Eastern Africa Coastal Forests - A Global Ecoregion

A bird-lover's paradise

About the Area
A belt of lowland forests that run along the coast of eastern Africa from southern Somalia to the Mbemkuru River in southern Tanzania constitutes this ecoregion.

Like the forests of the Eastern Arc Mountains, this moist forest ecoregion has long been isolated from other regions of tropical moist forests by expanses of drier savannas and grasslands. Thus, much of the forest biota is endemic to the region, and there is significant local endemism in both plants and animals.

The East African Coastal Forests have a long history of climatic stability. Abundant rainfall carried by warm Indian Ocean winds has created an ideal environment for a wide diversity of species, many of which are found nowhere else. Many of the plant species display remarkable adaptations to sandy, nutrient-poor soils that cover much of the ecoregion.

Local Species
The East African Coastal Forests are a bird-lover's paradise with bird species such as the Clarke's weaver (Ploceus golandi), Sokoke scops owl (Otus ireneae), Pemba sunbird (Nectarina pemba), Fischer's tauraco (Tauraco fishceri), and the Tana River cisticola (Cisticola restrictus).

The forests also have their share of mammals including the Pemba Island flying fox (Pteropus comorensis), Sokoke dog mongoose (Bdeogale omnivora), Zanzibar red colobus (Piliocolobus kirkii), Tana mangabey (Cercocebus galeritus), and the Zanj elephant shrew (Rhynchocyon petersi).

Threats
Most of this area has been heavily settled for many years and only a few blocks of lingering forest remain widely distributed and isolated throughout the ecoregion. Looking for wood to fuel their fires and space to grow their crops, local people have cleared much of the region's forests.

Resources
• NationalGeographic.com