The Southern ''Acacia''–''Commiphora'' bushlands and thickets is a tropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands ecoregion 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 ...

and

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

. It includes portions of

Serengeti National Park The Serengeti National Park is a large national park in northern Tanzania that stretches over . It is located in eastern Mara Region and northeastern Simiyu Region and contains over of virgin savanna. The park was established in 1940. The Se ...

and Ngorongoro Conservation Area, which are designated

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

s and

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

s for their outstanding wildlife and landscapes. It is one of three Acacia–Commiphora bushlands and thickets ecoregions in eastern Africa.

Geography

The Southern ''Acacia''–''Commiphora'' bushlands and thickets consist of two continuous blocks. The southern block lies west of the

Eastern Arc Mountains The Eastern Arc Mountains are a chain of mountains found in Kenya and Tanzania. The chain runs from northeast to southwest, with the Taita Hills being in Kenya and the other ranges being in Tanzania. They are delimited on the southwest by the fau ...

in Tanzania, in the drier

rain shadow A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side. Evaporated moisture from body of water, bodies of water (such as oceans and larg ...

of the mountains. It extends northeast-southwest, from the southern slope of

Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world, at above sea level and above its plateau base. It is also the highest volcano i ...

to the Usangu Plain at the edge of the Southern Highlands. Tarangire and Ruaha national parks are in the southern block. A belt of

miombo woodland Miombo woodland is a tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome (in the World Wide Fund for Nature scheme) located in central and southern tropical Africa. It includes three woodland savanna ecoregions (listed below) charac ...

, Serengeti volcanic grasslands, and

East African montane forests The East African montane forests is a montane tropical moist forest ecoregion of eastern Africa. The ecoregion comprises several separate areas above 2000 meters in the mountains of South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. Geography The East Af ...

separate the northern and southern blocks. The northern block lies to the east and south of

Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...

in southwestern Kenya and northern Tanzania. It includes the western portion of

Climate

The climate is tropical, with average rainfall of 600 to 800 mm. There are two annual rainy seasons – a long rainy season from March to May, and a short rainy season in November and December. During the long August to October dry season, the grasslands dry out and many trees lose their leaves.

Flora

The predominant vegetation types are open grassland, savanna, and open-canopy woodland, with species of ''

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

Commiphora ''Commiphora'' is the most species-rich genus of flowering plants in the frankincense and myrrh family, Burseraceae. The genus contains approximately 190 species of shrubs and trees, which are distributed throughout the (sub-) tropical regions of A ...

'', and ''

Crotalaria ''Crotalaria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Fabaceae (subfamily Faboideae) commonly known as rattlepods. The genus includes over 700 species of herbaceous plants and shrubs. Africa is the continent with the major ...

'' as the dominant trees, and '' Themeda triandra, Setaria incrassata,

Panicum coloratum ''Panicum coloratum'' is a species of grass known by the common names kleingrass, blue panicgrass Aristida adscensionis ''Aristida adscensionis'' is a species of grass known by the common name sixweeks threeawn. It is native to the Americas but it is distributed nearly worldwide. It grows easily in disturbed and waste areas and has potential to become a weed. Des ...

Andropogon ''Andropogon'' (common names: beard grass, bluestem grass, broomsedge) is a widespread genus of plants in the grass family, native to much of Asia, Africa, and the Americas, as well as Southern Europe and various oceanic islands. Over 100 speci ...

'' spp., and ''

Eragrostis ''Eragrostis'' is a large and widespread genus of plants in the Poaceae, grass family, found in many countries on all inhabited continents and many islands. ''Eragrostis'' is commonly known as lovegrass or canegrass. The name of the genus is de ...

'' spp. as the dominant grasses.

Fauna

The ecoregion is home to globally outstanding populations of large mammals, including great herds of

wildebeest Wildebeest ( , ,), also called gnu ( or ), are antelopes of the genus ''Connochaetes'' and native to Eastern and Southern Africa. They belong to the family Bovidae, which includes true antelopes, cattle, goats, sheep, and other even-toed ...

''(Connochaetes taurinus)'',

plains zebra The plains zebra (''Equus quagga'', formerly ''Equus burchellii'') is the most common and geographically widespread species of zebra. Its range is fragmented, but spans much of southern and eastern Africa south of the Sahara. Six or seven subspec ...

''(Equus burchelli)'', and

Thomson's gazelle Thomson's gazelle (''Eudorcas thomsonii'') is one of the best known species of gazelles. It is named after explorer Joseph Thomson (explorer), Joseph Thomson and is sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is considered by some to be a subspecies o ...

s ''(Gazella thomsoni)''. Large predators include

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

s ''(Panthera leo)'',

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant cat species in the genus ''Panthera''. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of with a ...

s ''(Panthera pardus)'',

spotted hyena The spotted hyena (''Crocuta crocuta''), also known as the laughing hyena, is a hyena species, currently classed as the sole extant member of the genus ''Crocuta'', native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is listed as being of least concern by the IUC ...

s ''(Crocuta crocuta)'',

cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...

s ''(Acinonyx jubatus)'', and

African wild dog The African wild dog (''Lycaon pictus''), also called painted dog and Cape hunting dog, is a wild canine native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest wild canine in Africa, and the only extant member of the genus '' Lycaon'', which is disti ...

s ''(Lycaon pictus)''.

Protected areas and conservation

33.17% of the ecoregion is in protected areas. Kenya's Masai Mara National Reserve (1510.0 km²), the northern and western portions of Tanzania's

(14763.0 km²), and Ngorongoro Conservation Area (8094.4 km²), are in the northern portion of the ecoregion. The three protected areas and adjacent smaller ones form a large connected wild area, which can accommodate the large annual migration of wildebeest, other grazing mammals, and predators from the adjacent Serengeti volcanic grasslands to the Acacia–Commiphora savanna at the May onset of the long dry season. Kenya's

Ruma National Park Ruma National Park is the only terrestrial park in Kenya's Nyanza Province. Dubbed the "Last Retreat of the Roan Antelope", the park protects the only indigenous population of rare roan antelopes within Kenya. At present, the population is on ...

protects 120.0 km² near the eastern shore of Lake Victoria.

Ruaha National Park Ruaha National Park is a national park in Tanzania. In 2008, the Usangu Game Reserve and other important wetlands were added to the park, increasing its size to about . The park is about west of Iringa. The park is a part of the Rungwa-Kizigo- ...

(14506.69 km²), Tanzania's largest, and adjacent game reserves and wildlife conservation areas preserve a broad swath in the southwest. Tarangire National Park (2615.8 km²) and the adjacent Lokisale, Simanjiro, Landanai, Ruvu Masai, Kitwai, Handeni game conservation areas, Masai and Talamai open areas, and Makame Wildlife Conservation Area, protect a large area in the northeast.''Protected Planet''. Accessed 13 September 2019
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Southern acacia-commiphora bushlands and thickets Afrotropical ecoregions Ecoregions of Kenya Ecoregions of Tanzania Grasslands of Kenya Grasslands of Tanzania Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands