The arid, rocky terrain in Goegap Nature Reserve burns in the hot African sun. Vast, sandy plains stretch as far as the eye can see… summer is an unforgiving time of year for the part of the Namaqualand. But not everything in the parched landscape is wilted and bleak, on the edge of a rocky outcrop, an enormous tree boasts with large, leathery, heart-shape leaves. Its pale, gnarled, crinkled roots feeling their way across the massive boulders it’s perched on, some splitting the rocks in order to find water. This is a Namaqua Rock fig, a tree of myth and fantasy.

Summer is drawing to a close, and Rock Splitter’s figs are in their prime. In a time of severe thirst, they are a welcomed delicacy for even the toughest critter. The tree bewitches birds from near and far to come gorge on the fruit in her canopy. Acacia Pied Barbets, Warblers and Bulbuls all visit its branches to get a taste of its bounty. Underneath the Rock Fig, a Rounded Toktokkies makes a meal of all the birds’ droppings. These beetles have a unique means of finding a mate… they knock on the rocky ground to attract them.

As the days get even warmer, a Dassie Rat starts basking in the sun on the rocks close to the fig tree. It lives in the rock crevices between the boulders. It too eats the Rock Fig’s fruit. A Southern Rock Agama also uses the rocks underneath the tree to sunbathe… and late afternoon is the perfect time for these lizards to find a mate, and fight off rivals.