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afrol News, 28 September - Two new coastal and marine reserves in Mozambique grant the critically endangered dugong and the ancient coelacanth an important haven. The parks, also comprising rich coral reefs and typical African "safari game", will be opened to sustainable eco-tourism. Traditionally seen by sailors as the evocative mermaid, the dugong is a marine mammal living among seagrass beds in only a handful of places in the world's tropical seas. The coelacanth is an ancient inhabitant of these waters. First discovered in the ocean off Mozambique in the 1950s, its close relatives were already swimming here at the time of the dinosaurs. The government of Mozambique recently declared Qurimbas Archipelago a national park, and extended full protection to the Bazaruto Archipelago National Park. The areas together host an immensely rich marine and land-based life. In addition to dugongs and coelacanths, they provide shelter for a wide range of marine animals such as the whale shark, four dolphin species and five of the world's seven marine turtles. The waters are also visited by mink and humpback whales during their annual migration. The parks further contain important populations of fish and invertebrates. In Bazaruto, the sea is teeming with around 800 fish species and the coral reefs in Quirimbas are made up of 50 genera of coral, making the park one of the richest coral reef areas in the world. The land part of the two parks is made up of extensive coastal forests and miombo woodlands, in places extending all the way down to the shore. Here, important populations of elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo and African hunting dog have their home. - But these riches are threatened by a range of human activities, the conservation group WWF warns, "stemming from increasing human pressure on the natural resources in the region." Coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds and fish populations have been decimated by destructive fishing such as the use of dynamite and poison, and loss of traditional management practices. In Quirimbas, the mounting number of conflicts between wildlife and people had also "increasingly resulted in the tragic death of both animals and people." Another looming threat was the growing tourism industry along the coast, which mostly is not regulated to take environmental considerations. A sustainable form of tourism is therefore to be introduced in the parks, where the local population "will be able to gain livelihood" from the arrivals, WWF notes. WWF says it is working to establish a network of well-managed protected areas to conserve marine and coastal biodiversity in the East African Ecoregion, as well as in other threatened and biologically rich parts of the world. The creation of the Quirimbas and Bazaruto National Parks was "an important step towards this goal." Both wildlife and people living in these two magnificent areas were to benefit from the protection, WWF says. "Food security will be asserted as fish stocks are protected," ecotourism would have a positive impact on livelihood, and the spectacular marine and terrestrial life would be granted a future. Bazaruto Reserve is a candidate for listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today, the government of Mozambique will receive WWF's 'Gift to the Earth' award "for its exemplary decisions to create the Quirimbas and Bazaruto National Parks."
Sources: Based on WWF and afrol archives
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