geography

A 300m long sinkhole in the Northern Cape that opened up after heavy summer rains is revealing some interesting discoveries for inquisitive locals and...

Financing was a priority topic at the World Forestry Congress in Durban this week. Another was the youth and their vital role in planning and managing forestry and agriculture. The theme, investing in a sustainable future, was debated by delegates from around the world.

A decades-long study of the rocks in South Africa's Karoo has revealed that a single cataclysmic event on land and sea led to the Permian extinction, when life on Earth nearly came to an end. It happened about 200 million years before the dinosaurs died out, and was more severe.

South African archaeologists have found the earliest evidence of human-made stone-tipped arrows, that push the emergence of bow-and-arrow technology back 20 000 years and throw light on humanity's cognitive development.
• South Africa's mammal-like croc discovery

The 2009 edition of The South African Story, Brand South Africa's regular overview of the country, its economy, geography, people, preparations for the 2010 Fifa World Cup and more, is now available for download.