Umuganzacyaro (Buffalo Thorn)
Ziziphus mucronata
A deciduous tree (3-10m, occasionally to 17m) with zigzag branchlets bearing paired thorns - one straight, one hooked backward. Its round fruit ripens from green to deep brown-red and is an important food source for wildlife and livestock alike.
- Kinyarwanda name
- Umuganzacyaro
- English name
- Buffalo Thorn
- Scientific name
- Ziziphus mucronata
- Family
- Rhamnaceae
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)
Habitat
Highly adaptable: open woodland, scrubland, rocky outcrops, grassland and forest margins, especially alluvial soils and termite mounds near water.
Distribution
Widespread across sub-Saharan Africa's summer-rainfall zone, from South Africa north to Ethiopia and into Arabia; confirmed present in Rwanda.
Uses
Fencing.
Ecological importance
Flowers attract large numbers of insects and are a good bee-forage/honey source; fruit is eaten by birds; leaves and fruit are browsed by giraffe, impala and livestock.
Ibisobanuro
Kuzitira isambu.