A family farm in the Northern Cape, older than a century, is now helping protect one of South Africa’s smallest and rarest reptiles, the tiny Speckled Dwarf Tortoise.
Lokenburg, Northern Cape (06 August 2025) – The farm is called Lokenburg, and it’s been in the same family for six generations. Now, thanks to the family’s love for their land and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), the farm is becoming a safe space for one of the smallest tortoises in the world.
This month, Lokenburg officially became the first farm to register a Conservation Servitude with the EWT. It’s a ‘legal promise’ that part of the farm will forever be protected for conservation.
This means that Speckled Dwarf Tortoises, tiny (very smol) and elusive reptiles that are now getting the protection they need.
Lokenburg sits in Nieuwoudtville, a part of the country known for its wildflower carpets. Run by Nelmarie and Herman Nel, it’s a working farm that produces sheep, cattle, rooibos tea, and, more recently, oil. But it’s the family’s decision to conserve their land for the future that’s really making a difference.
Their partnership with the EWT has led to a Biodiversity Management Plan that combines conservation and sustainable farming in a way that protects both livelihoods and wildlife roaming the land.
The plan outlines how the land will be managed going forward, including areas that will be kept untouched for conservation and guidelines to avoid development that could harm the environment.
Like we said, it’s like a ‘legal promise’ between people and the planet. A Conservation Servitude is a voluntary agreement where landowners volunteer to manage a portion of their land for conservation. It’s registered against the title deed, which means the protection stays in place, no matter who owns the land in future.
In Lokenburg’s case, it means the Speckled Dwarf Tortoise (Chersobius signatus) and its habitat now have a safe space where they can survive and thrive.
These little tortoises only live in small, scattered patches along South Africa’s West Coast and into Namaqualand. Their habitats are fragile and vanishing quickly, which is why this protection is so important.
Their protection is not only about conserving the space they call home. It also includes managing threats like the Pied Crow, whose numbers have risen unnaturally and now pose a major predation risk to tortoises.
At a wee 10cm long and weighing less than 200 grams, the Speckled Dwarf Tortoise is the smallest tortoise in the world. It’s a quiet little creature, often overlooked, but it’s fighting a big battle against extinction.
That’s why what’s happening at Lokenburg is good news – a step towards conserving this sweet little skilpadjie.
“The protection of dwarf tortoises is critical, particularly because they occur in very specific habitat types along the West Coast of South Africa inland to Namakwaland, and while this is a large area, they actually only occur in a few tiny remnant patches of critical habitat,” shares EWT.
Editor’s Note: The Speckled Dwarf Tortoise has been reclassified from Homopus signatus to Chersobius signatus. We thank Tyrone Ping and Grant Fairley for their contributions to this correction.
Sources: EWT
Don’t ever miss the Good Things. Download the Good Things Guy App now on Apple or Google.
Do you have something to add to this story? Please share it in the comments or follow GoodThingsGuy on Facebook & Twitter to keep up to date with good news as it happens, or share your good news with us by clicking here or click the link below to listen to the Good Things Guy Podcast with Brent Lindeque – South Africa’s very own Good Things Guy. He’s on a mission to change what the world pays attention to, and he truly believes there’s good news around us. In the Good Things Guy podcast, you’ll meet these everyday heroes & hear their incredible stories:
Or watch an episode of Good Things TV below, a show created to offer South Africans balance in a world with what feels like constant bad news. We’re here to remind you that there are still so many good things happening in South Africa & we’ll leave you feeling a little more proudly South African.
by 