Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
way to the sea. Places where this is possible include Dar es Salaam's South
Beach, Ushongo beach (south of Pangani) and Mafia island. The modest fee is
split between Sea Sense, to support their nest protection program, and local vil-
lage environment funds. In this way, community members are able to benefit
directly from their conservation efforts. If you'd like to watch a sea turtle nest
hatching, contact Sea Sense (info@seasense.org).
Plants
Tanzania's Unesco World Heritage Sites
»Mt Kilimanjaro NP
»Kondoa Rock-Art Sites
»Ngorongoro Conservation Area
»Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani
»Songo Mnara
»Serengeti NP
»Selous Game Reserve
Patches of tropical rainforest in Tanzania's Eastern Arc mountains provide home to a rich
assortment of plants, many found nowhere else in the world. These include the Usambara
or African violet (Saintpaulia) and Impatiens, which are sold as house plants in grocery
stores throughout the West. Similar forest patches - remnants of the much larger tropical
forest that once extended across the continent - are also found in the Udzungwas, Ulugurus
and several other areas. South and west of the Eastern Arc range are stands of baobab.
Away from the mountain ranges, much of the country is covered by miombo ('moist'
woodland), where the main vegetation is various types of Brachystegia tree. Much of the
dry central plateau is covered with savannah, bushland and thickets, while grasslands cover
the Serengeti Plains and other areas that lack good drainage.
Amani Nature Reserve and Kitulo National Park are among the country's botanical high-
lights, and Kitulo is one of Africa's few parks with wildflowers as its focal point.
THE EASTERN ARC MOUNTAINS
The ancient Eastern Arc mountains (which include the Usambara, Pare,
Udzungwa and Uluguru ranges) stretch in a broken crescent from southern
Kenya's Taita Hills down to Morogoro and the Southern Highlands. They are
estimated to be at least 100 million years old, with the stones forming them as
much as 600 million years old. Their climatic isolation and stability has offered
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