Rwanda Vegetation

Much of Rwanda's natural rainforest - once covering a third of the country - has been cut down to make way for its ever-burgeoning population.

The only remaining large stands of forest remain at the Nyungwe Forest National Park and, to a lesser degree, the Volcanoes National Park - a mountainous area more dominated by rank vegetation and bamboo forest.

The forest at Nyungwe is a true rainforest (receiving more than 2 000mm of rain a year) and is one of Africa's oldest. It has a very high biodiversity - at least 200 species of tree and a similar number of orchids.

Montane grassland and moorland traditionally covered much of Rwanda's rolling highlands but terraced agriculture now dominates. This has led to serious soil erosion in some areas.

The poorer soils of the flatter east support typical open savannah and broad-leafed woodland species, acacias and grasses, similar to the classic savannahs and open woodland of East Africa.

The wetlands of the Akagera National Park are fringed by riverine forest and papyrus swamp.

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