List of ecoregions in South Africa

The following is a list of ecoregions in South Africa, as identified by the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Terrestrial ecoregions[]

Listed by major habitat type

Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests[]

• Knysna-Amatole montane forests
• KwaZulu-Cape coastal forest mosaic
• Maputaland coastal forest mosaic – Subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion on the Indian Ocean coast of Southern Africa.
• Southern Zanzibar-Inhambane coastal forest mosaic

Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands[]

• Kalahari Acacia-Baikiaea woodlands
• Southern Africa bushveld
• Zambezian and mopane woodlands – Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands ecoregion of southeastern Africa.

Montane grasslands and shrublands[]

• Drakensberg alti-montane grasslands and woodlands – High altitude ecoregion in South Africa
• Drakensberg montane grasslands, woodlands and forests – Ecoregion in Swaziland, South Africa and Lesotho comprising grassy lower slopes of the Drakensberg
• Highveld grasslands
• Maputaland-Pondoland bushland and thickets

Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub[]

• Albany thickets – Afrotropic terrestrial ecoregion of dense woodland in South Africa
• Lowland fynbos and renosterveld
• Montane fynbos and renosterveld

Deserts and xeric shrublands[]

• Kalahari xeric savanna – Semi-arid sandy savanna ecoregion in Southern Africa
• Nama Karoo – Xeric shrubland ecoregion on the central plateau of South Africa and Namibia
• Succulent Karoo – Desert ecoregion of South Africa and Namibia

Tundra[]

• Southern Indian Ocean Islands tundra – Ecoregion of several subantarctic islands in the southern Indian Ocean

Mangroves[]

• Southern Africa mangroves – Ecoregion of mangrove swamps in rivers and estuaries on the eastern coast of South Africa

Freshwater ecoregions[]

by bioregion

Zambezi[]

• Kalahari

Southern Temperate[]

• Amatole-Winterberg Highlands
• Cape Fold
• Drakensberg-Maloti Highlands
• Karoo
• Southern Kalahari
• Southern Temperate Highveld
• Western Orange

Marine ecoregions[]

• Benguela ecoregion – Ecoregion off the coast of South Africa
• Agulhas ecoregion – Ecoregion off the coast of South Africa
• Natal ecoregion – Marine ecoregion on the eastern coast of South Africa
• Delagoa ecoregion – Marine ecoregion on the eastern coast of southern Africa
• Prince Edward Islands – Two small sub-Antarctic islands belonging to South Africa

References[]

• Burgess, Neil, Jennifer D’Amico Hales, Emma Underwood (2004). Terrestrial Ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: A Conservation Assessment. Island Press, Washington DC.
• Spalding, Mark D., Helen E. Fox, Gerald R. Allen, Nick Davidson et al. "Marine Ecoregions of the World: A Bioregionalization of Coastal and Shelf Areas". Bioscience Vol. 57 No. 7, July/August 2007, pp. 573–583.
• Thieme, Michelle L. (2005). Freshwater Ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: A Conservation Assessment. Island Press, Washington DC.