsis dentata; Hill and mountain slopes, especially by damp rocks, common, Reaches 3200 ft in Waai vley
Senecio speciosus; Hill and mountain slopes, partial to damp shade, frequent, Reaches 3200 ft in Waai vley.
Senecio crispus; Mountain plateaux, locally common. Lower plateau of Table Mountain; Waai vley
Senecio cymbalariifolius rotundifolius; ... forms near var. rotundifolius may be found in Waai vley
Senecio grandiflorus; Hill and mountain slopes, frequent. Reaches 3000 ft in Waai vley.
Ursinia nudicaulis; Wet places on mountains, locally common. From Waai vley to summit
Lobelia depressa; Monopsis debilis?; Damp hollows, inundated in winter, on flats and mountains, occasional. Rapenburg vley; roadsides beside Camp Ground; Waai vley and near summit.
Erica obtusata; Mountains, rare; Head of Waai vley
Erica dodii; Mountains, rare. Head of Waai vley
Sebaea capitata; Mountains, very rare. Near mouth of Waai vley. Only a single specimen was gathered. It appears to have been seldom found before.
Selago quadrangularis; Pseudoselago peninsulae; Shady rocks at high elevations, occasional; Devil's peak; Waai vley, frequent; Constantiaberg; West slopes of Orange kloof
Holothrix hispidula; Holothrix cernua, H. brevipetala; Sandy places on mountains, rather rare; Lower Plateau over Klassenbosch; Farmer Peck's valley; frequent in Waai vley Our reference is Probably H. villosa condensata
Satyrium lindleianum (lindleyanum); Satyrium retusum; Mountain slopes, occasional. Klaver vley; Constantiaberg; north slopes of Table mountain; rocks over Waai vley
Satyrium rhynchanthum; Mountain swamps, rare. Waai vley; by the reservoir on lower Plateau; Steenberg
Disa uniflora; Wet krantzes and by mountain streams, locally common. Especially common on Lower Plateau and in Waai Vley etc. also in kloofs on west slopes of Orange kloof; above Tokay; Silvermine river
Disa bodkinii; Moist mountain ravines, very rare. Table Mountain above Klassenbosch, 2400ft; Also in Waai vley
Pterygodium acutifolium; Mountain slopes, occasional. Lower plateau; Waai vley; Muizenberg
Disperis capensis; Flats and slopes to a considerable elevation, common. Reaches Waai vley. The yellowish-flowered variety looks a distinct species, and is distinct from the much rarer albino form of the type, but we cannot separate it by definite characters. It is frequent on the lower slopes of the Devil's peak, where it flowers at a different period from the type
Disperis paludosa; Marshy ground on mountains, usually rare; Waai vley; near Ranger's cottage and Wynberg reservoir; Silvermine valley. In some years abundant on the lower Plateau.
Moraea ramosa; Moraea ramosissima; Damp places from flats to high mountains, frequent and locally abundant. Reachs Waai vley
Moraea jacquiniana; Moraea tripetala jacquiniana; Mountain slopes and plateaux, occasional; Waai vley and near the summit of Table Mountain; summit of Twelve apostles; Vlaggeberg; Constantiaberg; Steenberg
Bobartia filiformis; Flats to the mountain tops, usually in damp places, occasional; Frequent on the flats; Lower plateau; Waai vley; summit of Table Mountain
Geissorhiza wrightii; Geissorhiza imbricata imbricata; Mountain slopes, rare; Rocks over Waai vley
Gladiolus blandus; Gladiolus carneus; Mountain slopes, frequent. Abundant in Waai vley after a fire. Rarely below 1000ft but gathered at 300ft at Steenberg farm
Anthericum tabulare; Trachyandra tabularis; damp plateaux and dripping rocks at high elevations, locally frequent. Plentiful on Lower plateau, also along Twelve apostles, and above Waai vley
Juncus bufonius; In cultivated and waste ground, common. Seen in Waai vley but rarely at so high an elevation
Scirpus fluitans; Isolepis fluitans; Scirpus capillifolius; Isolepis striata; One or other of these two species is common and reaches Waai vley
Ficinia ixioides; Wet ground on mountains, rare; Wynberg reservoir; Waai vley
Ficinia zeyheri; Hill and mountain slopes, rare. Waai vley, slopes beyong Simon's town
Ehrharta setacea; Mountain plateaux, locally frequent. Lower plateau over Skeleton ravine; Waai vley.
Interestingly, some of the species above (Erica dodii is one) are not really known from this area. It might be misattribution. Eventually I might get to mapping these species and confirming Wolley-Dod's version but for now I think we are close enough.
DW