Chirinda Forest Botanical Reserve
Chirinda Forest Botanical Reserve | |
---|---|
Chirinda State Forest | |
Manicaland, Zimbabwe | |
Nearest city | Chipinge |
Coordinates | 20°25′27″S 32°41′40″E / 20.42417°S 32.69444°E |
Area | 9.5 km2 (3.7 sq mi) |
Designated | 1951 |
The 950 hectares (2,300 acres) Chirinda Forest Botanical Reserve is situated on the slopes of
Ecology
The medium altitude forest is likely the southernmost patch of subtropical rainforest in Africa.
Year-round moisture, in the form of rain, mist or dew, provides for a substantial and intact moist leaf litter layer, on which its ecological processes depend. Decomposition is fungal, and not by termites or similar insects as would be the case in drier woodlands of the region.
Protection
Protection from fires is expected to facilitate the regeneration and expansion of the forest. During his time of residence, Swynnerton noted that recurring fires had been gradually reducing outlying forest patches. Destruction of portions of the Chipete and Chipungambira satellite forest patches occurred during the 1860s.[11] It may have been aided by elephants which opened up forest, but more likely resulted from indigenous people who regularly cleared land by fire in spring time.[11] Fire-resistant mobola plum and mahobohobo trees are pioneer species in such areas.[11]
Maupare (1993) however noted that the forest boundary was stable and that former logging operations in the northern section had no lasting effect on the plant diversity.[11] This extraction of red mahogany, peawood and tannodia during the 1940s also had little effect on its extent.[7]
Flora and fauna
The area is home to a high diversity of plants,[12] fungi, birds, butterflies, insects and reptiles.
Flora
Rare tree species which seldom occur elsewhere in Zimbabwe include the fluted milkwood (dominant canopy species), Chirinda fig, undershrub big-leaf, Chirinda stinkwood, yellow bitterberry and forest strychnos.[6] The type of the latter species was obtained in the forest by Swynnerton.[13]
The dominant canopy species, besides fluted milkwood, are
Thousands of specimens of the yucca-like Dracaena fragrans populate the forest floor, and numerous ferns, creepers, vines, epiphytes and orchids (including Calanthe sylvatica) are to be found. Montbretia and flame lilies are also present, while guava, lantana and ginger are exotic invasive species.
Fauna
Mammals
Birds
A few highland bird species reach their southernmost occurrence here, namely the
Reptiles
The reptile fauna includes pythons, cobras, vipers, mambas, adders, chameleons, geckos, skinks and lizards. Marshall's leaf chameleon, an endemic of the Eastern Highlands, is found within the forest and along its margins. The type species C. swynnertoni of the worm lizard genus Chirindia was described from this locality, while another worm lizard, Zygaspis ferox, is endemic to the forest and its vicinity.[22]
Amphibians
The
Insects
The Mount Selinda acraea mimic butterfly (Mimacraea neokoton) is found nowhere else.[7] The type of the ebony bush brown was obtained from Chirinda forest, and it is also known from the Vumba. It flies all year and has distinct seasonal forms.[23] The Chirinda bush brown is named for the forest, but it is in fact a widespread species. Its type was obtained at an unknown location in the Eastern Highlands, and it is distinguished from the previous species by its lighter upperside ground colour, and the contrasting hair-pencils of the male.[23]
Facilities
The well-marked route to the campsite leaves the main road just east of the mission hospital in
Site locations
- Big Tree, Valley of the Giants 20°26′29″S 32°42′15″E / 20.44139°S 32.70417°E
- Chipete forest 20°24′40″S 32°42′46″E / 20.41111°S 32.71278°E
- Chirinda forest campsite 20°24′37″S 32°41′57″E / 20.41028°S 32.69917°E
- Gungunyana farm 20°24′29″S 32°43′09″E / 20.40806°S 32.71917°E
- Swynnerton memorial 20°25′18″S 32°41′56″E / 20.42167°S 32.69889°E
See also
- Allophylus chirindensis
- Anthene chirinda
- Chirinda wild medlar
- Neoceratitis chirinda
- Plectranthus swynnertonii, type locality
- Rhus chirindensis
- Reptiles and frogs of the Eastern Highlands
References
- ^ UNEP-WCMC (2022). Protected Area Profile for Chirinda from the World Database of Protected Areas. Accessed 18 March 2022. [1]
- ISBN 0797413626.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - ^ Spriggs, Amy. "Zimbabwe, Mozambique: Montane grasslands and shrublands". worldwildlife.org. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
- ^ . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ a b "Chirinda Forest". Sites - Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs). BirdLife International. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
- ^ a b Hyde, M.; et al. "Location: Chirinda forest". Flora of Zimbabwe. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Timberlake, Jonathan (6 November 2002). "The Biodiversity and Ecology of Chirinda Forest" (PDF). BFA SEMINAR SERIES NO. 17. Bulawayo Club. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
- ^ "Chapter 9: Zanzibar-Inhambane transitional rain forest (Fg)" (PDF). VECEA, Volume 2. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
- ^ Goodier, R. (2007). "Swynnerton, Charles Francis Massy". Flora of Zimbabwe. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
- ^ Neville, Marilyn (1961). "Scenic Splendours of the Eastern Districts". OurStory. U.G.H.S Borderer. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
- ^ ISBN 3642228712.
- ^ Hyde, M.A.; et al. "Plant records: Chirinda Forest". Flora of Zimbabwe. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
- ^ Leeuwenberg, A. J. M. "Strychnos mellodora S. Moore". Flora Zambesiaca: FZ volume:7 part:1 (1983) Loganiaceae. Kew. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
- ^ Müller, Tom (2006). "The distribution, classification and conservation of rainforests in eastern Zimbabwe" (PDF). Occasional Publications in Biodiversity No. 19. Biodiversity Foundation for Africa. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
- ^ ISBN 1841624608.
- . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ ISBN 0-86925-156- 2.
- ^ Sclater, W. L. (1921). Bull. Brit. Orn. Club 41 (134)
- ^ Lynes (1930). Ibis. Suppl: 229
- ^ Bannerman, 1913. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, 31:56
- ^ "Chirinda Forest (Eastern Highlands)". Birding in Zimbabwe. Birdlife Zimbabwe. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
- ISBN 9781868720408.
- ^ a b Pringle, et al., 1994
Further reading
- Armitage FB (1965). Project Document: Chirinda Forest. Forestry Commission (Ref. 784/FBA/EHC), Gungunyana Forest Research Station, Chipinge.
- Goldsmith B (1976). The trees of Chirinda forest. Rhod. Sci. News 10:41-50.
- Hoffmann, Annette. Chirinda Forest Reserve in Simbabwe – südlichster tropischer Regenwald Afrikas, afrikascout.de
- Mapaure I (1997). A floristic classification of the vegetation of a forest-savanna boundary in south-eastern Zimbabwe. Bothalia 27(2):185-195.
- Mujuru L, Kundhlande A (2007). Small-scale vegetation structure and composition of Chirinda Forest, southeast Zimbabwe. Afr. J. Ecol. 45:624-632.
- Müller T (1991). Rainforests of Zimbabwe. Unpublished report, National Herbarium and Botanic Garden, Department of Research Specialist Services, Harare.
- Swynnerton, CFM (1918). Some factors in the replacement of the ancient East African forest by wooded pasture land. S. Afr. J. Sci. 14, 493-518
- Timberlake J (1991). Tour report - Chirinda, Haroni and Rusitu Forests. Internal report, Forest Research Centre, Harare.
- Timberlake J (1992a). Findings from a comparison of aerial photographs of Chirinda forest from 1959 to 1987. Unpublished Report, Forest Research Centre, Harare.
- Timberlake J (1992b). Chirinda Forest: Conservation of a Rainforest in Zimbabwe. Paper presented at the SAREC International Symposium on Ecology and Conservation of Indigenous Forests, July 1992, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.
- Timberlake J (1994b). Changes in the extent of moist forest patches in the Eastern Highlands: Case studies based on aerial photographs. Forest Research Paper No. 7. Forestry Commission, Harare.
External links
Media related to Chirinda Forest Botanical Reserve at Wikimedia Commons
- Photos of Peawood in the Eastern Highlands, Iziko Museums