Data Zone
Country/territory: Zambia
IBA criteria met: A3 (2001)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 9,300 ha
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2010 | favourable | low | medium |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2001 baseline)
A large private farm on the banks of the Kafue river and close to its headwaters. It lies between the Chingola–Solwezi road and the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Much of the area is rich miombo woodland which is interspersed with dambo and mushitu. Some sections of the Kafue are fringed with tall riparian forest and others spread onto wide flood-plains. At the heart of the farm is a long-established chimpanzee orphanage which has received considerable attention from the international media (though chimpanzees are not indigenous to Zambia). This aspect of the farm continues to grow and develop; 5,300 ha has been fenced in order to establish a private game reserve and within this area, 1,000 ha has been fenced for chimpanzees. Cattle are farmed on the remaining 4,000 ha. Visitors are welcome, there are chalets, a campsite and an education centre, and there are plans to build a lodge and an airstrip.
Key biodiversity
See Box and Table 3 for key species. The area is rich in Zambezian biome endemics, including Stactolaema whytii, Lybius minor, Eremomela atricollis, Phylloscopus laurae, Plocepasser rufoscapulatus and Lamprotornis acuticaudus. As well as those already mentioned, a wide range of mushitu species includes Musophaga rossae, Mesopicos griseocephalus, Campephaga quiscalina, Sheppardia bocagei, Trochocercus cyanomelas, Telophorus multicolor and Estrilda perreini. Grus carunculatus is a rare visitor.
Non-bird biodiversity: None known to BirdLife International.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage (Zambia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/chimfunshi-wildlife-orphanage-iba-zambia on 22/11/2024.