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The Mutomo hill plant sanctuary, Kenya
90
Biological Conservation
shown us, to help stone corals revive quickly by trans- reliable water supply, and the cutting out and clearing planting. of paths to allow visitors access to all parts of the area; Another danger to undersea creatures is caused by for although the paramount object of the sanctuary is foul water that has become polluted in the works of the preservation of its indigenous flora, it must be exploitation, reclamation, and construction, and then easily accessible to students of plant and bird life and poured into the sea from rivers. The damage is also provide facilities for a protracted stay. Besides, a very great, and is increased by effluents from factories primary consideration which swayed the County and by chemicals descending in drainage from the Council in favour of the project was the attraction of fields. visitors who, by spending money locally, would conThus we see that difficulties of conserving undersea- tribute to the affluence of an otherwise poor district. scapes lie not only in the open sea, but may originate on Mr Classen informed me of his venture at a time the land. In order to preserve marine parks satisfac- when Dr F. Vollmar, Secretary-General of the World torily, it is necessary that the areas of the parks should Wildlife Fund, mentioned to me the intention of his extend on land as well as into the sea. This is also organization to expand their activities beyond the desirable if full use is to be made of such parks. preservation of wild animals to that of indigenous plants and representative examples of v e g e t a t i o n - TUYOSI TAMURA, for their own sake and not merely as incidentals to the President, Marine Parks Center of Japan, preservation of fauna. Toranomon Denki Bl. 15, Here, then, was a worthy opportunity for the World Shiba-Nishikubo-Akefunecho, Wildlife Fund to come to the rescue - - doubly signifiMinato-ku, cant because it was the first instance of active coTokyo, Japan operation of this kind by an African Administrative b o d y - and after some initial hesitation as to the value of the sanctuary on account of its minute size (approx. 4 acres or 1.6 ha), funds for its development THE MUTOMO HILL PLANT SANCTUARY, were granted. Additional, less important but equally KENYA welcome donations were received from the International Organisation for the Study of Succulents, from Plant conservation in its own right, and especially Mr J. Bonefaas, Den Haag, Holland, from M. Julien vegetation sanctuaries, are still rare in Africa, and were Marnier-Lapostolle, Jardin Botanique 'Les C6dres', non-existent in tropical East Africa until the urgent St Jean-Cap-Ferrat, France, and from Mlle Lucie Vogt, need for them became acutely felt in some quarters. Zumikon, Switzerland. Here, as elsewhere in the world, the population In 1966, Dr Vollmar visited the Mutomo Hill explosion has had very serious consequences, leaving Sanctuary with Mr Classen, and was greatly impressed widespread deterioration of the indigenous flora in its with its wealth of plant life and scenic charm. His visit wake. provided great encouragement to the District CounIn 1964, Mr George A. Classen, MBE, for many cillors, who subsequently increased the sanctuary to years connected with the Kenya Ministry of Agricul- about 5 times its original acreage, i.e. to about 20 ture, persuaded the County Council of the remote acres (8 ha). A whole ridge, about ¼ mile (1211 m) Kitui District to set aside, and protect from destruc- long, rising from the red, lateritic plain to almost 200 tion by local herdsmen, wood-gatherers, charcoal- ft (61 m), is now contained within its new boundaries. burners, and honey-collectors (these last often causing On the few occasions on which we collected samples widespread damage by fire when smoking out bees), a of its vegetation, we accumulated about 150 plant portion of Mutomo Hill, a ridge of weather-worn specimens on the initial 4 acres; this is only a fraction granitoid gneiss. Mr Classen's object was to keep of the sanctuary's total floristic wealth. intact its rich and varied vegetation, which includes a Faunistically, at least so far as mammals are congreat wealth of succulents and other xerophytic plants. cerned, Mutomo Hill is comparatively poor: Baboons, At the start the County Council granted protection which normally abound in such country, are absent; for a few acres only, but even so Mr Classen was Hyrax, on the other hand, are common, and so are embarrassed concerning the financial aspect of the Galagos. Shrews and other rodents occur, as well as scheme he had initiated. For the policing and perma- Lizard sand Geckos. The bird life is rich and deserves nent maintenance of the sanctuary, the Council closer study. generously put two men at his disposal, but funds had Mutomo Hill Sanctuary is situated about 100 miles to be found for the demarcation of the boundary, the (160 km) from Nairobi. By travelling on the Mombasa construction of a resthouse and camping site with a road as far as Kibwezi, one can cover two thirds of the
91
Conservation Around the Worm
road on tarmac. From then onwards, the road is good and serviceable during most of the year; only after very heavy rainfall may it become impassable for a few days. Mutomo Village, two miles distant from the sanctuary, boasts a native hospital and an airstrip for small planes to allow for emergency visits of the 'flying doctor'. PETER R. O. BALLY, Conservatoire Botanique de l'Universitk, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
tific Society Council and asked to express their deep concern over the Bill. The response to the request was such that Members and the Speaker and the Administrator of the Territory received many letters from both inside and outside Papua and New Guinea, urging non-support of the Bill. A considerable amount of lobbying was also carried on by Councillors of the Scientific Society and by some members of the public, who discussed the question with Members of the House whenever possible. The Bill came before the House for the second reading in August 1965, and was eventually defeated. DOROTHY E. SHAW,
BIRDS OF PARADISE BILL IN PAPUA AND NEW GUINEA
In 1965 a Private Member's Bill was introduced into the House of Assembly of the Territory of Papua and New Guinea which, if passed, would have allowed these birds to be captured or killed for trading purposes by persons holding a special Bird of Paradise licence. Concern was felt over the Bill in that it would have sanctioned the reopening of the long-banned export trade in plumes. It was also considered that it would be most impracticable to police the regulations, and that if the Bill came into force it might, even with only a single brief open season annually, lead to the complete extinction of some species of Birds of Paradise. These birds are not easily bred in captivity, and where the progeny may consist of only one young bird per year, numbers could not be quickly built up if they were depleted. The small additional income which some persons would have obtained from the sale of the plumes could not in any degree compensate the community for the extinction of even one species of these unique birds. Consequently, members of the public and particularly some bodies such as the Papua and New Guinea Scientific Society and the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals strove to present the case against the Bill both to the public and to Members of Parliament. The Scientific Society, for example, circularized each Member of the House of Assembly in three languages (English, Motu, and Pidgin), setting out the case against the Bill, and expressing the hope that Members would not support a Bill which would result in the destruction of Birds of Paradise, especially in the face of the growing recognition of the need for conservation of fauna and flora by many countries in the world. In addition, overseas bodies and institutions interested in conservation were approached by the Scien-
Councillor and Hon Secretary, Papua and New Guinea Scientific Society, c/o Dept. of Agriculture, Stock and Fisheries, Konedobu, Papua
LAND-USE AND CONSERVATION IN WEST MALAYSIA
Malaysia comprises two parts: East Malaysia consists of Sarawak and Sabah, occupying the northern coast of the island of Borneo; West Malaysia - - or the States of M a l a y a - - c o n s i s t s of the previous Federation of Malaya, that is the Malay Peninsula excluding the island of Singapore. These notes refer to West Malaysia only (or Malaya as it is more simply known). The phytogeographic region of much wider extent is now called Malesia to avoid ambiguity (see Fig. 1). In West Malaysia various government departments are concerned with aspects of conservation. The Forest Department maintains the forest estate for productive and protective purposes, examples of the latter being catchment areas (although they are sometimes under the control of other bodies). Most of our
Fig. i. South-East Asia and Northern Australia. West and East Malaysia are shown in black. The broken line surrounds the Malesian phytogeographic region.
Biological Conservation
shown us, to help stone corals revive quickly by trans- reliable water supply, and the cutting out and clearing planting. of paths to allow visitors access to all parts of the area; Another danger to undersea creatures is caused by for although the paramount object of the sanctuary is foul water that has become polluted in the works of the preservation of its indigenous flora, it must be exploitation, reclamation, and construction, and then easily accessible to students of plant and bird life and poured into the sea from rivers. The damage is also provide facilities for a protracted stay. Besides, a very great, and is increased by effluents from factories primary consideration which swayed the County and by chemicals descending in drainage from the Council in favour of the project was the attraction of fields. visitors who, by spending money locally, would conThus we see that difficulties of conserving undersea- tribute to the affluence of an otherwise poor district. scapes lie not only in the open sea, but may originate on Mr Classen informed me of his venture at a time the land. In order to preserve marine parks satisfac- when Dr F. Vollmar, Secretary-General of the World torily, it is necessary that the areas of the parks should Wildlife Fund, mentioned to me the intention of his extend on land as well as into the sea. This is also organization to expand their activities beyond the desirable if full use is to be made of such parks. preservation of wild animals to that of indigenous plants and representative examples of v e g e t a t i o n - TUYOSI TAMURA, for their own sake and not merely as incidentals to the President, Marine Parks Center of Japan, preservation of fauna. Toranomon Denki Bl. 15, Here, then, was a worthy opportunity for the World Shiba-Nishikubo-Akefunecho, Wildlife Fund to come to the rescue - - doubly signifiMinato-ku, cant because it was the first instance of active coTokyo, Japan operation of this kind by an African Administrative b o d y - and after some initial hesitation as to the value of the sanctuary on account of its minute size (approx. 4 acres or 1.6 ha), funds for its development THE MUTOMO HILL PLANT SANCTUARY, were granted. Additional, less important but equally KENYA welcome donations were received from the International Organisation for the Study of Succulents, from Plant conservation in its own right, and especially Mr J. Bonefaas, Den Haag, Holland, from M. Julien vegetation sanctuaries, are still rare in Africa, and were Marnier-Lapostolle, Jardin Botanique 'Les C6dres', non-existent in tropical East Africa until the urgent St Jean-Cap-Ferrat, France, and from Mlle Lucie Vogt, need for them became acutely felt in some quarters. Zumikon, Switzerland. Here, as elsewhere in the world, the population In 1966, Dr Vollmar visited the Mutomo Hill explosion has had very serious consequences, leaving Sanctuary with Mr Classen, and was greatly impressed widespread deterioration of the indigenous flora in its with its wealth of plant life and scenic charm. His visit wake. provided great encouragement to the District CounIn 1964, Mr George A. Classen, MBE, for many cillors, who subsequently increased the sanctuary to years connected with the Kenya Ministry of Agricul- about 5 times its original acreage, i.e. to about 20 ture, persuaded the County Council of the remote acres (8 ha). A whole ridge, about ¼ mile (1211 m) Kitui District to set aside, and protect from destruc- long, rising from the red, lateritic plain to almost 200 tion by local herdsmen, wood-gatherers, charcoal- ft (61 m), is now contained within its new boundaries. burners, and honey-collectors (these last often causing On the few occasions on which we collected samples widespread damage by fire when smoking out bees), a of its vegetation, we accumulated about 150 plant portion of Mutomo Hill, a ridge of weather-worn specimens on the initial 4 acres; this is only a fraction granitoid gneiss. Mr Classen's object was to keep of the sanctuary's total floristic wealth. intact its rich and varied vegetation, which includes a Faunistically, at least so far as mammals are congreat wealth of succulents and other xerophytic plants. cerned, Mutomo Hill is comparatively poor: Baboons, At the start the County Council granted protection which normally abound in such country, are absent; for a few acres only, but even so Mr Classen was Hyrax, on the other hand, are common, and so are embarrassed concerning the financial aspect of the Galagos. Shrews and other rodents occur, as well as scheme he had initiated. For the policing and perma- Lizard sand Geckos. The bird life is rich and deserves nent maintenance of the sanctuary, the Council closer study. generously put two men at his disposal, but funds had Mutomo Hill Sanctuary is situated about 100 miles to be found for the demarcation of the boundary, the (160 km) from Nairobi. By travelling on the Mombasa construction of a resthouse and camping site with a road as far as Kibwezi, one can cover two thirds of the
91
Conservation Around the Worm
road on tarmac. From then onwards, the road is good and serviceable during most of the year; only after very heavy rainfall may it become impassable for a few days. Mutomo Village, two miles distant from the sanctuary, boasts a native hospital and an airstrip for small planes to allow for emergency visits of the 'flying doctor'. PETER R. O. BALLY, Conservatoire Botanique de l'Universitk, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
tific Society Council and asked to express their deep concern over the Bill. The response to the request was such that Members and the Speaker and the Administrator of the Territory received many letters from both inside and outside Papua and New Guinea, urging non-support of the Bill. A considerable amount of lobbying was also carried on by Councillors of the Scientific Society and by some members of the public, who discussed the question with Members of the House whenever possible. The Bill came before the House for the second reading in August 1965, and was eventually defeated. DOROTHY E. SHAW,
BIRDS OF PARADISE BILL IN PAPUA AND NEW GUINEA
In 1965 a Private Member's Bill was introduced into the House of Assembly of the Territory of Papua and New Guinea which, if passed, would have allowed these birds to be captured or killed for trading purposes by persons holding a special Bird of Paradise licence. Concern was felt over the Bill in that it would have sanctioned the reopening of the long-banned export trade in plumes. It was also considered that it would be most impracticable to police the regulations, and that if the Bill came into force it might, even with only a single brief open season annually, lead to the complete extinction of some species of Birds of Paradise. These birds are not easily bred in captivity, and where the progeny may consist of only one young bird per year, numbers could not be quickly built up if they were depleted. The small additional income which some persons would have obtained from the sale of the plumes could not in any degree compensate the community for the extinction of even one species of these unique birds. Consequently, members of the public and particularly some bodies such as the Papua and New Guinea Scientific Society and the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals strove to present the case against the Bill both to the public and to Members of Parliament. The Scientific Society, for example, circularized each Member of the House of Assembly in three languages (English, Motu, and Pidgin), setting out the case against the Bill, and expressing the hope that Members would not support a Bill which would result in the destruction of Birds of Paradise, especially in the face of the growing recognition of the need for conservation of fauna and flora by many countries in the world. In addition, overseas bodies and institutions interested in conservation were approached by the Scien-
Councillor and Hon Secretary, Papua and New Guinea Scientific Society, c/o Dept. of Agriculture, Stock and Fisheries, Konedobu, Papua
LAND-USE AND CONSERVATION IN WEST MALAYSIA
Malaysia comprises two parts: East Malaysia consists of Sarawak and Sabah, occupying the northern coast of the island of Borneo; West Malaysia - - or the States of M a l a y a - - c o n s i s t s of the previous Federation of Malaya, that is the Malay Peninsula excluding the island of Singapore. These notes refer to West Malaysia only (or Malaya as it is more simply known). The phytogeographic region of much wider extent is now called Malesia to avoid ambiguity (see Fig. 1). In West Malaysia various government departments are concerned with aspects of conservation. The Forest Department maintains the forest estate for productive and protective purposes, examples of the latter being catchment areas (although they are sometimes under the control of other bodies). Most of our
Fig. i. South-East Asia and Northern Australia. West and East Malaysia are shown in black. The broken line surrounds the Malesian phytogeographic region.