Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve - Frontier-publications.co.uk

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Mpanga / Kipengere Game Reserve; A Biodiversity Survey A variety of evidences indicating the activities of poachers were found within miombo woodlands in the reserve. These included the burning of grassy vegetation to stimulate new re-growth, wire snares, small mammal basket-traps, signs of dogs, fishing dams and remains of dwellings. As stated previously (Section 4.1.2), domestic cows and goats were found grazing in the area, particularly towards the north where the reserve borders the main Iringa/Mbeya road along which numerous villages are located. People are still living in the reserve and certain areas, particularly along the Little Ruaha valley, were found to be cultivated. 4.2 Afro-montane forest-grassland mosaic In order to survey the afro-montane forest-grassland mosaic, two basecamps were located in the southern area of the Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve during the dry season work and one during the wet season. 4.2.1. Flora The afro-montane forest-grassland mosaic is found in the mountainous south of the Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve. Wide-open grasslands occur on the upper- and mid-slopes and hilltops, whilst closedcanopy forests are common in the valleys and gullies, where they are associated with underground water supplies. Small patches of bamboo forest also occur in the upper reaches of valleys originating along the Kipengere Range. • Grasslands At least 28 species of tree and shrub representing 16 families and 50 species of herbs and grasses representing 19 families (Appendix 7) were recorded in grassland areas of the forest-grassland mosaic in the reserve. One near-endemic species of herb was identified in the grasslands, Eriosema ukingense. This is restricted to the mountains of Tanzania at the north and north eastern end of Lake Nyasa and the adjoining Nyika plateau of Malawi / Zambia. Three orchid species were recorded, Brachycorythis pleistophylla, Disa sp. and Roeperocharis bennettiana. These species are threatened by the illegal orchid trade to Zambia and Malawi. Small fields of pareto (Pyethrum sp.) flowers can be found on grassy hillsides, along with the vegetable simson, cultivated for commercial and domestic use respectively (Section 4.2.3). • Forests At least 61 species of tree and shrub representing 35 families (Appendix 7) and 11 species of herbs and grasses representing 8 families (Appendix 7) were recorded in the forested areas of the forest-grassland mosaic in the reserve. One liane and four species of fern were also recorded in the montane forest patches, representing one and four families respectively. Four important timber tree species were identified within the forests, Hagenia abyssinica, Ocotea usambarensis, Podocarpus latifolius and Podocarpus milanjianus. 4.2.2. Fauna The afro-montane forest-grassland mosaic of the Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve was found to contain many birds of conservation interest, a number of forest-dependent mammals, a high diversity of rodents and again many interesting herpetofauna (Table 4). Frontier Tanzania Environmental Research Report 99 11
Mpanga / Kipengere Game Reserve; A Biodiversity Survey Table 4 A summary of fauna recorded in the afro-montane forest-grassland mosaic of the Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve. Taxa Number of families Number of species Mammals 15 31 Birds 54 199 Reptiles 4 13 Amphibians 5 15 Butterflies 5 61 Total 83 319 *Bird numbers presented are for the mid-altitude miombo woodland and the Afromontane forest-grassland mosaic together, as birds are a taxa that move easily between habitats and are thus not easy to segregate into habitat types. • Mammals At least 31 species of native mammals representing 15 families were recorded in the areas of forestgrassland mosaic areas of the reserve (Appendix 8). Although the identification of most species is certain, those of species that were captured remains tentative whilst awaiting taxonomic verifications (i.e. all small mammals including bats). All taxonomy and nomenclature follows that of Kingdon (1997). Two primate species, Moloney’s monkey (Cercopithecus mitis moloneyei) and the Black and White Colobus (Colobus angolensis sharpie) were recorded frequently in every forest patch in the gullies of the mountains. These are Southern Highland endemic subspecies, which are forest dependent and thus vulnerable to local activities, such as pitsawing. The Black and White Colobus is listed in IUCN as locally vulnerable. There was a wide diversity and abundance of small mammal species, predominantly found in the montane forest areas. These were all forest dependent species, so again potentially vulnerable to forest destruction. Such species found were the: Soft-furred rat (Promys cf. delectorum), Climbing shrew (Sylvisorex sp.) and the Mouse shrew (Myosorex sp.), the latter of which is likely to be localised to the area. The Lesser pouched rat subspecies (Beamys hindei major) has a restricted range situated in montane forests of Southern Tanzania and Malawi. The Four-striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio) has a discontinuous distribution, although it is not uncommon and therefore not threatened. The Narrow-footed woodland mouse (Grammomys comete) has a restricted range of the wet montane areas of north and south Lake Nyasa. Indirect signs indicated the presence of a small carnivores in the highland area: Black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas), Serval cat (Felis serval) and Wild cat (Felis sylvestris). Domestic cows, goats, sheep and donkeys were seen grazing throughout grassy areas of the forestgrassland mosaic, however they were absent from the forest patches (Section 4.2.3). • Birds At least 199 species of bird representing 54 families were recorded in Mpanga/Kipengere Game Reserve, in a diverse array of habitats, including open grassland, montane forest, miombo woodland, riverine forest and rocky cliffs. All identifications are considered certain, except six species, which are indicated with a question mark in the bird list (Appendix 9). All taxonomy and nomenclature follows that of Baker (2002). Interesting findings included the possible sighting of the Blue Swallow (Hirundo atrocaerulea), which is globally threatened species. The Scarlet-tufted sunbird (Nectarinia jonhstoni) is a biome restricted species found only in alpine moorlands from 3 000 – 4 500m asl, thus it is also a threatened species. Other range restricted birds, which are endemic to Southern Tanzania, especially the southern highlands are: Mountain Greenbul (Andropadus nigriceps race chlorigula), Churring Cisticola (Cisticola njombe), Frontier Tanzania Environmental Research Report 99 12
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