Category: African Ecoregions

I’m visiting Kinshasa, in the Western Congolian Forest-Savanna Mosaic (AT0723) Ecoregion, but not much birding to be done in this city. I always have breakfast in the pleasant outdoor area of the Pullman Hotel, ringed by potted papyrus. Each morning, there is a flock of little yellow siskin-like birds dashing in and out, stealing crumbs. They are… Continue reading “Dr. Pasha’s weaver, I presume?”

The Zambezian Baikiaea Woodlands Ecoregion (AT0726) extends over a large area of Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The ecoregion is dominated by Baikiaea plurijuga, commonly known as Zambezian teak, although it is not related to the true teaks of southeast Asia. See some photos of this impressive tree, which defines the ecoregion, at the link above. I’m writing… Continue reading Zambezian Baikiaea Woodlands: trophy hunting for the birds?

I’m on the shores of the northernmost part of Lake Tanganyika, in the city of Uvira, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The ecoregion here is the Albertine Rift Montane Forests Ecoregion (AT0101), one of three ecoregions that border the lake. The photo below shows the mountains that sweep down to the lake; now denuded in… Continue reading Lake Tanganyika: at the foot of the Albertine Rift Montane Forests

Have just visited in April 2015 a small part of the Zambezian and Mopane Woodlands Ecoregion (AT0725) (see the link for a map and general description): the vicinity of the Lower Zambezi National Park in Zambia and stunning Victoria Falls, on the Zimbabwe side. The ecoregion generally is dominated by the remarkable mopane tree (Calaphospermum mopane), or butterfly tree.… Continue reading Zambezian and Mopane Woodlands: carbon-based birds