Mopane

Mophane woodland covers Botswana’s north and east – the phane caterpillars gathered there are a delicacy and a source of income for many rural families.

Mopane is a tree or shrub of the legume family that forms tall woodland on fertile, deep soils and low, dense scrub on shallow or saline ones. Its leaves, made up of two half-moon-shaped leaflets, look like a butterfly and fold together in the greatest heat to reduce water loss. The leaves smell of turpentine and are important fodder for elephants and cattle in the dry season. The very hard, dark wood resists termites and is used for poles, fencing and firewood.

Significance in the country

The caterpillars of the emperor moth Gonimbrasia belina, called phane in Botswana, are gathered from mophane leaves after the rains, gutted, boiled and dried; they are a prized, protein-rich food and a market commodity. The mophane woodlands of the Chobe region are a stronghold of one of the largest elephant populations in Africa.

Where it grows

Forms extensive woodland and scrub in the north and east of the country – in North-West District (including the Chobe region), in Central District as far as the Limpopo valley, and in North-East District.

According to the World Checklist of Vascular Plants (Kew), the species is native to this country. Source and licence

More: Wikipedia (en) Wikipedia (pl) Plants of the World Online (Kew)