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Vegetation
The vegetation of the Zambezi Basin is varied, as
would be expected of such a large area spanning
mountaintops to sea level. In terms of broad vegetation
types, almost half of the Basin is classified as
wetter or drier Miombo woodland.
Other types are Mopane woodland, Mosaics of various
types of woodland, dry forest including that dominated
by Zambezi teak, with grassland and open
woodland dominated by various species of acacia.
Miombo and Mopane woodland contain few
species of restricted distribution. However, the vegetation
of the Montane biome is species rich and is
markedly different from surrounding areas. It is restricted
to the Misuku Hills, Nyika Plateau, Shire Highlands
and Mount Mulanje in Malawi, and the Nyanga
Mountains in Zimbabwe. Vegetation types found in
these upland areas are rainforest, montane grassland
and a fynbos-like shrub land on the highest plateaux.
Woodland plants
Woodland covers much of the Zambezi Basin and it
is here that most of the Basin’s people live. The
major woodland tree species are Brachystegia,
Julbernardia, Mopane and Zambezi teak.
Species composition depends primarily on soil type
and climate. Mopane are dominant in the lower, drier
areas of the valley floors on clay-rich soils. Miombo
occupies most of the remaining woodland area with
Brachystegia spiciformis being particularly widespread
and Julbernardia globiflora in drier areas south of the
Zambezi or on stony soils.
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