Udzungwa Mountains

Spread across the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania’s Udzungwa Mountains National Park boasts a diverse range of natural habitats including tropical rainforest, mountain forest, miombo woodland, grassland and steppe. This vast expanse of unspoiled wilderness serves as a habitat for over 400 animal species. These include, among others: elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard, African wild dog, six different species of primate, and a variety of birdlife. Udzungwa Mountains are one of the most important areas in Africa for primate diversity and conservation, with two endemic monkeys (Udzungwa red colobus Procolobus gordonorum and Sanje mangabey Cercocebus [galeritus] sanjei), and the near-endemic kipunji monkey Rungwecebus kipunji, a new genus and species discovered in 2004 and found in Udzungwa and Southern Highlands. With six species of galagos, or bushbabies, the area is also of exceptional importance for nocturnal primates. The form of Mountain galago Galagoides orinus occurring in the Udzungwa Mountains appears to be distinct on the base of vocalizations, and further work will be required to assess its taxonomic status.