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Southern
Highlands Conservation Programme
Helping to conserve threatened habitats and species across southwest
Tanzania
The Southern Highlands Conservation Programme (SHCP) was set up by the
Wildlife Conservation Society in 2000 to conserve important habitats in
southwest Tanzania and the flora and fauna that rely on them. Tanzania’s
Southern Highlands lie between Lakes Nyasa (Malawi) and Tanganyika on the
junction of the eastern and western arms of Africa’s Great Rift Valley. The
region is distinguished by unique plateau grasslands, montane and riverine
forests, rivers and crater lakes up to 3,000 metres above sea level. Sites of
particular interest include Kitulo Plateau, Mt Rungwe, Livingstone Mts, Mbizi,
Mporoto, Mbeya Range, Ukinga, Umalila, Ufipa, Ludewa and the Southern
Tanganyika forests of Loasi, Lwafi and Kalambo Falls.
Significance
The Southern Highlands are home to over 2 million people, most of whom rely on
natural resources for food, medicines, building materials and income. The
mountains and forests are also vital to national and local economies through
soil conservation and water catchment. The Highlands serve four of the twelve
main drainage basins in Tanzania - the Nyasa, Ruaha, Kilombero and Rukwa - and
their catchment properties influence the livelihoods of a quarter of the
country’s population. The Southern Highlands are ethnically diverse. Many
cultures are closely tied to their environment and the landscapes have great
traditional significance.
At least 120 animals and plants are endemic to the area, many recently
discovered by WCS. Others are restricted to Tanzania or the Southern Rift, and
many are considered globally threatened. The montane forests of Mt Rungwe and
Livingstone in Kitulo are home to Africa’s rarest monkey the kipunji (Rungwecebus
kipunji) and Africa’s rarest forest antelope Abbott’s duiker (Cephalophus
spadix). The region’s plateau grasslands such as Kitulo Plateau are unique
centres of endemism. The Southern Highlands fall within one of just 25 ‘Global
Biodiversity Hotspots’, they constitute a global ‘Ecoregion’, contain six
‘Important Bird Areas’, and are a ‘National Site of Special Conservation
Significance’.
Threats
Natural habitats across the Southern Highlands are severely threatened by
unsustainable land-use practices and inappropriate resource exploitation.
Natural forests and grasslands are being cleared for commercial agriculture.
Forests are being felled for timber and charcoal, and fires are widespread and
uncontrolled. Hunting of mammals and birds is common and there is a growing and
unsustainable trade in wildlife, especially reptiles, frogs and orchids but also
mammals. Management of natural habitat is hampered by limited financial and
technical resources. Declining forest cover poses serious threats to the
region’s vital water supplies and cultural identity. Only now through the work
of WCS is there a wider appreciation of the area’s biodiversity and traditional
values, but the challenges of combining a growing human population,
infrastructural development and environmental integrity remain.
The SHCP has a
full-time staff of 35 including 31 Tanzanians, 22 of whom are from the Southern
Highlands area. Many more are employed from villages on a part-time basis. With
offices in Mbeya Town, the SHCP employs a wide-ranging approach rooted in
science, social awareness and policy, and carries out a variety of research,
community conservation and protected area management initiatives. WCS is the
only international conservation organisation working in this large and globally
significant area.
Activities
The unique flora and fauna of all the forests and grasslands of the Southern
Highlands are being characterised through systematic biodiversity surveys of
plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates. It was
during these surveys that the kipunji, Africa’s first new genus of monkey for 83
years, was first discovered by WCS in 2003. As a consequence, Mt Rungwe and
Kitulo are now two of the most well-known protected areas in southern Tanzania.
Key species, such as the kipunji, are also the target of specific research aimed
at monitoring their populations and understanding the threats to them. The
highly endangered Abbott’s Duiker is the focus of a novel conservation strategy
targeting hunters. There is an emphasis on mammalian carnivores (including
servals, leopards and otters) that examines and monitors the distribution,
threats and status of all species across southern Tanzania. Chimpanzees are the
focus of research and monitoring along the southern shores of Lake Tanganyika,
and the first nationwide census and assessment of their habitat has been
performed.
At the habitat level, research on important ecosystems, such as forests,
grasslands and watercourses, are identifying the threats to them. The growing
problems of exotic and invasive species are also being studied. Geographical
Information Systems and Satellite Imagery help in the analysis, mapping and
monitoring of land use. Exploration has long been an important part of the WCS
approach and areas not investigated scientifically are being surveyed in this
way, in order to guide survey work on the ground.
In-depth socio-economic analyses accompany biodiversity research in order to
determine the extent of community use of, and degree of dependence on, natural
resources. Research includes studies on hunting, fishing, logging, charcoal
manufacture and natural medicines. A plant herbarium, the only one focusing on
southwest Tanzania has been set up in Mbeya. The results of the first
investigation in 2001 of a growing trade in orchid tubers were recognized by
government with the creation of the new Kitulo National Park, the first
park in tropical Africa set aside for its floral significance. Orchid harvesting
continues to be monitored.
Working
with Regional and District Authorities and communities,
the first indigenous tree nurseries have been set up in Rungwe, Mbeya and
Sumbawanga. Over 400,000 indigenous tree seedlings have been raised and planted
since 2002, in order to carry out forest enrichment planting. The SHCP also
provides support to District and Regional Authorities
and Tanzania National Parks on tourism development, forest management,
awareness raising through National Exhibition and Environment Days, workshop
provision, community support projects and technical assistance on research,
habitat and protected area management.
A strong environmental education component reaches tens of thousands of people.
This targets schools, the youth, village environment committees and women’s
groups. Village environment rooms have been set up, education materials provided
and assistance given on environmental curricula. Small development grants
provide support to villages adjacent to sites of conservation concern. A tourism
development strategy is being designed that puts an emphasis on conservation and
village benefits.
a small grants
initiative provides support to Tanzanian NGOs in activities as diverse as
tourism development, education, the adoption of fuel-efficient stoves, capacity
building, tree planting and natural forest management. The future of
conservation in Tanzania lies primarily with Tanzanians. The SHCP puts emphasis,
therefore, on training and capacity building, both
for its staff as well as other individuals, organisations and institutions. The
SHCP continues to raise awareness both
nationally and internationally of the importance of the area, its people,
habitats and species.
Key partners include District and Regional governments; Tanzania National Parks
(TANAPA); the Forest and Beekeeping Division of the Ministry of Natural
Resources and Tourism; the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, USA; the
Missouri Botanical Garden, St Louis, USA; Museo
Tridentino di Scienze Naturali, Trento, Italy, Manchester Metropolitan
University, Manchester, UK.
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