Usambara Mountains
Encyclopedia
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
in North-East Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
, approximately 70 miles (112.7 km) long and ranging from 20 to 40 miles (64.4 km) in width. Mountains in the range rise as high as 8,000 ft (2,440 m).
They are part of the Eastern Arc Mountains
Eastern Arc Mountains
The Eastern Arc Mountains are a chain of mountains found in Kenya and Tanzania. It comprises:* Taita Hills* North and South Pare* East and West Usambara* North and South Nguru* Ukaguru* Uluguru Mountains* Rubeho* Udzungwa Mountains* Mahenge Escarpment...
which stretch from Kenya through Tanzania, and are one of the world’s Biodiversity hotspots.The range is accessible from the towns of Lushoto
Lushoto
Lushoto is one of the eight districts of Tanga Region in Tanzania. It is bordered to the northeast by Kenya, to the east by the Muheza District, to the northwest by the Kilimanjaro Region and to the south by the Korogwe District.During the German colonial period from the 1890s to 1918 the area was...
in the west, and Amani
Amani
Amani may refer to:Places*Amani, Greece, a municipality on the island of Chios*Amani Nature Reserve, in Tanzania*Amani High School, in Kabul, AfghanistanPeople*Amani , a singer from Kenya*Amani Toomer, an American football playerOther...
in the east. The Usambaras are commonly split into two sub-ranges, the West Usambara and the East Usambara. The East Usambara is closer to the coast, receives more rainfall, and is significantly smaller than the west.
Geology and ecology
The Usambaras are fairly unique in that, being in East AfricaEast Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
, their unspoiled regions are covered in the tropical forest which today remains mainly in the west of the continent. The mountain range was formed nearly two billion years ago and due to a lack of glaciations and a relatively consistent climate, the rainforest has gone through a long term and unique evolution resulting in an impressive amount of endemism and an old growth cloud rain forest. (Lovett 1993) West and East Usambaras, are large ranges of Precambrian metamorphic geologic formations of acid-geneses pyroxenes and amphiboles. These mountains were formed by faulting and uplifting creating the drainage system of troughs which form many watersheds which provide water to a majority of the population of northeast Tanzania. (Lundgren 1980)
Considered tremendously significant ecologically, there are many protected zones throughout the range which are being expanded and contributed to by the Tanzanian government, associated NGO's and research teams, and donor countries such as Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. Several species are endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to the Usambara forests, including the Usambara Eagle-owl
Usambara Eagle-owl
The Usambara Eagle-Owl or Nduk Eagle-Owl is a species of owl in the Strigidae family.It is endemic to Tanzania.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:* BirdLife...
(Bubo vosseleri), the Usambara Akalat
Usambara Akalat
The Usambara Akalat , also known as the Usambara Alethe or Usambara Robin-chat, is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is endemic to Tanzania....
(Sheppardia montana), the Usambara Weaver
Usambara Weaver
The Usambara Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is endemic to Tanzania.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montanes and plantations .It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:...
(Ploceus nicolli) and the tree Calodendrum eickii
Calodendrum eickii
Calodendrum eickii is a rare forest tree from Tanzaniawhich is closely related to the widely cultivated Calodendrum capense ....
.
Human history
Historically the Usambara Mountains have been inhabited by Bantu, Sambaa, and Maasai people who were a mix of agriculturalists and pastoralists. In the late eighteenth century German colonialists came to the area bringing with them a mix of cash crops like lumber trees, coffee, tea, and quinine, and began designating forests as either reserves for water conservation or timber use. (Rogers 2009) They also brought a slew of new, western ideas which were in many ways diametrically opposed to traditional beliefs such as coexistence with the forest versus forest as a “separate wilderness.” (Korschun 2007) The result of colonialism was a massive change in the way forests were perceived in the community, and conversion of traditional agriculture to cultivating cash crops such as quinine, pine trees, bananas, corn, tea, and coffee.Development and tourism
Today, the population of the Usambaras has one of the highest growth rates (about 4% compared to the national average of 2.1%), a staggering amount of poverty and highest densities of people in all of Tanzania (R. Matthews 2009). Most of the inhabitants are subsistence farmers who rely heavily on the forests around them for timber, medicinal plants, clearing for agriculture, and fuel wood (S. Kiparo 2009). Furthermore 70% of the original forest cover of the West and East Usambaras has been lost (Doggart 2005). Major land and forest degradation remain a pressing issue.However there are still many places that attract tourists looking for an adventure off the beaten path. These include the bustling trade town of Lushoto
Lushoto
Lushoto is one of the eight districts of Tanga Region in Tanzania. It is bordered to the northeast by Kenya, to the east by the Muheza District, to the northwest by the Kilimanjaro Region and to the south by the Korogwe District.During the German colonial period from the 1890s to 1918 the area was...
, the once popular German resort Amani Nature Reserve
Amani Nature Reserve
Amani Nature Reserve is located in Tanga, Tanzania. It was established in 1997 in order to preserve the unique flora and fauna of the East Usambara Mountains....
and farm, and Mazumbai University Forest which is considered the last example of a pristine forest in the East Usambaras.