The 144 km² Moribane Forest Reserve (

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

: Reserva Florestal de Moribane) which was proclaimed in 1957, is a natural forest in the buffer zone of the 640 km²

Chimanimani National Reserve Chimanimani National Park (Portuguese: Parque Nacional de Chimanimani) is a protected area in Manica Province of Mozambique. It is located in the Chimanimani Mountains on the border with Zimbabwe. Together with Zimbabwe's Chimanimani National Pa ...

, and is situated 24 km north of

Dombé Dombé is a town on the north bank of the Buzi River in Sussundenga District of Manica Province in central Mozambique dombe. During the Frelimo-Renamo struggle of the 70s to early 90s it was a strategic town where the FPLM maintained a heavy mech ...

, in

Sussundenga District Sussundenga District is a district of Manica Province in western Mozambique. The principal town is Sussundenga. The district is located in the center of the province, and borders with Manica District in the north, Gondola District in the northeas ...

of central

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. The mid to low-altitude tropical rain forest covers hilly country, from 400 to 550 metres in altitude, on the eastern verges of the largest southern African forest of this type, altogether 820 km² in extent. It can be reached using public transport from Sussundenga.

Flora and fauna

Flora

Müller et al. (2005) described two main vegetation types, namely a) moist, evergreen forest dominated by Forest newtonia ''(Newtonia buchananii)'', Chirinda stinkwood ''(Celtis mildbraedii)'', Forest ordeal tree ''(Erythrophleum suaveolens)'', and Panga-panga ''(Millettia stuhlmannii)'', and b) transitional forest on the northern verge of the forest, where the predominant species were Winged bersama ''(Bersama abyssinica)'', Panga-panga, Two-winged pteleopsis ''(Pteliopsis myrtifolia)'', Toad-tree ''(Tabernaemontana elegans)'', and Bushveld bitterwood ''(Xylopia longipetala)''.

Fauna

Native mammals include

Bush elephant The African bush elephant (''Loxodonta africana'') is one of two extant African elephant species and one of three extant elephant species. It is the largest living terrestrial animal, with bulls reaching a shoulder height of up to and a body m ...

Bushbuck The Cape bushbuck (''Tragelaphus sylvaticus'') is a common and a widespread species of antelope in sub-Saharan Africa.Wronski T, Moodley Y. (2009)Bushbuck, harnessed antelope or both? ''Gnusletter'', 28(1):18-19. Bushbuck are found in a wide ra ...

Red duiker The red forest duiker, Natal duiker, or Natal red duiker (''Cephalophus natalensis'') is a small antelope found in central to southern Africa. It is one of 22 extant species form the subfamily Cephalophinae. While the red forest duiker is very s ...

Samango monkey Sykes' monkey (''Cercopithecus albogularis''), also known as the white-throated monkey or Samango monkey, is an Old World monkey found between Ethiopia and South Africa, including south and east Democratic Republic of Congo. It is named after Eng ...

Bushpig :''"Bush pig" may also refer to the red river hog. The bushpig (''Potamochoerus larvatus'') is a member of the pig family that inhabits forests, woodland, riverine vegetation and cultivated areas in East and Southern Africa. Probably introduced ...

and several species of small carnivore.

History

Moribane forest was intensively exploited from the early 20th century onwards, initially for natural rubber derived from Rubber vine, and subsequently for its native timber species, namely Red mahogany,

Iroko Iroko (also known as in Igbo language, '' in the Urhobo language of Southern Nigeria, and as odum in the Kwa languages of Ghana) is a large hardwood tree from the west coast of tropical Africa that can live up to 500 years. This is the common n ...

and Panga-panga. As the 21st century approached, it was damaged by wildfires and shifting agriculture. Despite past overexploitation, the widespread occurrence of saplings of Stem-fruit miraculous-berry, Forest newtonia, Iroko, Panga-panga and Forest ordeal tree, gives reason for hope that it will naturally regenerate.

Renamo RENAMO (from the Portuguese , ) is a Mozambican political party and militant group. The party was founded with the active sponsorship of the Rhodesian Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) in May 1977 from anti-communist dissidents oppose ...

had a stronghold in the area during the

Mozambican Civil War The Mozambican Civil War ( pt, Guerra Civil Moçambicana) was a civil war fought in Mozambique from 1977 to 1992. Like many regional African conflicts during the late twentieth century, the Mozambican Civil War possessed local dynamics but was a ...

. By the end of the war in 1992 the forest was largely intact, but its Bush elephant population was reduced. While the local people had earlier observed taboos on hunting of elephant, they now had concerns about the recovering elephant population. Chief Mpunga argued that the relation between elephants and humans was spiritual, and people subsequently moved out of the area frequented by the elephants.

Facilities

Ndzou (i.e. Elephant) camp is a joint venture between Eco-Micaia and the local community, which offers guided walks, and a chance of tracking of the shy, forest-living Bush elephants with a local guide. A number of forest trails can be taken from Ndzou camp or Mpunga ranger camp, varying from 4 to 12 km in length. The Mpunga ranger camp, located 3 km to the south of Ndzou, caters only for visitors who bring their own tents and camping gear, and who are self-sufficient in terms of food. Ndzou has thatched rondavels, tents, a three-bedroom house, restaurant and bar.

Site locations

* Moribane forest track * Mt Chinhaunguri * Mpunga ranger & community camp * Mpunga-Chinda-Zinguena communities * Ndzou camp * Picada da dona Candida track * "Ponta de Deus" * Tava marsh

References

External links

Photo of Moribane Forest
S Dondeyne, 2009, Panoramio
Plant records, Moribane forest
Flora of Mozambique {{coordinates, 19, 46, 52, S, 33, 18, 08, E, region:MZ_type:landmark, display=title, name=Moribane Forest Manica Province Southern Zanzibar–Inhambane coastal forest mosaic Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Protected areas of Mozambique