MTWARA RECONNAISSANCE PROJECT A Reconnaissance to Prioritise Biological Knowledge for Community Conservation Initiatives 2005 Giulia Wegner Kim M. Howell, Neil Burgess, Paul Rubio & Eibleis Fanning (Eds.) Frontier-Tanzania Forest Environmental Research Programme Mtwara Reconnaissance Project A Reconnaissance to Prioritise Biological Knowledge for Community Conservation Initiatives 2005 Wegner, G. Howell, K. M., Burgess N., Fanning, E. & Rubio, P. (Eds.) Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund Frontier-Tanzania University of Dar es Salaam Society for Environmental Exploration Dar es Salaam 2005 Frontier-Tanzania Mtwara Reconnaissance Project – FT MRP Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund – CEPF THE CRITICAL ECOSYSTEM PARTNERSHIP FUND (CEPF) The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund is a joint initiative of Conservation International, the Global Environmental Facility, the Government of Japan, the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. The CEPF is designed to safeguard the world’s threatened biodiversity hotspots in developing countries by providing funding and technical support to civil society. THE UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM (UDSM) The University of Dar es Salaam was established in July 1970 as a centre for learning and research in the arts and the physical, natural, earth, marine, medical and human sciences. The University is surveying and mapping the flora and fauna of Tanzania, and is conducting research into the maintenance and improvement of the environment and the sustainable exploitation of Tanzania’s natural resources. THE SOCIETY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EXPLORATION (SEE) The Society for Environmental Exploration was formed in 1989 and is a non-profit making company limited by guarantee. The Society’s objectives are to advance field research into environmental issues, and implement practical projects contributing to the conservation of natural resources. Projects organised by the Society are joint initiatives developed in collaboration with national research agencies in co-operating countries. FRONTIER-TANZANIA FOREST RESEARCH PROGRAMME (FT FRP) The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam have been conducting collaborative research into environmental issues since July 1989 under the title of Frontier-Tanzania, one component of which is the Frontier-Tanzania Forest Research Programme (FT FRP). Biological field surveys were conducted in the Coastal Forests of Tanzania from 1989 to 1994, in the East Usambara Mountains in collaboration with EUCAMP, Tanga, from 1995 to 2002, in the Udzungwa Mountains in collaboration with MEMA, Iringa, from 1999 to 2001, in the Mahenge Mountains in 2003, in Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve in collaboration with WWF- TPO, Dar es Salaam, in 2003, and in the Uluguru Mountains in collaboration with CARE-Tanzania, Dar es Salaam, in 2004. The Mtwara Reconnaissance Project is the most recent study, completed in September 2005 and funded by CEPF, Washington, USA. Department of Zoology & Wildlife Conservation Society for Environmental Exploration University of Dar es Salaam 50-52 Rivington Street, London, UK P.O. Box 35064, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Tel: +44 (0)20 76 13 24 22 Tel: 255 (0)22 2410462 Fax: +44 (0)20 76 13 29 92 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Frontier Tanzania Critical Ecosystem Partnership P.O. Box 9473, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 1919 M Street, Washington, DC 20036, USA Tel: 255 (0)22 2780063 www.cepf.net E-mail: [email protected] ii Frontier-Tanzania Mtwara Reconnaissance Project – FT MRP Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund – CEPF Published by: the Society for Environmental Exploration Copyright: © Frontier-Tanzania 2005. All rights reserved. All material appearing in this publication is copyrighted and may be reproduced with permission. Any reproduction in full or in part of this publication must credit the Society for Environmental Exploration as the copyright owner. Front cover photograph: granite kopjes protruding from the plain in Ndechela Forest Reserve, Tanzania. Credit: all photographs in this report were taken by Frontier-Tanzania field research team. Report citation: Frontier-Tanzania (2005). Wegner, G., Howell, K. M., Burgess, N., Rubio, P. & Fanning, E. (Eds.). Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Section citation: Wegner, G. (2005). Executive summary. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Wegner, G. and Cutts, M. J. (2005). Introduction. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Cutts, M. J. (2005). Study site. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Wegner, G. and Salter, R. (2005). Methods. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Sangu, G. and Wegner, G. (2005). Results and discussion of Flora for all forest reserves. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Wegner, G. and Salter, R. (2005). Results and discussion of Fauna for all forest reserves. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Sweeney, O. (2005). Results and discussion of disturbance for all forest reserves. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Wegner, G. and Sweeney, O. (2005). Discussion and comparison for all forest reserves. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. iii Frontier-Tanzania Mtwara Reconnaissance Project – FT MRP Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund – CEPF Wegner, G. (2005). Conclusions and prioritisations. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Salter, R. and Sweeney, O. (2005). Conservation Recommendations. In: Mtwara Reconnaissance Project 2005. The Society for Environmental Exploration and the University of Dar es Salaam; the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund. Editorial Comments: Mr. Michael Cutts, Mr. Paul Rubio, Miss Giulia Wegner, Miss Sarah Woodcock, SEE; Prof. Kim H. Howell, UDSM; Dr. Neil Burgess, WWF-USA. iv Frontier-Tanzania Mtwara Reconnaissance Project – FT MRP Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund – CEPF 1. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. TABLE OF CONTENTS ....................................................................................................................v 2. LIST OF TABLES........................................................................................................................... viii 3. LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................................xi 4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................. xii 5. ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .........................................................................................13 6. REPORT STRUCTURE....................................................................................................................14 7. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY...............................................................................................................15 Overview of the study............................................................................................................................15 Biodiversity value of the study area......................................................................................................16 Human resources use and disturbance...................................................................................................19 Conservation prioritisation ....................................................................................................................20 Conservation recommendations ............................................................................................................21 Summary of findings .............................................................................................................................22 8. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................26 Background to the biodiversity survey..................................................................................................26 The biodiversity hotspot concept ..........................................................................................................26 The Eastern Arc Mountains and Coastal Forests of Tanzania and Kenya (EACF) hotspot ................26 The Coastal Forest Mosaic ....................................................................................................................27 The Coastal Forest vegetation types......................................................................................................29