. The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests: Africa. SAO Tome and Principe Biodiversity The rain forests of Sao Tome and Principe are remarkable for the high levels of endemism found in both tlieir flora and fauna. There are 601 plant species known from Sao Tome and 314 from Principe. Sao Tome has one endemic genus and 87 single-island endemic species ( percent of the indigenous flora), while Principe has one endemic genus and 32 single-island endemic species ( per cent of the total). Of the 194 plant species endemic to the Gulf of Guinea islands, only 16 occur on more than one island
. The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests: Africa. SAO Tome and Principe Biodiversity The rain forests of Sao Tome and Principe are remarkable for the high levels of endemism found in both tlieir flora and fauna. There are 601 plant species known from Sao Tome and 314 from Principe. Sao Tome has one endemic genus and 87 single-island endemic species ( percent of the indigenous flora), while Principe has one endemic genus and 32 single-island endemic species ( per cent of the total). Of the 194 plant species endemic to the Gulf of Guinea islands, only 16 occur on more than one island. This emphasises the high degree of isolation under which these floras evolved and suggests that each island received its flora separately from the mainland. Birds are the most numerous and important group of terrestrial vertebrates. There are five endemic genera and 26 endemic species. Many sur\'ive well in human-altered habitats, but others are con- fined to undisturbed primary forest. Seven species are listed by Collar and Stuan (1985) as being threatened and others may give cause for concern (Jones and Tye, 1988). Indeed, the forests of south-west Sao Tome have been ranked second in importance in a list of 75 key forests for threatened birds in Africa (Collar and Stuart, 1988). The threatened species include the maroon pigeon Colwnba thomensis, Sao Tome scops owl Otus hanlaubi, the dwarf olive ibis Boslrychia bocagei and the Sao Tome white-eye Zostewps fkedulimis. The only indigenous mammals on both islands are bats and shrews. Of the five species of bat recorded, one, the Sao Tome little collared fruit-bat Myonyacns brachyccphala, is an endemic species and two are endemic subspecies. The Sao Tome white-toothed shrew Cwcuiiini tlioiiioisis is endemic to that island, v\hile there is an endemic subspecies of a mainland shrew on Principe. All the larger mammals have been Figure Forest cover on Sao Tome and Principe (.Soincc: BDPA, I0S5). dos Angolores o 10 km Smiles Lowl
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