Mozambique Protects Mount Mabu Community Conservation Area to Safeguard Wildlife

The government of Mozambique established the Mount Mabu Community Conservation Area through an official decree published on August 24, Good News Network reported. The new decree sets aside 23,000 acres to protect one of the wettest locations in southern Africa. The area is widely known as the butterfly forest. [1]

Good News Network reported that the newly protected area serves as a habitat for more than 200 butterfly species. The region and its isolated mountain chain slopes contain high rates of endemism, meaning many species are found exclusively within this specific ecosystem. [1]

Mount Mabu reaches an elevation of approximately 1,700 metres in northern Mozambique, where its rainforest covers around 7,000 hectares. Although local communities knew of the area, scientists only visited the location in 2005 after researchers identified potential wildlife hotspots using satellite imagery from Google Earth. [4]

Initial scientific expeditions to the mountain were conducted by researchers from the Mulanje Mountain Conservation Trust alongside ornithologists, followed by scientists from the Kew Royal Botanic Gardens in 2008. Mozambique shares land borders with Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Eswatini, and South Africa. [2][4]