KITULO NATIONAL PARK

KITULO NATIONAL PARK

One of the two more recently gazette national parks, Kitulo is the first park in tropical Africa to be recognized largely for its floristic significance. Known locally as ‘God’s Garden’ or the ‘Serengeti of Flowers’, Kitulo plateau has had over 350 species of plants documented to date.

These include 45 species of orchids, many of which are not found anywhere else in the world. Also only found in Kitulo, and the Nundulu Mountain Reserve adjacent to Udzungwa Mountains National Park, the Kipunji – or Highlands Mangabey – is the rarest monkey in Africa. First discovered in 2003 it was the first new monkey genus established since 1923.

The plateau is also home to some important bird species, again many endemic to Tanzania, including the endangered blue swallow, Denham’s bustard, mountain marsh widow, Njombe cisticola, and Kipengere seedeater. Some of the world’s rarest butterflies inhabit the area.

Getting there:
By road from Dar es Salaam to Chimala, via Mbeya, and then only by a 4×4 vehicle.