Tracking the Wild Mountain Aloe

Jon measuring a tall mountain aloe

We've finally started work on a research project and it has been wonderful to just go out in the field and do something like the sort of thing for which we came here! Coming up with a research topic was more difficult than we expected. No one at the University has shown any interest in collaborating, and it is hard to know what has been done or is in progress because access to this kind of information has been next to impossible.  These problems are compounded by the difficulty in physically reaching some of the places in which we might conduct research, due either to poor roads or great distances.  Jon is also busy grading countless exams and essays and jumping through all the necessary hoops at the University.

So for the sake of practicalities, we chose a site that we could get to in just over an hour and for which we could find no previous work.  Our study site is on the outskirts of Molepolole, the third largest city in Botswana.  In scattered areas around the town there are stands of Aloe marlothii (mountain aloe), a magnificent tree aloe that grows up to 20 feet tall and produces wild-looking sprays of flowers and fruit.  Legend has it that in the dark of night about 120 years ago, an invading Boer force mistook a forest of Aloe for a group of wildly-outfitted warriors and fled.  Various guidebooks state that these forests are much degraded and that people are worried that they may be disappearing, but there is no scientific data to support these claims or any information available regarding the forests' population structure or the longevity of individual mountain aloe.

Melinda and Jon inventorying a mountain aloe plot

Aloe seedlings are really small and pretty hard to see

First we spent some time exploring the outskirts of Molepolole and we found a nice stretch of mountain aloe not too far from the road and not behind fences or other barriers to access.  We decided to take a look at the population structure of this stand. We set up random 10 meter by 10 meter plots in which we measure the height of all the aloes, the numbers of leaves, flowers and fruit capsules.  We also measure the distance to each aloe's nearest neighbor and record if there is a nurse plant and, if so, we identify the species of the nurse plant.  Many succulents, such as saguaro cacti, require a nurse plant that supplies shade when they are young.  We plan to undertake a few other investigations in this spot and examine at least two other nearby aloe sites.  We are wondering if young individuals are common or lacking,  how they are distributed, what characteristics are correlated with successful reproduction, and things of this nature.  Hopefully this will give us an indication of the current health and potential longevity of the population.  We are working on this with another Fulbright Scholar, Melinda Laituri, who is visiting Gaborone from Colorado State University.

Looking up at the aloe canopy

On a typical day, we leave for Molepolole by 6AM in the blissful morning coolness when the traffic craziness has not begun.  By 7:30 AM the traffic has become perilous and the temperatures are beginning to soar!  While we are working, picturesque carts pulled by four or five donkeys roll by with the driver shouting various instructions to urge the donkeys on and people occasionally walk by on their way to cattle posts.  Signs of woodcutting is evident and some aloes appear to have been dug up for landscaping use.

Sometimes seedlings are very numerous

The middle aged seedlings look like they
 could play a role in "The Little Shop of Horrors"

One thing that is illustrative of the culture here is that even in a sizable City like Molepolole, there is no sit-down restaurant that we have found (unless you call KFC a restaurant) and there is no public bathroom.  Eating out is just not part of this culture, although there are various "take-away's", where people choose a meal from a cafeteria-style serving line, which they take away with them in styrofoam containers. Fourty-four years ago at independence, there were no restaurants in the entire country except for a few places for safari hunter types.  So by the end of the day we are hoping that one of the gas stations will have a functional bathroom where we can wash up and buy a cool drink of some sort.  Driving back home can be hair-raising experience because some people pass long lines of cars and we have to be ready to pull off the road at any time in order to avoid a head-on collision!

If you have thoughts or questions about our project, we'd love to hear from you. Please leave a comment below!