EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Umbrella in the Tropics

Umbrella Acacia (Vachellia tortilis), Family Fabaceae
South Luongwa National Park, Zambia

Explanation:  It is not raining here, but the umbrellas are out!  

We are in tropical Africa, in the thorny savanna of eastern Zambia, in the wonderful South Luangwa National Park that hosts a rich variety of iconic wildlife species ... including African elephants, leopards, spotted hyenas, wildebeest, and much more.  

Providing shade, food, resting and nesting sites, and other uses, is this also-iconic species of the savanna:  the umbrella acacia.  

Seed pods of the umbrella acacia provide food consumed by elephants, rhinos, and ungulates of the region, which then travel and disperse the seeds that regenerate the woodland.  Other uses of this tree include as firewood and fencing; the gum is edible and chewed; the bark is a source of tannin and dye; and other products and uses.  

Umbrella acacias are highly drought-resilient and form an important element of the savanna for faunal communities, human communities, and ecosystem services including soil nitrogen fixation and erosion control.

But, for this traveler, the most obvious service of this hardy tree is its umbrella shade in the hot savanna sun!