SALAMBALA CONSERVANCY SPECIAL HABITATS What is a habitat? A habitat is a type of place (environment) where an organism or population of organisms live. Habitats are characterised by the living (e.g. vegetation, animals) and non-living (e.g. environment, soil, water) components that give them their unique characteristics. Salambala Conservancy special habitats are thought to be of particular importance in biodiversity conservation. These habitats are species rich and are home to some high value, rare and endangered species. Losing these habitats will result in a nett loss of Biodiversity. Members of the Salambala Conservancy have identified three habitats as being of particular importance. These are (a) Mopane woodlands, (b) Floodplains among the Chobe River and (c) Seasonal pans Mopane Woodlands Mopane Woodlands supply wood resource to the community. Wood can be used for commercial use, for firewood and as construction materials. If the forest is not well managed, it would lead to a decline in the productivity of the mopane tree, as well as the many other non-timber forest products, including wild foods, medicinal plants, grazing and wildlife. Floodplains Flood plains are flat areas dominated by grasslands and old river channels. They consist of wet and dry habitats with rich soil. During annual floods floodplains become inundated and fish migrate from the river into floodplains, which provides breeding and feeding habitats for the fish. Floodplains are rich and highly productive. They support a wealth of bird life, aquatic animals, plants and specialized floodplain antelope such as lechwe and waterbuck. They also provide grazing to domestic livestock. Pans Pans are shallow, ephemeral pools, which receive water usually from local rainfall or flooding of rivers. Salambala Conservancy has 7 major pans, which are: Salambala, Mazibabili, Nyete, Itebe, Satwe, Mugubashu and Sisuma. Pans provide habitat and source of drinking water for many species, including the endangered wattled crane, many waterfowl, wildlife and domestic stock. Good management for these pans is an important part of overall ecosystem biodiversity management. For further information please contact Namibia Nature Foundation at P.O. Box 245, Windhoek, Namibia, Tel: +264 61 248345, Fax: +264 61 248344, email: nnf@nnf.org.na, website: http://www.nnf.org.na Photos and Materials courtesy of Caprivi Profile, Biological Diversity in Namibia- a Country Study, DEA, Chris Weaver and P.Tarr. This poster was produced by Kapala Hoge as part of the project ‘CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES FROM THE SUSTAINABLE USE OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY IN THE COMMUNAL LANDS OF SOUTHERN AFRICA’