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East African Coral Coast
The East African coral coast is a marine ecoregion along the eastern coast of Africa. It extends along the coasts of Kenya, Tanzania, and northern Mozambique, from Lamu in Kenya (2º30' S) to Angoche in Mozambique (16°14 S). It adjoins the Northern Monsoon Current Coast ecoregion to the north, and the Bight of Sofala/Swamp Coast ecoregion to the south. Major habitat types Fringing coral reefs extend along much of the coast, extending .5 to 2 km from the shore on the narrow continental shelf. Fringing reefs extend along the coasts of Kenya and Tanzania as far as the Ruvuma River, which forms the Tanzania-Mozambique boundary. The fringing reefs are interrupted by major river mouths, including the Tana and Athi rivers in Kenya and the Rufiji in Tanzania. Unguja Island has a fringing reef along its eastern shore and extending around the southern and northern tips of the island. Mafia Island has a fringing reef along its eastern shore which extends south to the Songo Songo Isla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marine Ecoregion
A marine ecoregion is an ecoregion, or ecological region, of the oceans and seas identified and defined based on biogeography, biogeographic characteristics. Introduction A more complete definition describes them as “Areas of relatively homogeneous species composition, clearly distinct from adjacent systems” dominated by “a small number of ecosystems and/or a distinct suite of oceanographic or topographic features”. Ecologically they “are strongly cohesive units, sufficiently large to encompass ecological or life history processes for most sedentary species.”Spalding, Mark D., Helen E. Fox, Gerald R. Allen, Nick Davidson et al. "Marine Ecoregions of the World: A Bioregionalization of Coastal and Shelf Areas". Bioscience Vol. 57 No. 7, July/August 2007, pp. 573–58/ref> Marine Ecoregions of the World—MEOW The global classification system Marine Ecoregions of the World—MEOW was devised by an international team, including major conservation organizations, academic in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nyawira Muthiga
Nyawira A. Muthiga is an African conservation zoologist who is Director of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association Marine Programme in Kenya. She is a conservation scientist for the Wildlife Conservation Society. Early life and education Muthiga was born in Kenya, and spent part of her childhood in Dar es Salaam. She earned her undergraduate degree in biological oceanography in the United States. She completed her master's degree at the Florida State University, where she studied the impact of salinity on the photosynthesis of '' Siderastrea siderea''. Muthiga returned to Kenya for her doctoral research, where she joined the University of Nairobi. Research and career In 2000 Muthiga was elected President of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association Board of Trustees (WIOMSA). She oversaw the growth of the WIMOSA internationally, building local chapters and networks. Muthiga worked for the Kenya Wildlife Service where she led the coastal and wetland p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dugong
The dugong (; ''Dugong dugon'') is a marine mammal. It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest modern relative, Steller's sea cow (''Hydrodamalis gigas''), was hunted to extinction in the 18th century. The dugong is the only sirenian in its range, which spans the waters of some 40 countries and territories throughout the Indo-West Pacific. The dugong is largely dependent on seagrass communities for subsistence and is thus restricted to the coastal habitats which support seagrass meadows, with the largest dugong concentrations typically occurring in wide, shallow, protected areas such as bays, mangrove channels, the waters of large inshore islands and inter-reefal waters. The northern waters of Australia between Shark Bay and Moreton Bay are believed to be the dugong's contemporary stronghold. Like all modern sirenians, the dugong ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loggerhead Sea Turtle
The loggerhead sea turtle (''Caretta caretta'') is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around in carapace length when fully grown. The adult loggerhead sea turtle weighs approximately , with the largest specimens weighing in at more than . The skin ranges from yellow to brown in color, and the shell is typically reddish brown. No external differences in sex are seen until the turtle becomes an adult, the most obvious difference being the adult males have thicker tails and shorter plastrons (lower shells) than the females. The loggerhead sea turtle is found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean Sea. It spends most of its life in saltwater and estuarine habitats, with females briefly coming ashore to lay eggs. The loggerhead sea turtle has a low reproductive rate; females lay an average of four egg clutches and then become ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leatherback Sea Turtle
The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weights of . It is the only living species in the genus ''Dermochelys'' and family Dermochelyidae. It can easily be differentiated from other modern sea turtles by its lack of a bony shell; instead, its carapace is covered by oily flesh and flexible, leather-like skin, for which it is named. Taxonomy and evolution Taxonomy ''Dermochelys coriacea'' is the only species in genus ''Dermochelys''. The genus, in turn, contains the only extant member of the family Dermochelyidae. Domenico Agostino Vandelli named the species first in 1761 as ''Testudo coriacea'' after an animal captured at Ostia and donated to the University of Padua by Pope Clement XIII. In 1816, French zoologist Henri Blainville coined the term ''Dermochelys''. The leatherback was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Olive Ridley Sea Turtle
The olive ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys olivacea''), also known commonly as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a species of turtle in the family Cheloniidae. The species is the second-smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in the world. ''L. olivacea'' is found in warm and tropical waters, primarily in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, but also in the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean. This turtle and the related Kemp's ridley turtle are best known for their unique synchronised mass nestings called ''arribadas'', where thousands of females come together on the same beach to lay eggs. Taxonomy The olive ridley sea turtle may have been first described as ''Testudo mydas minor'' by Georg Adolf Suckow in 1798. It was later described and named ''Chelonia multiscutata'' by Heinrich Kuhl in 1820. Still later, it was described and named ''Chelonia olivacea'' by Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz in 1829. The species was placed in the subgenus ''Lepidochelys'' by Leopold Fitz ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawksbill Sea Turtle
The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is largely limited to tropical and subtropical marine and estuary ecosystems. The hawksbill's appearance is similar to that of other marine turtles. In general, it has a flattened body shape, a protective Carapace#Turtles and tortoises, carapace, and flipper (anatomy), flipper-like limbs, adapted for swimming in the open ocean. ''E. imbricata'' is easily distinguished from other sea turtles by its sharp, curving beak with prominent tomium, and the wikt:serration, saw-like appearance of its shell margins. Hawksbill shells slightly change colors, depending on water temperature. While this turtle lives part of its life in the open ocean, it spends more time in shallow lagoons and coral reefs. The IUCN, World Conservation Union, primarily as a result o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Green Sea Turtle
The green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, is a species of large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Chelonia''. Its range extends throughout tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but it is also found in the Indian Ocean. The common name refers to the usually green fat found beneath its carapace, not to the color of its carapace, which is olive to black. The dorsoventrally flattened body of ''C. mydas'' is covered by a large, teardrop-shaped carapace; it has a pair of large, paddle-like flippers. It is usually lightly colored, although in the eastern Pacific populations, parts of the carapace can be almost black. Unlike other members of its family, such as the hawksbill sea turtle, ''C. mydas'' is mostly herbivorous. The adults usually inhabit shallow lagoons, feeding mostly on various ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mozambique Island
The Island of Mozambique ( pt, Ilha de Moçambique) lies off northern Mozambique, between the Mozambique Channel and Mossuril Bay, and is part of Nampula Province. Prior to 1898, it was the capital of colonial Portuguese East Africa. With its rich history and sandy beaches, the Island of Mozambique is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of Mozambique's fastest-growing tourist destinations. It has a permanent population of approximately 14,000 people and is served by nearby Lumbo Airport on the Nampula mainland. The name of the country, Mozambique, is derived from the name of this island. History Pottery found on Mozambique Island indicates that the town was founded no later than the fourteenth century. According to tradition, the original Swahili population came from Kilwa. The town's rulers had links with the rulers of both Angoche and Quelimane by the fifteenth century. In 1514, Duarte Barbosa noted that the town had a Muslim population and that they spoke the same Swahili dia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Primeiras And Segundas Archipelago
The Primeiras and Segundas Archipelago is a chain of 10 sparsely inhabited barrier islands and two coral reef complexes situated in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Mozambique and near the coastal city of Angoche. The islands lie in two groups along the western side of the Mozambique Channel. Description The islands lie in a string along Africa's continental shelf. The five Segundas islands are in the north, separated by a stretch of open water and reefs from the five islands of the Primeiras chain to the south. The eastern sides of the islands are fringed with coral reefs, composed mainly of soft corals, with hard corals at their southern edges. Beds of seagrass are situated between the islands and the mainland, which are important habitat for sea turtles and dugongs. The southern islands support Mozambique's largest nesting grounds for green sea turtles, and hawksbill sea turtle also use the beaches. The archipelago also hosts the most important dugong population in the western ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quirimbas Islands
The Quirimbas Islands lie in the Indian Ocean off northeastern Mozambique, close to Pemba, the capital of the province of Cabo Delgado. The archipelago consists of about 32 islands, including Ibo, Matemo, Medjumbe, Quirimba, Metundo, Quisiva, Vamizi Island and Rolas Island all going up to the Tanzanian border. History Originally home to fishing settlements, the islands' population grew around Arab trading posts and throve under the Portuguese trading routes when it was known as the Ilhas de São Lázaro (Islands of St. Lazarus) during the 16th century. When the Portuguese started occupying cities in the islands such as Ibo, the Arab merchants fled to other parts of the island to operate in. The Arab merchants refused to trade with the Portuguese, in which started an attack resulting in 60 Muslim merchants casualties and property being burnt down. The island was in control by the Portuguese until Mozambique gained independence in 1975. Before independence, only four of the 32 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mozambique Channel
The Mozambique Channel (french: Canal du Mozambique, mg, Lakandranon'i Mozambika, pt, Canal de Moçambique) is an arm of the Indian Ocean located between the Southeast African countries of Madagascar and Mozambique. The channel is about long and across at its narrowest point, and reaches a depth of about off the coast of Mozambique. A warm current, the Mozambique Current, flows in a southward direction in the channel, leading into the Agulhas Current off the east coast of Southern Africa. Extent The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) defines the limits of the Mozambique Channel as follows: ::''On the North.'' A line from the estuary of the River Rovuma () to Ras Habu, the northernmost point of Ile Grande Comore, the northernmost of the Comore (Comoro) Islands, to Cap d'Ambre (Cape Amber), the northern extremity of Madagascar (). ::''On the East.'' The west coast of Madagascar. ::''On the South.'' A line from Cap Sainte-Marie, the southern extremity of Mad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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