The birds of Namuli: 2

Birding Namuli: base camp
Most of our observations were concentrated around the lower camp (1,250 m) and in Ukalini Forest, at the base of the main peak (1,550-1,850 m). The best birding is to be had higher up, but the lower area has its attractions, supporting a greater diversity of birds.

When Vincent visited Namuli, the valley above the camp site was forested (the Ukusini Forest) [4]. This has largely been cleared for agriculture, but remnants persist along a stream, and there are patches of secondary scrub. Namuli Apalis is abundant in this remaining forest and thicket, with pairs approximately every 50 m by the river. Thyolo Alethe is also common, with pairs every 150 m in the same area. Other species that are common here but scarce or absent at higher elevations include African Broadbill Smithornis capensis, Little Greenbul Andropadus virens, Eastern Nicator Nicator gularis, Red-capped Robin-Chat Cossypha natalensis, Ashy Flycatcher Muscicapa caerulescens and Black-throated Wattle-eye Platysteira peltata.

Thyolo Alethe Alethe choloensis (Claire Spottiswoode)

The lower valley also supports some well-developed miombo woodland, especially on the northern slope of the valley. Birds in the miombo include Rufous-bellied Tit Parus rufiventris, Red-faced Crombec Sylvietta whytii, Mozambique Batis Batis soror, Miombo Double-collared Sunbird Nectarinia manoensis, Western Violet-backed Sunbird Anthreptes longuemarei and Cabanis's Bunting Emberiza cabanisi. The dense miombo woodland also attracts some forest species, including the occasional Thyolo Alethe. Rank grassland around the lower camp are also worth searching for African Moustached Warbler Melocichla mentalis, Singing Cisticola Cisticola cantans and Croaking Cisticolas C. natalensis, Red-winged Warbler Heliolais erythroptera, Blue-billed Firefinch Lagonostica rubricata and African Citril Serinus citrinelloides.

Ukalini Forest
At present there are no habitations above 1,350 m, and the forests above 1,500 m are largely intact. The Ukalini Forest, nestling below the impressive granite dome of Mt. Namuli, appears little changed from Vincent's descriptions and photographs. It is still the same size (c80 ha) as it was when aerial photographs were taken of the area in 1966. This is where Vincent collected his sole specimen of Dapplethroat, and it was with some excitement that we ventured forth in search of this notoriously elusive bird.

We established camp near the lower edge of Ukalini Forest, and at dusk a rich, melodious whistle set our pulses racing. Dawn the following morning confirmed that the songster was indeed Dapplethroat, and that it was rather common here. We estimated that, in at least some areas, the density was 2-3 singing birds per ha, more than double that recorded at any other site [1]. The two mist-netted individuals confirmed that the nominate race, known only from Namuli, differs from the two Tanzanian races in being significantly more rufous on the wings and tail, and in having only very diffuse dappling on the throat and breast.

The other three globally threatened birds reported by Vincent were also still present in Ukalini Forest. Namuli Apalis was the most abundant bird other than Eastern Olive Sunbird Nectarinia olivacea, with a density of c13 birds per ha. Thyolo Alethe was the fifth most abundant species, following Stripe-cheeked Greenbul Andropadus milanjensis and White-tailed Crested Flycatcher Trochocercus albonotatus. We estimated the total population of Thyolo Alethe to exceed the 1,000 pairs estimated to occur at Mulanje [3], making Namuli the single most important site for this species. The birds here are recognised as being subspecifically distinct, having paler underparts than birds farther west. The belcheri race of Green Barbet was less abundant (perhaps only one pair every 10 ha), but still reasonably common throughout the forest and therefore also more abundant here than at Thyolo, where the population is estimated at less than 80 pairs [3].

Namuli Apalis Apalis (thoracica) lynesi (Callan Cohen)

The other five species completing the ten most abundant birds were White-starred Robin Pogonocichla stellata, Malawi Batis Batis (capensis) dimorpha, Livingstone's Turaco Turaco livingstonii, Yellow-streaked Greenbul Phyllastrephus flavostriatus and Eastern Double-collared Sunbird Nectarinia mediocris. Other interesting species found in Ukalini Forest included Bar-tailed Trogon Apaloderma vittatum, Scaly-throated Honeyguide Indicator variegatus, Placid Greenbul Phyllastrephus placidus, Orange Ground-Thrush Zoothera gurneyi, Evergreen Forest Warbler Bradypterus mariae, Black-headed Apalis Apalis melanocephala, Black-fronted Bush-Shrike Telophorus nigrifrons and Red-faced Crimson-wing Cryptospiza reichenovii. Two other species found in the highland forests are represented here by endemic subspecies: Yellow-throated Woodland-Warbler Phylloscopus ruficapilus quelimanensis and Olive-flanked Robin-Chat Cossypha anomala gurue, although the latter is often subsumed within the nominate race C. a. anomala.

Grassland birds
Surrounding the highland forests are montane grasslands, which range from short swards on the steep granite slopes with shallow soils to taller, swampy meadows in the hollows of the Muretha Plateau. These grasslands support fewer birds, but there are interesting populations of Wailing Cisticola Citicola lais and a rather dark form of African Pipit Anthus cinnamomeus. Other grassland species include Shelley's Francolin Francolinus shelleyi and Striped Pipit Anthus lineiventri, with Hildebrandt's Spurfowl Francolinus hildebrandti and African Yellow Warbler Chloropeta natalensis in bracken and rank grass at the forest edge.

Other noteworthy birds encountered outside the forests included Striped Flufftail Sarothrura affinis on the Muretha Plateau, a pair of Peregrine Falco peregrinus over the main peak, Cape Eagle Owl Bubo capensis calling in farm-bush at 1,300 m, and a large flock of Scarce Swift Schoutedenapus myoptilus over the foothills. We also made the first Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica record in Mozambique, with one pair apparently nesting in an outcrop in the grasslands below Mt. Namuli.

Conservation
We estimated that c1,300 ha of forest remains on the main massif between Gurué and Mt. Namuli. Assuming the avifauna of the southern forests to be similar to that at Ukalini Forest, Namuli is the single most important site for at least three globally threatened species, making it probably the most critical Important Bird Area in Mozambique. It urgently requires formal conservation protection.

At present, c7,000 people live in the Malema river valley, east of the main forest. Apart from grazing their goats and feral pigs on the grasslands surrounding the forests, humans have had little impact on areas above 1,500 m. Limited logging for local use occurs in Ukalini Forest, but this does not appear to present a serious problem at current rates of exploitation. Fires are set to improve grassland grazing, but burn into the forest edge and may pose a more serious threat.

To date, their relative remoteness and the lack of access for commercial logging has protected the forests. The steep scarps along the southern and western edges of the massif limit access to the eastern side, and even here the rudimentary track to Gurué does not readily permit access. The most serious threat facing the forests is that the road to Gurué could be upgraded to the point where logging trucks could use it.

Assuming the area can be saved from commercial logging, the challenge will be to prevent the gradual degradation of the remaining forests by the slow expansion of subsistence croplands and associated activities. One way to do this is to promote ecotourism to the area, and ensure that substantial benefits from this tourism accrue to the local people. Namuli has many attractions that could make it a successful ecotourism destination: spectacular scenery, a healthy climate and clean water, and interesting wildlife including an endemic bird and squirrel. In the short term most visitors are likely to be birders seeking Namuli Apalis. Birders visiting the area are encouraged to cooperate with the local people, provide positive feedback on the conservation importance of the Namuli forests, and offer some material assistance to the local community (e.g. through camping fees, hiring guides, donating food and medicines, etc.).

Acknowledgements
We are grateful for the financial support received from a BP Conservation Award and an African Bird Club grant.

References

1. Collar, N.J., Crosby, M.J. and Stattersfield, A.J. 1994. Birds to watch 2: the world list of threatened birds. Cambridge, UK: BirdLife International.
2. Collar, N.J. and Stuart, S.N. 1988. Key forests for threatened birds in Africa. Cambridge, UK: International Council for Bird Preservation.
3. Dowsett-Lemaire, F. 1989. Ecological and biogeographical aspects of forest bird communities in Malawi. Scopus 13: 1-80.
4. Vincent, J. 1933. The Namuli Mountains, Portuguese East Africa. Geogr. J. 81: 314-327.
5. Vincent, J. 1933-35. The birds of northern Portuguese East Africa. Comprising a list of, and observations on, the collections made during the British Museum Expedition of 1931-32. Ibis 13 (3): 611-652; 13 (4): 126-160, 300-340, 495-527, 757-799; 13 (5): 1-37, 355-397, 485-529, 707-762; 13 (6): 48-125.

Copyright © African Bird Club 1999. All rights reserved.