The Minziro (Nature) Forest Reserve is a forest reserve in

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

along the

Kagera River The Kagera River, also known as Akagera River, or Alexandra Nile, is an East African river, forming part of the upper headwaters of the Nile and carrying water from its most distant source.Stanley, H.M., 1899, Through the Dark Continent, London: ...

in Bukoba District of

Kagera Region Kagera Region (''Mkoa wa Kagera'' in Swahili language, Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 Regions of Tanzania, administrative regions. The region covers an area of . The region is comparable in size to the land area of the Netherlands. Kagera Reg ...

. It protects one of the largest forests in Tanzania, of a forest type that is unique in the country. It was gazetted in 1947 and is situated at an elevation of around . in fairly level terrain. The forest is continuous with the Malabigambo Forest over the nearby Uganda border. The largest part consists of ''

Baikiaea ''Baikiaea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It includes six species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa. Species range from Nigeria eastwards to Uganda and Tanzania and south to Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Namibia. H ...

''–''

Podocarpus ''Podocarpus'' () is a genus of conifers, the most numerous and widely distributed of the podocarp family, the Podocarpaceae. ''Podocarpus'' species are evergreen shrubs or trees, usually from tall, known to reach at times. The cones have ...

'' seasonal swamp forests while the remainder is flooded acacia woodlands.

Wildlife

The Minziro Forest is similar to forests found in the Congo and Guinea, and consequently it contains flora and fauna that reach their eastern range limits here. Characteristic trees of swamp forests include '' Afrocarpus dawei, Heywoodia lucens, Mussaenda erythrophylla, Cassipourea ruwensorensis, Citropsis articulata, Manilkara obvata, Baikiaea insignis,'' and ''Uncaria africana''.Kamukala, G. L., and S. A. Crafter, eds. (1993). "Wetlands of Tanzania: Proceedings of a Seminar on the Wetlands of Tanzania, Morogoro, Tanzania, 27-29 November, 1991". Volume 10 of The IUCN Wetlands Programme. IUCN, 1993. 58 of the 245 bird species recorded in the reserve are not found outside Kagera in Tanzania, while 56 of these have only been seen in Minziro. In addition, more than 600 butterfly species are native here, surpassing any other forest in Africa.

Threats

The forest was formerly extensively logged for the valuable '' Afrocarpus dawei'' trees, which are now scarce, with only small specimens remaining.

Illegal logging Illegal logging is the harvest, transportation, purchase, or sale of timber in violation of laws. The harvesting procedure itself may be illegal, including using corrupt means to gain access to forests; extraction without permission, or from a p ...

is ongoing.

Pastoralists Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anima ...

have been entering the central grasslands illegally in search of grazing. They burn the grasslands which is detrimental to the over-wintering population of blue swallows, and also affects vegetation in the forest-grassland ecotone. In 2017, the

Bukoba Bukoba is a city with a population of 144,938 (2022 census), situated in the northwest of Tanzania on the south-western shores of Lake Victoria. It is the capital of the Kagera region, and the administrative seat for Bukoba Urban District. The ...

magistrate's court A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings. Courts * Magistrates' court (England and Wales) * Magistrates' cour ...

fined one trespassing pastoralist, and expressed dismay at the escalating damage to the environment.

References

{{reflist Bukoba Forest reserves of Tanzania Geography of Kagera Region Nature reserves in Tanzania Protected areas established in 1947 Victoria Basin forest–savanna mosaic Important Bird Areas of Tanzania