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People travel from all over the globe to catch a glimpse of the amazing biodiversity this region has to offer. In fact, a description of the Zambezian and Mopane Woodlands ecoregion reads like a travel brochure. Rough-barked mopane trees blanket the flat, low-lying plains. Interspersed with mopane trees are occasional thorny acacia trees or huge baobab trees. Often referred to as "upside-down trees" because their thick branches resemble roots, baobab trees can live as long as 1,000 years. Here you can see some of the largest and most significant wildlife populations in Africa. Elephants, rhinos, hippopotamuses, buffalo, wildebeest, giraffes, kudus, lions, leopards, cheetahs, and spotted hyenas are just some of the mammals that fill the landscape. This amazing biodiversity is protected in a number of national parks and reserves such as Kruger National Park in South Africa, Chobe National Park in Botswana, and the Luangwa National Parks in Zambia.
This region is made up mostly of flat and undulating river valleys and arid woodlands. The pace of life here is affected by seasonal changes in rainfall, with most of the rains falling between November and April each year. This ecoregion embraces several of southern Africa’s major rivers, occupying the bulk of the Zambezi, Luangwa, Shire, and Limpopo river valleys. The woodlands of this region are filled with amazing plants such as rare and beautiful cycads, and medicinal plants such as wild ginger and pepperbark trees. And Juliana’s golden moles, one of the few endemic species that can be found in this ecoregion, live hidden away in underground burrows. Throughout the Zambezian and Mopane Woodlands, the mopane tree dominates the landscape. Depending on rainfall and soil quality, it can be short and shrubby in some areas and rise up to more than 80 feet (25 m) high in others. Mopane worms, which are eaten by local people, munch on the trees’ butterfly-shaped, glossy green leaves, while elephants knock the trees down and rip them apart to feed on their bark and leaves. Towering giraffes nibble on the leaves of acacia trees, and endangered black rhinos browse on shrubs and acacias in the safety of national parks. Magnificent herds of blue wildebeest migrate throughout the region looking for fresh green grasses as the rains end and the ground dries up. Zebras nuzzle and groom each other. Medium-sized antelopes called impalas spring gracefully through the air as they flee from hungry lions and other predators such as wild dogs and leopards. Sleek cheetahs race at breakneck speeds in pursuit of spiral-horned kudus. Birds known as oxpeckers perch on top of antelopes and rhinos, feeding on ticks and insects.
Despite the fact that about half of this ecoregion is protected, a steadily growing human population, demanding more land and other finite resources, continues to pose a significant threat to the ecosystem. Some protected areas are still occupied by veterans of Zimbabwe’s war of independence, resulting in rampant poaching, cutting of trees, and clearing of land for cultivation. Conservancies in Zimbabwe contain a significant proportion of the world’s black rhino population. Many of the animals in this region are threatened by illegal hunting. For example, black rhinos are killed for their horns. And predators such as wild dogs are killed by farmers and ranchers who view them as pests. Ranching is a threat to native wildlife in other ways as well. Not only does it displace native ungulates, but fences put up to keep cattle in also impede the movements of migratory animals such as elephants and wildebeest. Yet another growing threat to this region is the invasion of alien plant species, which cover up to 20 percent of the land area in some places. For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report. All text by World Wildlife Fund © 2001
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