of the population, although this figure would . undoubtedly be higher 
if those one year old birds which had just conipleted their moult 
to adult plumage were included. The majority of these birds were 
recorded on the periphery of the colony and commenced breeding 
after the first birds to breed had finished and their chicks left 
the nests# 
Any similar instances of birds breeding whilst still immature 
or partly immature plumages would be of great interest# 
K.L.I. Campbell, Biology Dept, University of Exeter, 
p.t* Malawi Cormorant Project, Fisheries Training Centre, 
Mpwepwe, Private Bag, Mangochi, MALAWI 
THE FOREST VEGETATION AT THE HOTEL BAOBAB, UKUNDA 
The above hotel is situated on a cliff on the South Coast, 
Kenya# Behind this hotel is a forest which is not very much modif- 
ied by humein activities apart from the road which passes through it 
from Mombasa to Lunga Lunga. 
On 51st August this year, I had a privilege to accompanv 
members of the Kenya Agricultural Teachers Association (KATA) to the 
South Coast. Their last place to visit that morning before going 
to Mombasa was the Hotel Baobab. Because the vegetation was 
strikingly not as much disturbed as between Ukunda and Mombasa, 
I decided to note the kind of plants species securing there. 
By the time we left I had noted that the forest was the type 
described as Tropical Moist Forest (l.D.C.N, )*• The trees grew to 
over 13 metres and had mainly two layers or strata. In the top 
canopy, dominated by tall trees, was an association of Cussonia , 
Ficus, Combretum, Cossonia zimmermanii and two species in the 
genus Ficus did not have either flowers or fruits but the 
Combretum ap, had winged straw coloured fruits. Other very common 
trees in this canopy were the Ad an a on i a di/^it ata , the Baobab from 
which the hotel got its name, Mark ~ ami a sp and Millett ia sp# 
In the lower canopy were the shrubs mainly Grewia g 1 an du l o.s_a , 
a bush with four sided fruits which had grey hairs. A scandent 
bush with, opposite glossy leaves, though no flowers, and two fruits 
from one stalk — follicles, helped me to place it in the family 
Apocynaceae . 
At the same height but at the edge of the forest was occuring 
very commonly the Trema orientalis . This tree occurs on forest 
edges right from the coast to highland areas above 1 ,830 m. Also 
in open areas at forest edges was growing the tall guinea grass, 
Panic urn maximum. 
137 
