Upper Rantabe Classified Forest (6562)
Madagascar, Africa

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed

Year of last assessment: 2001

National site name: Forêt Classée de la Haute Rantabe

Central coordinates: Latitude: -15.6667, Longitude: 49.3667

System: terrestrial

Elevation (m): 300 to 700

Area of KBA (km²): 336.23223

Protected area coverage (%): 22.20

KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD

Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: Upper Rantabe Classified Forest is located 90 km south-west of Maroantsetra. The terrain is a succession of mountains and valleys. The Vohilava river flows through the site, as do many permanent or seasonal streams. The vegetation is composed of intact and degraded low-altitude, dense, humid evergreen forest. The canopy layer of intact forest is composed of spur- and stilt-root trees 20–25 m high, dominated by Dalbergia and Tambourissa, while the mid-stratum is dominated by shrubs and abundant tree-ferns Cyathea, and the ground layer is formed of small plants and grasses. Secondary thickets in degraded forest are composed mainly of Solanum and Lantana bushes, and wild ginger Aframomum.

Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance because it meets one or more previously established criteria and thresholds for identifying sites of biodiversity importance (including Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, and Key Biodiversity Areas)

Additional biodiversity: See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. Eighty-two species are known from the site, of which 52 are endemic to Madagascar. All species of the Vangidae family characteristic of wet forests, and species characteristic of low-altitude forests, such as Newtonia fanovanae and Brachypteracias squamigera, are present at the site. Non-bird biodiversity: Lemurs: Varecia variegata (EN), Indri indri (EN). Carnivore: Fossa fossana (EN).

Habitats

Land use: forestry | nature conservation and research | urban/industrial/transport | water management

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The site is threatened by forest clearance, hunting, exploitation for wood, and gem-mining.

Additional information