Luba Caldera Scientific Reserve (6380)
Equatorial Guinea, Africa
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Global KBA criteria: A1e, B2
Year of last assessment: 2018
National site name: Réserva Cientifica de la Caldera de Lubâ
Central coordinates: Latitude: 3.3500, Longitude: 8.5500
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 0 to 2261
Area of KBA (km2): 510.7502
Protected area coverage (%): 100.00
KBA classification: Global
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: This site, centred on the volcanic Mount Luba in southern Bioko, is one of the wettest places in the world; annual rainfall may reach 10,000 mm. It includes the only undisturbed lowland forest on Bioko which merges, in an unbroken catena, into montane forest above 800 m. The terrain is extremely rugged. There is one village within the reserve, with fewer than 200 inhabitants, while some 2,000 people, living along its borders or close to them, make use of the site.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the thresholds for at least one criterion described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs. Alliance for Zero Extinction (2018): site confirmed as an AZE site during the AZE project (2015-2018). Taxonomy, nomenclature and Red List category follow the IUCN 2016 Red List.
Additional biodiversity: See Box and Table 2 for key species. To date, 120 species have been recorded, but future fieldwork may be expected to reveal more. Those so far recorded, in addition to the endemic Batis poensis (found only in lowland forest), include 35 species which occur as endemic races on Bioko. This site is the only place in Bioko where populations of larger, hunted species such as Ceratogymna atrata and Bostrychia hagedash occur. Non-bird biodiversity: Five primate species of global conservation concern occur; Cercopithecus preussi (EN), C. erythrotis (VU), Colobus satanas (VU), Procolobus badius (LR/nt) and Mandrillus leucophaeus (VU). The population of the last is possibly the largest remaining. Four species of turtle—Chelonia mydas (EN), Eretmochelys imbricata (CR), Lepidochelys olivacea (EN) and Dermochelys coriacea (EN)—nest on the southern beaches.
Habitats
Land use: hunting | nature conservation and research
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 11 | |
| Forest | 81 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 6 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: Although identified as a protected area since 1988, the site was given legal status only in 2000, as a Scientific Reserve. No official protection measures have been implemented, but the Spanish NGO Asociación Amigos de Doñana worked in the area between 1992 and 1998, on a turtle conservation and ecotourism project. Threats include commercial hunting of mammals and birds.
Additional information
References: Butynski (1996), Butynski and Koster (1994), Butynski et al. (1996), Eisentraut (1973), Exell (1973), FAO (1992), Fernández Casas and Morales (1995), García (1996), Pérez del Val (1996), Pérez del Val et al. (1994), Pérez del Val et al. (1995), Tomás et al. (1999).