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Enhancing Wild Life and Habitat Conservation
within the Shimba Hills National Reserve

CONSERVATION AREA - FACTS AND FIGURES

THE SHIMBA NOTES (NUMBER ONE):

The CONSERVATION AREA (comprising both the Shimba Hills National Reserve and the Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary) consists of about 250 square kilometres.

The highest point is Pengo Hill, rising to about 500 m. above sea level.

The Reserve was gazetted in 1968, and since that time has been jointly managed by the Forestry Department and the national wildlife conservation authority, to-day known as the Kenya Wildlife Service.

The GEOLOGY of the area.

By a lifting process during the Pliocene (between two and ten million years ago) the Shimba Hills emerged as a part of the coastal ranges that occur intermittently along the East African littoral.

The area is composed of sedimentary rocks from the Duruma Sandstone series.

The SOIL composition of the area is classed as Shimba Grit and Mazeras Sandstone from the Upper Triassic Age (200 million years ago).

SABLE antelopes enjoying the sunshine of Shimba Hills.
PHOTO - COURTESY SABINE BAER

The fertility status of the soils is poor to very poor, owing to the very sandy top soils, low organic matter content, and excessive leaching.

Generally they are low in all available nutrients, and critically deficient in phosphorus.

The area is therefore marginal as agricultural land, and setting it aside for wildlife and forest conservation and utilisation would thus seem a more practical and profitable use.

The CLIMATE of the area is officially classed as "humid semi-hot equatorial to dry semi-hot tropical".

TEMPERATURES range from about 19°C to 36°C. the coldest months being July and August, the hottest temperatures being recorded just before the long rains break in February and March.

The METEOROLOGICAL conditions prevailing are dominated by the northeast trade winds ("kaskazi") between November and March, and by the southeasterly trade winds ("kuzi") from April to August.

RAINFALL varies between 500 and 1,500 mm. annually.

The wettest months are April to July, when just over half of the total yearly rainfall falls.

August to December are moist, with a slight increase of rainfall in October/ November.

Driest months are January and February.

Mean relative HUMIDITY is about 80 per cent, except in the dry season January - March. 

Potential EVAPORATION varies with the cloud cover, but is about 2,000 mm.

Thus, except during the wet season, evapotranspiration exceeds precipitation.

An annual average of 8.8 hours of SUNSHINE daily is experienced.

The brightest month is February, and the month with the least sunshine is May.

- FIONA ALEXANDER

NEW S.S.G. LOGO 

As can be seen, we have a splendid new logo.

This has been created by Pauline Groom, and not only has she invested style and artistry into the project, she has most generously donated the design to SSG. She may be contacted at P O BOX 10183, Mombasa, phone 485661, fax 486426.

NEWSLETTER SPONSORSHIP

We are indebted to Robbie Taylor of D-MAP Ltd,  everyone's favourite friendly garage in Diani, for generously sponsoring this issue of the SSG Newsletter.

Please do get in touch if you would like to sponsor an issue; a generous advertising space will be yours!

MEMBERSHIP 

Membership has inched tip since our last Newsletter, and now stands at 149 Individual and 10 Corporate Members.

Joining fee is KSh.500/- for individuals and KSh.2,000/- for Corporations.

We warmly welcome new supporters.

NEW MEMBERS SINCE Dec 2001

Johnno and Kimbo Beakbane, Peter and Grete Davey, Janine Davy, Bepe and Judith D'Inca, Mr and Mrs Jacob Manyara, Marshalls (EA), Vivek Mehta, Wangechi Muchemi.

DONORS AND SPONSORS

Baobab Farm limited, Eden Wildlife Trust, Flora Printers, Tibor Gaal, Christa Haller, Shimba Kenya, Dr Richard Leakey, Claudia Raven, Pauline Groom, C R Taylor (D-MAP LTD)

Our Contact:   SHIMBA SUPPORT GROUP: P.O. Box 81995, Mombasa, Kenya.
Phone 5486155/ 54855O1 ext.290 Email: baobabtrust@swiftmombasa.com

Copyright © '96, '97, '98, '99, '00, '01, '02, 2003. Coastweek Newspapers Ltd. 
All rights reserved.

Comments and questions: coastwk@africaonline.co.ke