The Mpingo Conservation Project : Mpingo 2003 Expedition

The full report of the expedition is still in progress. There follows a brief account of the fieldwork.

Mpingo 2003 was the sixth expedition from the Mpingo Conservation Project. The expedition advance party of Jon d'Este Hoare and Ruth Williams arrived in Dar es Salaam on the 26th June 2003, with the remaining 3 British members, arriving over the next couple of days. On arrival in Tanzania the advance party met up with the four students from the University of Dar es Salaam and arranged for the whole group to meet up on the evening of 28th. We then visited the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania before obtaining the necessary research permits from the Commission for Science and Technology. A trip was also made to the Mwenge carvers market to consult with the mpingo carvers and determine a minimum circumference of timber they would use for carvings. The final team member of the expedition arrived in Dar es Salaam on the Saturday evening from his work at the National Arboretum in Arusha, northern Tanzania.

In previous years the search for a suitable 4WD vehicle has posed many problems and this year was no exception. After searching in Dar es Salaam Jon went north to Arusha and Moshi on the 29th accompanied by Yohana Pius, who we were employing to help us find a vehicle and drive for us. A vehicle was eventually found with the help of a veteran from previous Mpingo expeditions, Jonas Timothy. Jon and Yohana arrived back in Dar es Salaam on the 2nd of July along with Jimmy the driver/mechanic supplied with the vehicle. To reduce living costs five members of the expedition left Dar es Salaam on the 30th and caught the bus down to Kilwa Masoko while the four remaining team members purchased all the necessary equipment and provisions in Dar es Salaam. On the morning of the 4th July all of the team was assembled in Kilwa and after making contact with Utumi and the District Forestry Office the first camp was made a few kilometres from the village of Kizimbani.

The first day in the field was spent preparing equipment and running through the methodology of the research we were to undertake so as to unsure the whole team was up to speed with what we would be doing for the next five weeks. During our time in the field we worked at five different sites collecting a total of 180 sets of plot data.

Within plots all trees greater than sapling size were identified where possible and classified according to size. We measured all mpingo trees for girth, height and canopy area as well as estimating the length of straight trunk and rating fire damage on simple scales. The distance and species of the nearest trees in different size categories was noted. Within each plot a sub-plot was examined for the presence of seedlings as well as the nearest trees. Finally if the plots included harvested mpingo the height of the stump, basal circumference and quantity of 'potentially usable waste' recorded using the information acquired from carvers at the market in Dar es Salaam.

The general modus operandi was that the evening prior to a day's work the plots to be recorded by the following day would be selected and the co-ordinates from our selected 'drop-off' point would be worked out. Two people would stay at camp each day while the others drove to the previously selected point, split into two groups and used a compass and stop watch to locate their allotted plots for the day. With leaving camp between 6.30 and 7am each day we could be back at camp by 2pm.

As well as studying four sites new to the Mpingo Conservation Project we were also able to re-visit the village of Migeregere where the 1998 expedition was based. This was a site of great interest, as it had been believed the timber in this area was not of a high enough quality to warrant harvest. However while we were there it was a site of great harvesting activity, enabling us to gather lots of data on felling practices and carry out an interesting interview with the men employed in harvesting the timber, both from the village and from else where. Most of the men employed in the harvest were not from the village but moved around following the harvest operation. They were responsible for finding the next site to harvest; a good approach for the sawmill as they have not got to employ any specifically to search out sites, safe in the knowledge that if the harvesters want to work they will also look for logging sites for them. The men were paid per log as long as the log was of the desired circumference, quality and length. The length required was only 1 m of straight timber, with out exception from our observations taken from the base of the tree. This created considerable waste which was left in the field and apparently rarely made use of.

As well as the random data plots we decided to carry out transects at four of the five sites to supplement the data on harvest waste we collected from our plots. Each transect site was an area we had identified where the density of harvested mpingo was very high. At each transect the quantity of 'usable' waste was recorded, the standard measurements made of the standing mpingo and all herbaceous species recorded around both standing and felled in mpingo in a 5m radius.

Jon and Kija made contact with the mpingo sawmill at Ikiwirri owned by Mahmood International where Mr Suliman Ali was very helpful in giving us information on the areas Mahmood have harvested over the previous seasons. We were also able to visit the head offices in Dar es Salaam and make contact with Mr Mahmood himself. Although guarded in his approach towards us and not forthcoming with a great deal of information about his business we hope that, having now met a representative of the Mpingo Conservation Project, help and information in the future may be more forth coming.

The greatest problem we encountered in the field this summer was with the vehicle. It was hired to us as a working vehicle in good condition, which it had appeared initially. Unfortunately this was not the case and after three weeks use and several breakdowns it was decided the hire contract had been broken due to the unreliability of the vehicle and we could no longer continue with its use, not least because of the dangers involved of using such vehicle. This decision was made easier thanks to the help of Utumi who were able to lend us one of their vehicles and drivers for much of the remaining fieldwork. We were very fortunate with respect to medical problems. The most serious problem occurred in the last week when one of the British team members picked up a stomach bug and had an uncomfortable night of vomiting and diarrhoea.

On return to Dar es Salaam contact was made with Mr Ndangalasi at the University of Dar es Salaam and a productive discussion was had about the fieldwork and how the Mpingo Conservation Project and the Botany Department at the university could work together in the future. The soil samples were analysed at the university laboratories. We also carried out an interview with Mr Mkeya of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism. He was very helpful and able to give us information on amongst other things harvesting figures for mpingo timber going back five years and the procedure of obtaining licences to harvest.

The Team

Jon d'Este Hoare (UEA), Tom Heath (UEA), Robert James, Ayubu Juma (UDSM), Canisius Kayombo (NHT), Ng'habi Kija (UDSM), Asuaka Motani (UEA), Emanuel Sangu (UDSM), George Sangu (UDSM), Ruth Williams (UEA)