CONSERVATION IN TANZANIA, CONSERVATION IN THE ULUGURU MOUNTAINS, TANZANIA, EAST AFRICA.

Biological Importance.

The Ulugurus contain a wide altitudinal range of forest, with exceptional biological importance throughout this range. Above 700 m there are areas of sub-montane and higher montane and upper montane forests. On the eastern lowland (200-300m) margins of the Ulugurus are also found lowland forest blocks, which are more closely related to a chain of small forest patches found along the coast of eastern Africa. Hence the Ulugurus contain examples of two of the main forest types in Eastern Africa (montane and lowland coastal).

The montane forests of the Uluguru Mountains are a part of the Tanzania-Malawi Mountains Endemic Bird Area defined by BirdLife International . This chain of mountains is of great conservation importance. The forests of the Uluguru Mountains portion of this Endemic Bird Area are one of the most important parts of this larger area. The Uluguru mountains forests support three endemic bird species (Uluguru Bush Shrike Malaconotus alius, Loveridge's Sunbird Nectarinia loveridgei and further taxonomic work will probably recognise a new species in the Mountain Greenbul complex - Andropadus neumanii). They also hold important populations of a number of other bird species that are only found in the Eastern Arc Mountains.

In addition to the birds the Ulugurus support many other plants and animals which are either wholly endemic to the mountain, or are shared with other Eastern Arc mountain forests. In summary there are believed to be 15 species of vertebrate animal and more than 150 species of invertebrate animal only found on the Ulugurus, together with perhaps 100 endemic plant species (see attached downloadable file). The plants include endemic or near-endemic examples of several well-known house plants in temperate countries: Saintpaulia (African Violet), Impatiens (Busy Lizzie), Begonia and Streptocarpus. Many of these are only found in the Ulugurus, particularly in the montane forests.

The lowland forests on the eastern margins of the Ulugurus are an outlier of the Tanzania-Kenya coastal lowland forests EBA. They support some of the characteristic species of plants and amphibians of the coastal forests (in particular 13 endemic plant species in Kimboza forest), but they do not contain the coastal forest endemic birds.

Species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians endemic to the Uluguru Mountains and notes on their altitudinal distribution and most recent records

Species	Described	Alt Distribution	Most recent records, plus notes on abundance
BIRDS
Malaconotus alius	Friedmann, 1927	1320-1710 m	2000, pop c.1,150 pairs
Nectarinia loveridgei	Hartert, 1922		1200-2580 m 2000, pop 10,000 plus pairs
MAMMALS
Crocidura telfordi	Hutterer, 1986		1990s collected by W. Stanley
Myosorex geata	Allen & Loveridge, 1927		1990s collected by W. Stanley
REPTILES
Prosymna ornatissima	Barbour & Loveridge, 1928	700-1000 m	Last collected 1926, Mt. Tongoni (Uluguru North)
Rhampholeon uluguruensis	Tilbury & Emmrich, 1996		Collected 2000
Typhlops uluguruensis	Barbour & Loveridge, 1928	750m	Last collected 1926, Bagilo
AMPHIBIANS
Nectophrynoides cryptus	Perret, 1971	1500 m plus?	Collected 2000, U. South.
Nectophrynoides minutus	Perret, 1972	1500 m plus?	Collected 2000, U. South
Probreviceps uluguruensis	Loveridge, 1925	1500 m plus	Collected 2000, U. South
Scolecomorphus uluguruensis	Barbour & Loveridge, 1928	1500 m plus	Collected 2000, U. North
Hyperolius tornieri	Ahl, 1931	1500 m plus	Taxonomically problematic

Other conservation values of the Ulugurus

The forests of the Uluguru Mountains also provide the water catchment areas for the streams and rivers which join to form the Ruvu river, which provides the water supply to the largest city in Tanzania - Dar es Salaam. More than 3 million people and the major industries in Tanzania rely on this water supply for their continued survival. The loss of the Uluguru forests and any reduction in water supply potential of the mountains could therefore have a major negative impact on the human well-being and the industrial capacity of Tanzania.



DOF Project Activities

In 1999 DOF received funding from DANIDA for a project to assist the conservation of the Uluguru Mountains as a partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania (WCST), which represents BirdLife International in Tanzania.

The project is implemented by WCST, in collaboration with the Forestry Division in Morogoro, and the University of Sokoine. There are four major aims of the project:

- Strengthen organisational capacity and project management skills of WCST secretariat.
- Improve involvement of WCST members and volunteers in the Societies work.
- Improve conservation of the globally important Uluguru Mountain forests.
- Assist development of sustainable agricultural systems to reduce future agricultural pressure on Uluguru forests

Danish Government support is for three years starting from 1999. Activities are now operational and the project is running from a WCST Regional Office in Morogoro. More than 10 staff are working in the mountains and visitors from abroad have assisted with some parts of the project work.

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Background Geographical Placement Biological Importance Species DOF Project Activities Other Conservation Values of the Ulugurus Some Findings of the First Year in the Uluguru Status of Uluguru Forests Status of Uluguru Biodiversity Eco-Tourism Tree Planting Agricultural Improvement Education Publications Emerging Issues Downloadable Papers & Articles Contact Details