DERIVATION OF THE FAUNA 31 



land veldt zone, which is characterized by its rolUng prairies 

 of grass and its verdant appearance. Green rolHng prairies 

 are, however, only one of its features. Much of it is cov- 

 ered by scattered growths of acacia trees or weird candela- 

 bra euphorbias. The altidudinal range extends from three 

 thousand to eight thousand feet, with correspondingly great 

 differences in temperature. The region, however, is uni- 

 formly well watered, but the rainy seasons are irregular 

 except in the western or Uganda section. There is scarcely 

 an antelope which is peculiar to the whole zone, although 

 many are peculiar to certain parts of it. Antelope which 

 are found only in the veldt zone are the wildebeest, Thom- 

 son gazelle, Jackson, Uganda, Kongoni, and Nakuru 

 hartebetsts, klipspringer, steinbok, and the five-horned 

 giraffe. Many others share this zone with the nyika. 

 Such are the black rhinoceros, quagga zebra, common 

 eland, topi, bushbuck, waterbuck, kob, roan, dikdik, oribi, 

 reedbuck, suni, and various species of duiker, wart-hog, 

 and bush pig. 



Extending above the veldt zone we find the highland 

 forest, ranging from six thousand to ten thousand feet in 

 altitude. It is a uniformly dense assemblage of trees of 

 mixed tropical and mountain affinities and strikingly dif- 

 ferent in appearance from our northern forests. The well- 

 known families to which our oaks and beeches belong are 

 not represented, their places being taken by trees belong- 

 ing to families of the higher flowering plants peculiar to the 

 tropics. The pines and firs are likewise lacking, the only 

 'representatives of the conifers being a single species of 

 juniper and two species of African yew. The rose family, 

 to which most of our fruit-trees belong, is likewise conspicu- 



