Current view: Text account
Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
Pangani District is centred on the Pangani river which enters the Indian Ocean at the town of Pangani. The land slopes gently away from the coast to meet rolling hills. There are four Forest Reserves listed for Pangani District: Msumbugwe (4,407 ha), Garafuno (195 ha, shared with TZ054), Jasini (117 ha) and Mangrove-Pangani (600 ha mangrove), of which the latter two are not thought to be of importance for birds and are excluded from the IBA. There may also be some coastal forest in the Mkwaja Ranch area worthy of investigation.
See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. Some 56 forest-dwelling birds are listed from Msumbugwe, including coastal forest species such as
Pogoniulus simplex,
Dicrurus ludwigii,
Phyllastrephus fischeri,
Neocossyphus rufus,
Macrosphenus kretschmeri and
Erythrocercus holochlorus. Local rarities include
Muscicapa caerulescens,
Bias musicus and
Anthreptes neglectus. Records of
Pogonocichla stellata during August suggest an overwintering population of this altitudinal migrant. More intensive fieldwork is likely to discover the endangered
Zoothera guttata, especially during migration in May and November, and may also locate
Anthus sokokensis and migrant
Pitta angolensis.
Non-bird biodiversity: There are endemic mammals, reptiles, amphibians and plants. The tree Stuhlmannia moavi is considered endemic to the area.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Msumbugwe is much degraded due to easy access and large shipments of wood are removed illegally. The edges of the reserve are far too often damaged by fires. Additional survey work is needed. The Mkwaja Ranch area may be included within the future boundaries of a Saadani–Zarininge National Park (see TZ046).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Pangani District Coastal Forests (Tanzania). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/pangani-district-coastal-forests-iba-tanzania on 22/11/2024.
