Cenni monografici sul paese dei Gherire (Mogadiscio, 1938) – a pioneer work on the Gerire Hills in western Ogaden, south-eastern Ethiopia – introduced, translated and provided with annotations and a revision of the botanical collections

ABSTRACT

In the light of current knowledge and after a visit to the area, the author of this paper presents an annotated English translation (and in some places an interpretation) of the previously unpublished report of an Italian multidisciplinary expedition in 1937 to the Gerire Hills. At that time, these hills were part of the Governato della Somalia in the Italian East African Empire, but they are now part of the Somali Regional State of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. The 1937 expedition included specialists in mapping and topography, geology and hydrology, ethnography, agronomy, vegetation and indigenous flora, the latter documented by collections now at the Centro Studi Erbario Tropicale (Herbarium FT), University of Firenze. The report, signed by the leader of the expedition, was submitted to the Governor of Somalia in February 1938. A brief summary was published in a journal in the same year, but otherwise the rich information in this report remains virtually unknown and hardly utilised or cited anywhere. An exception is the botanical material, which has been discussed in a number of later publications, but, due to lack of knowledge of the information available in the original report, the ecology of the Gerire Hills was not well understood. The most important observations in the report relate to the detailed topographical mapping; the ethnological observations, according to which the Gerire language and culture are predominantly Somali, although also with significant Oromo influence; observations on the practices and long history of local agriculture; and the preliminary survey of the vegetation and flora, where the past importance of Juniperus procera woodland is documented.

KEYWORDS:

• Topography
• geology
• history
• East Africa
• ethnography
• ethnology
• land tenure
• agriculture
• local flora

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Eritrea had been an Italian colony since 1890 and Italian Somaliland since 1905. From June 1936 all these former colonies and the occupied Ethiopia were administratively integrated and termed ‘Africa Orientale Italiana’ (AOI) (Novati 2003, 2007). AOI was divided into ‘governi’, partly with boundaries significantly changed from the previous political and administrative units.

2. Emperor Gelawdewos was born in 1522, and ruled from 1540 to his death in 1559. The defeat of Ahmed Grahn was in the Battle of Wayna Daga on 21 February 1543.

3. Emperor Menelik II was born in 1844, and was Negus of Shewa from 1866 to 1889 and Emperor of Ethiopia from 1889 to his death in 1913. His south-western expansion of the empire was a continuous process, beginning in the 1890s and lasting throughout the time of his rule.

4. Ravenstein (in Ravenstein and Wakefield 1884, p. 259), stated: ‘To these honoured names [that have provided information on the geography of North East Tropical Africa], I now wish to add that of the Rev. Thomas Wakefield, who has laboured sedulously on the East Coast since 1865, and has allowed no opportunity for obtaining information on the Galla countries to escape him. Before his return to Eastern Africa in 1883, that gentleman placed in my hands a large volume of manuscript notes, and from these I have culled all such information as appeared to me to be of interest to geographers.’

5. The written information provided by Wakefield (Ravenstein and Wakefield 1884, p. 268) about the Gerire is this: ‘The Galla [Oromo] to the West of the Upper Webi: Five great tribes of Galla [Oromo] appear to occupy the country to the west of the Webi, besides some minor ones. The great tribes are the Ala, the Ania, and the Aroosi, Arusi, or Arusia, in the north; the Gerire, in the centre to the west of Ime; and the Aroosa in the south, as far as the Jub, which separates them from the Bworana.’

6. ‘Giunti sulle alture dei monti Adur – catena che divide i bacini del Giuba e del Webi – potetti scorgere il corso del Giuba, distinguere le numerose capanne disposte lungo le rive, prova dell’immensa popolazione di quella contrada. Da notizie raccolte sembrano che siano popolazioni confinanti con i Galla e con i Somali e assai bellicose. Arrestai la carovana sulle alture, perché estenuata dalle fatiche, e ivi sapemmo che le tribù in vista volevano ad ogni costo impedire il nostro passaggio. Di fronte a tale spauracchio non valsero incoraggiamenti, non promesse, non doni: i soldati si rifiutavano di proseguire. Con tutto ciò fissai la partenza per la domani. All’alba mi aspettava la triste sorpresa del mio campo abbandonato; mi rimasero fedeli sei uomini soltanto, i miei cacciatori. Era l’8 ottobre. Due partiti mi rimanevano davanti, precisi, netti: o spingermi al Sud, e in allora avrei dovuto distruggere tutte le mie collezioni, raccolte difese con amore e fatiche incalcolabili, per poter facilitare il passaggio del fiume Giuba; oppure, decimando risolutamente il bagaglio, (per salvar quelle), prendere la via del Nord-Est verso i possedimenti Inglesi. Credetti opportuno attenermi a questo secondo partito, nella speranza che le preziose collezioni non fossero inutili al progresso della scienza. Ammazzai i cammelli, abbruciai parte del numeroso bagaglio di provvigioni, quindi, sebbene i pochi soldati rimastimi fossero dominati dal panico, pure mi riuscirono a trascinarli ancora innanzi a nord verso il Lago Uamo o Sceghi Uamo, per ripiegare su Bessera, ripassai il Webi al paese degli Abdala nemici degli Sciabeli.’

7. ‘Rimontiamo il Dahuin, le cui rive verticali, alte parecchi metri, non sono rocciose, ma di terriccio, la cui compattezza fa meraviglia. Le montagne, da cui scende questo torrentello, sono selvagge d’aspetto e di vegetazione … Dalla sommità di questi monti, che dividono I due grandi bacini del’Uébi e del Giúba, si vede stendersi in basso l’immensa e svariata regione dei Gurra, dove le mimosa e le acacie costituiscono quasi tutta la massa vegetale … La vegetazione di queste montagne, si notevolmente elevate sui territorio intorno, è molto ricca. Vi sono piante simile a platani e ad Ulivi, e radici delle forma di grosse rape, che hanno diametro anche maggiore d’un metro.’

8. ‘5 febbraio. Partenza dalla zeriba Bòttego (Garbagare) ore 4.45 a.m. Abbiamo vicino un gruppo di montagne che formano un pittoresco e gradevole aspetto; è qualcosa di seducente e fa pensare … ai nostri monti d’Italia. La località è assai chiusa, anfrattuosa e con delle montagnette isolate ed anche oggi si deve lavorare molto per aprire un passaggio ai nostri cammelli. Ore 6.30 entriamo in un torrente che ci serve di strada, molto sabbiosa. Ha la sponda opposta alta circa otto metri … Ad onta di così critica circostanza (Il Riva, perché reumatizzato, risentiva molto del lungo viaggio a cavallo) riesco ad ammirare le meravigliose cime di un gruppo di montagne in varie direzioni e che formano delle muraglie immense e sembrano sbarrarci il cammino. Sulle creste di alcune di esse si scorgono direi dei veri castelli medioevali: niuno pensa a non crederli tali, tanta ne è l’illusione. Sono grandi massi monoliti con sfaldature sovrapposte, nulla proprio ci manca. Sembrano dei denti che sporgono da immani mascelle. Questa sarebbe la sede dei Ciclopi. Sono guglie, minareti, porticciolo, merlature con riflessi d’oro, d’azzurro, giacché il sole che sta per coricarsi manda lassù i suoi pallidi raggi … Percorriamo la strada a scalinata con dei massi incastrati nel mezzo. Io sono in continua tensione e spavento non di cadere, ma di vedere le mie gambe sfracellate dalle fenditure dei massi attraverso i quali noi discendiamo. Provo di andare a piedi, ma peggio. L’ingegnere (Borchard) è sempre avanti e pare perda la sua flemma tedesca. Gli ascari tagliano rami d’alberi e di cespugli che sono d’ingombro all’orrido sentiero. Finalmente, in fondo al burrone, scorgo l’ingegnere che sta guardando una spelonca sormontata da immane macigno. In essa si trova acqua limpidissima e fresca quanto mai. Ne abbiamo bevuto tanta melmosa; fuori della sorgente si trova un recinto, in cui scola il sovrabbondante dell’acqua della sorgente per formare in appresso un minutissimo ruscello. Quivi troviamo una zeriba abbandonata; dicono che anche in questa si sia fermato il Bòttego, ma certo dovrà esservi giunto da altra parte. 6 febbraio … Siamo nei monti Andò [Audo] e si rimane accampati nella stessa zeriba. Questa è una località assai cattiva, miasmatica. 8 febbraio. Il Principe, dopo pranzo, parte cogli ammalati e col suo seguito in cerca di località più buona, ed io pure vado seco; gli altri, Dalseno, Lucca e Borchard rimangono al campo e ci raggiungeranno domani col resto della carovana. Dopo un breve tratto, gli ascari cominciano a gridare: i Galla, i Galla e sparano delle fucilate. Io non so trattenerli perché sono disarmato e mi sento molto indebolito dalla febbre e dal chinino che ho preso in grandi dosi. Il Principe corre per osservare l’accaduto e rinviene un giovine galla agonizzante per avere ricevuto una palla nel petto. 9 febbraio. Di mattino, per tempo, partiamo per raggiungere il luogo destinato al nostro definitivo accampamento. Seguiamo il lungo e tortuoso torrente, invece di seguire una strada sul ciglio della sponda e ciò per errore o mal volere della guida. Finalmente arriviamo e troviamo grandi ristagni di acqua pessima…’

9. Swayne (1903, p. 148): ‘Eventually I started for Harar, armed with … a letter of recommendation to “all tribes whose countries I might pass through” drawn up at the [British] Residency, Aden; a note to Ras Makonnen from Signor Cecchi, the Italian Consul-General; and a “round robin” in Arabic, from Sheikh Mattar of Hargeisa, to all the mullahs, widads, and chiefs of the Malingilr and Rer Amaden Somalis, and of the Gerire Gallas beyond Ime [Imi].’ When actually at the Wabe Shebele, Swayne (1903, p. 243) noted: ‘We marched to Maaruf [Maruf], a landing-stage exactly opposite to Karanleh [Caranle], which was on the south side of the river. We passed through numbers of the Gilimiss people, who said they had come to the north bank for fear of the Gallas, … The people occupying the banks were Gilimiss Somalis … The Gilimiss cultivate on both sides of the river when not in fear of the Arussi (Gerire) Gallas, who live in the hills ten miles away to the south, and often raid along the south bank.’

10. ‘Vers Ouest, à notre droite, nous distinguons plusieurs rangées de hautes montagnes, en pays inconnu, au-delà du Wébi, plus loin que Imi, sur le territoire des Gallas. Nous remarquons surtout un sommet plus élevé que les autres; il a la forme d’un obélisque géant; les Somalis rappellent le Logoum-Ass’ (Ghika-Comăneşti 1898, p. 95). ‘Nous campons au pied d’une rangée de collines qui séparent le bassin du Wébi-Chébéli de celui du Wébi-Ganana, celui-ci étant représenté dans cette région par son affluent le Wébi-Webb. De l’autre côté de ces collines descendent de larges vallées silencieuses où nous pouvons rencontrer des girafes … Le 1er janvier 1896, pour saluer la nouvelle année, nous franchissons la ligne de partage des eaux du Chébéli et du Ganana, qui forme en même temps la limite entre les Aulihans et les Aroussi-Gallas. Devant nous s’étend une large vallée très verte, bordée au sud par une bande de collines, mais descendant en pente insensible, à perte de vue, dans la direction du Ganana. Après une bonne marche dans la matinée, nous atteignons vers midi le campement établi par le Comte Hoyos au point terminus de son expédition’ (Ghika-Comăneşti 1898, p. 126).

11. ‘Mentre poi quelli dei Darod che si erano stabiliti nella zona del Capo Guardafui premevano sugli Hawiyya spingendoli quindi lentamente verso lo Scebeli, gli altri Darod occupavano l’Ogaden spingendo anche lì – verisimilmente – innanzi altre genti somale: forse i Digil che appunto, come si è visto, vennero nelle loro odierne sedi dalla zona a Nord della grande curva dello Scebeli e che sono considerati – nella tradizione locale – i progenitore della tribù dei Garirra rimasta appunto nella regione limitrofa al Bali (Arussi)’ (Cerulli 1926, p. 169; 1957, p. 67). ‘Rimasero sull’Uebi nelle antiche sedi i nuclei ancora oggi noti con il nome di Gherirre (Garirrä) e i liberti Dube, i quali parlano un dialetto del gruppo Dighil. Gli altri Dighil più numerosi scesero a Lugh e di là attaccarono i Galla del Baidoa, occupando quel fertile altipiano’ (Cerulli 1936, p. 106–109; 1957, p. 164).

12. ‘I Dube si dicono dunque liberti dei Dighil; è ciò è definitivamente confermato del fatto che essi parlano un dialetto del gruppo Dighil affine a quello dei Rahan-uen. Questa circonstanza – sinora ignota alla scienza – ed il fatto che i vicini Garirre, abitanti la zona di spartiacque tra il basso Ueb e lo Uebi, parlano anche essi un dialetto del gruppo Dighil affine a quello di Rahan-uen e si dicono pure Dighil, conferma bene la tradizione storica dei Rahan-uen, che racconta come essi doveretto dalla zona tra Uebi e Ueb emigrate verso le loro attuali sedi a Sud.’

13. See in Figure 34 the tucul of the former Abyssinian [Ethiopian] Resident, Dejasmach [‘Commander of the Gate’) – a military title] Bejene Merid at the village of Ellot, and in Figure 29 the abandoned Abyssinian [Ethiopian] camp at Sciacchisa.

14. See the route on Figure 5 and photographs of lorries stuck in wet sand at three points of the journey (Figures 16, 17 and 19).

15. Views of El Marà and its surroundings are seen in Figures 42, 54, 57 and 66.

16. Views of El Carrè are seen in Figures 32, 47 and 48. A view from El Carrè is seen in Figure 46.

17. The condition of the roads at Bur Akaba, Baidoa, Lugh and Hargheile is illustrated in Figures 16, 17 and 19.

18. Two photographs of the riverine vegetation along the Wabe Shebele at Maruf, Figures 51 and 55, show a species of Tamarix as a dominant species. Tamarix is not mentioned in the section about the natural flora.

19. Mège et al. (2015) have now demonstrated that erosion by underground rivers and streams and gravity have played a very important role in the creation of the present geomorphology.

20. Sandstone at the Urantù Mountains is seen in Figure 22, and sandstone on the Ellot Plateau is seen in Figure 41. Sandy limestone near El Carrè is seen in Figure 23.

21. This is Stefanini’s map (Stefanini 1936) of the geology of the Horn of Africa (‘Africa Orientale Italiana’).

22. Gabredarre is a small town in the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia, Ogaden, north of Kelafo (the name is also spelt Kebri Dehar or Qabri Dahare; 44.3°E, 6.7°N).

23. The report uses the term ‘la formazione’. However, according to the International Stratigraphic Guide (2018) of the International Commission on Stratigraphy, a Formation is now a well-defined term in the internationally accepted hierarchy of Lithostratigraphic units, below Group and above Member and Beds/Flow. It is not clear if the use of the term ‘formazione’ in this report is in agreement with the modern, rather strict definition, and this translation has therefore used the word ‘deposits’, with a footnote indication that the stratigraphic unit was called ‘formazione’ in the Italian original.

24. ‘Formazione’ in the Italian original. It is risky to attempt a detailed comparison of this stratigraphy with the stratigraphy in Mège et al. (2015, figure 19.9), but (7) must include the Paleocene sandstones; (3) and possibly (4) must include the Cretaceous limestone of the Gorrahei Formation.

25. ‘Formazione gessosa’ in the Italian original.

26. ‘Selenite’ is a common term for various forms of crystalline gypsum.

27. ‘Nelle formazioni gessose’ in the Italian original.

28. ‘Fortmazione gessosa’ in the Italian original.

29. Both locations on the western side of the Gerire Hills and Ela Medò on the Yeyb River.

30. This must refer to previous excursions on the 1937 expedition; no previous expedition had made geological observations west of the Gerire Hills.

31. ‘La formazione selinitosa’ in the Italian original.

32. ‘Formazione’ and ‘una formazione’ in the Italian original.

33. This refers to the geological sections of Savoia-Aosta (1932), authored by various scholars on p. 279–354.

34. ‘La formazione’ in the Italian original.

35. East of the Gerire Hills.

36. ‘La formazione calcarea selinitosa’ in the Italian original.

37. ‘Le formazioni calcaree fossilifere’ in the Italian original.

38. ‘Quelle formazioni calcaree gessose’ in the Italian original.

39. ‘La formazione superiore di gessi di calcari cristallini e di argile’ in the Italian original.

40. ‘La formazione’ in the Italian original.

41. A town in the south-easternmost part of Ethiopia, close to the border with Somalia (44.7336 E, 5.2214 N).

42. A town in Hiiran, Somalia (45.2500 E, 4.0667 N), about 125 km from Mustahil across the present Ethiopian–Somali border.

43. In Dainelli (1943), there is no mentioning of potential exploitation of any minerals in the area near Gerire, with the exception of salt, sodium chloride, from a location south of the Gerire Hills. Salt is indicated as occurring at El Dere to the south of the Gerire Hills on the map, Tavolo IV (‘Distribuzione dei giacimenti minerali in Africa orientale’), in Vol. IV (‘Tavole’). The only basis for this is Governo della Somalia (1937).

44. Around 2018, the development of the resources of oil and gas in the Ogaden seem finally to become utilised. However, gas and oil in quantities that allow economically viable extraction have only been found at a distance of 130–180 km from the Gerire Hills. An American company found natural gas at Hilala and Calub in 1972. At the Hilala gas field (43.8350 °E, 6.0985 °N), 160 km to the east of the Gerire Hills, a Chinese company has so far found only limited quantities of oil. At the oil and gas field at Calub (44.6336 °E, 6.2169 °N), 250 km to the east of the Gerire Hills, there are commercially exploitable quantities of oil (Bekele 2018).

45. The name Sarar has not been seen anywhere else.

46. Both Bur Uare and Bur Bossono are indicated on the map in Figure 12.

47. Both Korfou and El Carrè are indicated on the map as settlements in the plains below the eastern part of the mountains.

48. Nascidle is not traced on the map, but is indicated as a locality between Bovaio and Korfou, which are both indicated on the map between Bur Bilal and Bur Dare. The Nascidle plain is between Bur Caddas, Bur Bilal and Bur Dare.

49. Bur Egdu, Bur Kalladi and Bur Abable are not named or indicated on the map in Figure 12, but must be the mountains between Bur Bossono and Ellot.

50. Bur Elenta is not named on the map in Figure 12, but must be a plateau or mountain south-west of Ellot.

51. Ellot is indicated with large letters on the map in Figure 12. According to the legend of Figure 24, the plateau of Ellot can be seen from a valley south of Bur Caddas, but this is not generally possible, as the southern slopes of Bur Caddas are steep and normally block the view. A somewhat similar view is seen in Figure 46.

52. On the map in Figure 12, Bur Bilal is indicated east of Ellot and Bur Dare further to the east.

53. These branches of Bur Bilal are not named on the map in Figure 12.

54. Sanka Möghe, Bur Sciavel and Bur Scidle are not named on the map in Figure 12, but Bur Ueroro is named and indicated as branching off from Bur Dare, and Bur Makarari is named and indicated as the easternmost point of the eastern range.

55. Bur Meghemberis is not named on the map in Figure 12, but Bur Caddas, Bur Sciantole, Bur Meghenbei and Bur Data are indicated as forming the south-eastern range. Surmi is named as a settlement. Figure 58 shows a photograph towards Bur Sciantole, seen from El Carrè. The same characteristic profile of Bur Sciantole can be seen in a photograph taken by the author in 2014 (Figure 59), showing the degradation of the vegetation on the slopes of the plateau since 1937.

56. Bur Holeu and Bur Dagner are not named or indicated on the map in Figure 12.

57. The rivers or wadis indicated on the map in Figure 12 as running to the Wabe Shebele are, in the direction from the north-west to the south-east, Lac Dauin, Lac Uara Reb, Lac Haredu, [Lac Bohol Dohor is only named by the settlement where it joins the Wabe Shebele], Lac Delei, Lac Afsciasle and Lac Abansale.

58. On the map in Figure 12, the Monte Zalangur is indicated on either side of Lac Uara Reb; Lac Karabhor is named as Lac Garbahor; Bur Lere, Lac Lere, Bur Gandou, Bur Segule and the Haredu valley are not indicated. Bur Lukun As is, as stated, named and indicated between the valleys of Lac Döbi and Lac Delei.

59. Bur Medenni is on the map in Figure 12, named and indicated between the valleys of Lac Bohol Dahor and Lac Delei; Gabba is named and marked as a point at the Wabe Shebele River.

60. Bur Dere, Sanka Uaian, Bur Afsciasle and Bur Hadud are on the map in Figure 12 all named and indicated around Lac Afsciasle and Lac Labansale (not between them).

61. On the map in Figure 12, El Hure is named and indicated as a settlement, Baitan is indicated as a plain, not as a mountain; El Taulei is indicated as a settlement, Bur Golduc is a small plateau detached from Bur Caddas, and Bur Bovist is not named.

62. Bur Morgoni is not named or indicated on the map in Figure 12.

63. The only locality among these indicated on the map in Figure 12 is Lac Magar. In Figure 21, the Ellot Plateau is seen in the distance from the Uarantù Mountains.

64. Bur Ghedut is not named or indicated on the map in Figure 12.

65. El Davole and Surmi are named and indicated as settlements. None of the mountains listed here are indicated on the map in Figure 12. Didib Adde and Curò are indicated as settlements.

66. The village of Bohol Dohor is seen in Figures 30 and 31.

67. See Figure 20.

68. The bed of Lac Carrè Uen near El Carrè, in which there is a spring, Carrè Uen, is seen in Figure 35.

69. A part of the truckable track between El Marà and El Carrè is seen in Figure 53, in this place the track is apparently very narrow.

70. The wadi at El Marà can be seen in Figures 54 and 57.

71. Not traced on maps.

72. In the report misspelt as ‘Vovaio’.

73. An example of the steep and narrow path from El Carrè up to Bur Caddas can be seen in Figure 27. A less challenging part is shown in Figure 28.

74. For the plateau of Ellot viewed from Magar, see Figure 20.

75. Lewis (1960, 1969), Trimingham (1952) and the Italian text of the report all use the outdated ethnonym Galla, now generally considered disparaging; in agreement with modern usage, this outdated ethnonym has been replaced with the ethnonym Oromo everywhere in this translation.

76. In this context, the exact meaning of ‘la via più esterna’ is not clear. It may mean that the Gerire followed the westernmost course of any of the Somali groups.

77. Lewis (1969, p. 15–17, 31–40) described the Somali nation as composed of two parts, the Somali in the strict sense and the Sab, which he identifies with the Digil tribal confederacies of southern Somalia, including the Rahanwein and the Tunni. On a map, Lewis (1969, p. 16) has indicated the main area of the Sab as the land between the lower Wabe Shebele and the Juba from just north of the present border between Ethiopia and Somalia to the Indian Ocean. Two isolated areas north of this large area are also indicated as inhabited by Sab: the area of the Gerire, and a small area just south of Harar. The name Gerire (or any variant spelling of that name) is not mentioned by Lewis (1960, 1969).

78. The use of the name Bale in this report seems to mean the Bale highlands, roughly the same area is indicated as Balié on maps from the middle ages to the sixteenth century (Doresse 1971, p. 145). About the changing use of the geographical term Bale, see the introduction to this translation.

79. The major part of the Sab, now in the Bay and Gedo regions of southern Somalia.

80. In recent literature, the ethnonym Rahanween refers to a group of two clan-federacies of Digil and Mirifle, which inhabit the area of southern Somalia between the Juba and the Wabe Shebele Rivers. The Rahanween practise a mixed economy with a combination of farming and pastoralism. Their social system is based on territoriality, rather than on agnatic descent (Samatar 2010b).

81. In recent literature, the ethnonym Digil is used for a large part of Sab, separate from the Rahanween. Ofcansky (2005) relates the tradition that the Digil, apart from a few small groups (presumably including the Gerire, which is not specifically mentioned), moved from the Ogaden to the land between the Juba and the Wabe Shebele Rivers. Lewis (1969, p. 32) uses this ethnonym for the Sab in general, including the Rahanwein and eight other groups, but does not mention the Gerire among them.

82. The territories of two ethnic groups are indicated on the ethnological map with this report (Figure 14) and on the folded map in Lewis (1969).

83. The Arussi (now usually called the Arsi) ethnic group, north-western neighbours of the Gerire, constitute one of the largest branches of the Oromo. The Arsi have for centuries occupied the Arsi–Bale highlands of south-eastern Ethiopia. Traditionally, the Arsi adhered to the highly diversified religious landscape of the Oromo people, with a duality of a male and a female divinity in the sky. But from an early stage in Arsi and Bale, some Islamic influence made itself felt; this Islamic influence became stronger with the cult of Sheikh Hussein gaining followers and even dominant after the conquest of Bale by the Christian Ethiopians under Emperor Menelik II (Abbas 1991, 1999, 2003; Ficquet 2007; Bustorf 2010).

84. The Doi is described by Lewis (1969, p. 44) as the vast region of pastures and arable land in southern Somalia between the Juba and the Wabe Shebele Rivers. The arable land and the rich pastures of the Doi have permanently attracted ethnic groups from the north, and here new types of territorial association have developed, rather than associations built on genealogy, which is typical of the pastoralists.

85. ‘Abu Ishach’ must here almost certainly refer to the twelfth-century Sheikh Ishaq bin Ahmad al-Alawi, from whom the Isaaq clan in northern Somalia claim descent and for whom a detailed genealogy has been elaborated. According to the sources, he arrived from the Arabian Peninsula and settled near the present-day town of Maid (Ofcansky 2007). It is not known what ‘Tembi’ means, but presumably it refers to written texts with detailed genealogies of northern Somali.

86. Lewis (1969, p. 97–98) uses the term gob as the general Somali designation for the elected head of the council of elders, but points out that the Mijertein for the person in position use the term ugas. Trimingham (1952, p. 212) points out that in a true Somali social system each rer has a chief selected by the elders, one of the possible titles of this elected chief is ugas; his power depends on his personality and prestige.

87. Scech [Sheikh] is the mainly honorific title for senior Muslim leaders or clerics (another Somali general term is wadaad).

88. It does not seem possible in detail to combine the ancestry of ugaz Hassan Ali and the genealogy of the cabila with Aga Gurau.

89. Hawiye is a large clan family living scattered in a wide belt from the Indian Ocean to Bale; members are mainly pastoralists, but some engage in agriculture where there is enough rainfall (Banti 2005b). The other ethnonyms have not been identified.

90. The ‘arifa’ in Southern Somalia is a family or a larger group, even a sub-clan, which was assimilated with another clan in the territory of the latter, this was a very old and established tradition, especially in the Juba region. In the 1950s, the arifa-system caused considerable problems for the Italian mandated administration in its attempt to establish a clan-based representative system, as the arifa could not have their own representatives, but had to accept those of the main ethnic group of the region and could not join with other groups that lived as arifa with other clans (Tripodi 1999). These problems are very similar to those described here among the Gerire.

91. According to both Trimingham (1952, p. 213) and Lewis (1969, p. 107), this word, which they spell Diya or Diya, meaning ‘blood money’ or compensation for manslaughter, dill, is an Arab term, and the Somali call it mag.

92. The Dabarre is an ethnic confederacy with a distinct dialect classified with several others including the Digil (Lewis 1969, p. 32; Ofcansky 2005). Groups of Dabarre live in the Doi and are both pastoralists and farmers.

93. In the two oral traditions presented in the report there seems to be some confusion between scech Omar and Soof [Sufi] Omar, the one who has given his name to the caves at Magalo on the Uebi Gestro [Weyb River]. According to Braukämper (2010), Soof Omar is almost entirely known from oral tradition, apart from mention in an Arabic hagiography of scech Nur Hussein, who is venerated at the shrine at the place of the same name near the Wabe Shebele River. Braukämper finds it doubtful that Soof Omar and Sheikh Hussein were contemporary and assumes that Soof Omar perhaps lived only 11–13 generations ago, which could agree with Soof Omar living in the sixteenth or early seventheenth centuries.

94. A historical amir Nur ibn Mujahid ibn ‘Ali ibn ‘Abdullah al Dhuhi Suha ruled Harar from 1551 to his death in 1567, but a Nur bin Ibrahim commanded the right wing of the troops of Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi (also known as Ahmed Gurey and, in Ethiopian history, Ahmad Gragn) and was victorious in the war against Ifat in 1529. During the rule of amir Nur ibn Mujahid, Harar was repeatedly attacked by Oromos, and the walls around the city were built as defence during that period. Ifat was a sultanate at the northern end of the Rift Valley and the southern part of Afar; it was reduced to a battleground at the time of Ahmed Gragn and the subsequent Oromo migrations (Ahmed Hassen and Nosnitsin 2007; Muth 2007; Wagner 2007).

95. Presumably identical with Ifat (see previous note).

96. The Karanle inhabit the area around Imi, see the ethnological map in this report (Figure 14).

97. An abandoned Abyssinian [Ethiopian] camp at Sciacchisa is seen in Figure 29.

98. Ugaz Hassan Ali is seen in Figure 39.

99. The Italian word is ‘cedro’. It seems unlikely that a direct translation, cedar, gives the correct meaning.

100. Figures 62 and 63 show coffee grown at El Carrè.

101. There seems to be a typing error in the report, which says: ‘L’organizzazione etnica dei Gherire è a carattere gentilizio, nè ha subìto alcuna influenza dalle cosuetudine galla…’ It has been interpreted here as: ‘L’organizzazione etnica dei Gherire nè ha carattere gentilizio, nè ha subìto alcuna influenza dalle cosuetudine galla…’ A translation of the text as it stands in the report will be as follows: ‘The ethnic organisation of the Gerire has a system with noble families, it has not been subjected to the traditions of the Oromo, being strictly Somali.’

102. The Shafi’i madhab is one of the four schools of Sharia law in Sunni Islam, based entirely on the following five sources: the Koran, the hadiths, the practice of Muhammad, the practice of Muhammad’s companions and qiyas (analogy); any other source is disregarded as subjective human opinion. Trimingham (1952, p. 231–232) states: ‘The Shaf’ite is the most widely diffused madhab since most of the Somali and Oromo belong to it.’ Lewis (1969, p. 140–143) is even more categorical: ‘The Somali follow the Sunni shafi’ite rite of Islam.’

103. Tariqua means religious order. According to Lewis (1969, p. 141–142) the tariqua Salihyyah is one of four most important Islamic Dervish orders [tariqua] in the Somali-speaking countries. The Salihyyah order was founded by Mohammed ibn Salih in Mecca in 1887; in the Horn of Africa it spread particularly along the banks of the Wabe Shebele. Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, the ‘Mad Mullah’, who fought British, Italian and Ethiopian forces up to his death in 1920, belonged to this order. He established a Dervish state on the Horn of Africa and died in a fortification on a hill near Imi on the Wabe Shebele, where the expedition Amedeo Savoia-Aosta was shown his mausoleum in January 1929 (Savoia-Aosta 1932, p. 110 and photo 116).

104. The ‘Addari people’ must refer to the ancient citizens of Harar city, in Amharic known as Adäre, according to the tradition partly descendants of immigrants from the Arabian Peninsula arriving in between the ninth and twelfth centuries (Gibb 2005, p. 1028).

105. The designation ‘giamia’ (Italian transliteration, in the plural: giamie) in the report means a religious congregation and refers to what Lewis (1969, p. 143–145) calls: ‘Jama’a, the smallest body of believers … are scattered throughout the country [of Somali speakers], each with their own sheik, and cantered round the mosque or tomb of the founder of that particular branch (jama’a) of the Order [tariqua] … They are training centres for Mohammedan holy men (wadad) … The land which the congregation has acquired, by attachment as client to a host tribe, is held by the jama’a as a whole and divided among the brethren by the head of the community. The initiates clear the bush and each is allotted a portion of the land…’ A member of an unspecified Gerire giama is seen in Figure 18, and members of the giamia of Dare are seen in Figure 40.

106. The meaning of this word has not been traced.

107. According to Figure 18, members of the Gerire giamie also ask for alms; here the donations are collected in a small basket or purse.

108. This refers to the al-Fatiha, the first sura of the Koran, the seven verses (ayat) of which call for the guidance, lordship and mercy of Allah. Al-Fatiha means ‘the opener’, which may refer to its position in the Koran, to its being recited at the beginning of every prayer, or to it being recited at the beginning of many functions in Islamic life.

109. Trimingham (1952, p. 266–267) states: ‘A very popular festival which goes back to paganism among the Somali is the celebration of the dab-shid (literarily ‘kindling fire’) or New Year’s Day … It begins with kindling a fire outside each hut…’.

110. This surprising information is a literal translation of the Italian wording: ‘È strano osservare come la maggior parte degli abitanti d’una valle ignorino la vita, ma specialmente i nomi delle località delle altre, e quasi sconosciuti a tutti siano i territori vicini abitati da altre cabile.’

111. There are photographs of Gerire huts at El Carrè in Figures 26, 32, 47 and 65, but only seen from a distance, where it is difficult to discern the insulation of the walls. The huts at Bohol Dohor in Figures 30 and 31 must have been constructed by the Caranle, the dominant ethnic group along that part of the Wabe Shebele; insulation is not necessary at the low altitude along the river. The hut of the Italian Resident in Figure 33 must have been adapted to Italian taste, just like the hut of the former Ethiopian Resident at Ellot must have been adapted to Ethiopian taste.

112. Apparently meant to be used as a kind of sieve.

113. A ‘zeriba’ is an improvised enclosure in which to keep the cattle. It is often simply a circle or other round shape made of thorny bushes or Acacia branches. The shepherds use the hooks and the forked sticks to pull and push the thorny branches without being harmed by the thorns.

114. The Italian word is ‘scuri’, which with regard to objects normally means ‘shutters’; here the meaning must be ‘scythe’, for which the normal Italian word is ‘falce’.

115. A Gerire plough with oxen is seen in Figure 44, where most of the details described in the report can be identified. Ploughing on the Ellot Plateau is seen in Figure 45.

116. Agiuran and Mahadan are places in the present southern Somalia.

117. An example from the plain of Nascidle, to the east of the Gerire Hills, is seen in Figure 56.

118. Not documented by collection, probably correctly identified.

119. Not identified with certainty, and not documented; possibly correctly identified.

120. Not documented by collection; possibly Acacia horrida (L.) Willd. subsp. benadirensis (Chiov.) Hillc.

121. Documented with collection No. 6; correctly identified. A stand of Acacia mellifera in the valley of Magar is seen in Figure 36.

122. Not identified with certainty, but the name Acacia oxyosprion Chiov. is now a synonym of Acacia senegal (L.) Willd., and not documented.

123. Not identified.

124. Documented with collection No. 19, which has not been traced at FT; the species cannot be identified without documentation; specimens of the type material have partly been identified as Commiphora erythraea, partly as C. cyclophylla.

125. Commiphora sulcata Chiov. is now considered to be the correct name for a species endemic to the country of Somalia in its present delimitation. Reghini's plant given this name cannot be identified, as it is not documented with a collection.

126. Not documented with collection; possibly correctly identified, occurs in the general area.

127. Documented with collection No. 17; this is Commiphora myrrha (Nees) Engl.

128. Rghini’s name is now considered a synonym of Commiphora myrrha; without documentation it cannot be identified with certainty.

129. Documented with collection No. 7; this is Commiphora africana.

130. Terminalia ruspolii is now considered a synonym of T. orbicularis Engl. & Diels, which occurs in the general area; not documented with collection.

131. Probably Boscia coriacea Pax; not documented with collection.

132. Almost certainly Dobera glabra (Forssk.) Poir.; not documented with collection.

133. This is the narrowly endemic Blepharispermum obovatum Chiov.; documented with collection No. 36.

134. This is Asparagus leptocladodius Chiov.; documented with collection No. 8.

135. This is Commelina stefaniniana Chiov.; documented with collection No. 18.

136. The exact identity of this is not certain, but several collections refer to this zone. Nos. 2?, 3 and ‘3’ are Anemia schimperiana C. Presl and Negripteris tricholepifera Pic. Serm. No. 27 is the true Adiantum capillus-veneris L.

137. These two types are not mentioned in Mason and Maule (1960).

138. Also common in the drier parts of Ethiopia. This is the breed which Mason and Maule (1960) refer to as Blackheaded Somali sheep (Italian Pecora somala a testa nera), which is also known as the Ogaden sheep (in Somalia) or the Berbera Blackhead sheep (in the former Somaliland Protectorate).

139. Mason and Maule (1960) mention both the two types of Somali goats, both the deguen, or digwain, long-eared goats as characteristic of the Benadir region in Somalia, and the deghier, deg-ier, deg yer or dighi yer, the short-eared goats, which are found in the driest areas of Somalia, in the northern and western parts.

140. Mason and Maule (1960) mention that donkeys in the Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia are generally small, usually grey and have a conspicuous black back-stripe and shoulder cross, and usually zebra-markings on the legs.

141. Ricinus communis L.

142. Tamarindus indica L.

143. Does not seem to be documented with collections. The tree called Ficus somalensis in Figures 49 and 50, photographed near Nascidle, looks like a large Ficus sycomorus. A tree from the same locality, shown in Figure 52, is named Ficus sycomorus L., which is probably correct. Ficus somalensis, in the strict taxonomic sense (it is a synonym of F. bussei Mildbr. & Burret), does not occur in the Gerire Hills.

144. Documented with collection No. 9; this is Acacia robusta subsp. usambarensis. The name in the report is almost certainly a misidentification, although the information fits both Albizia amara and Acacia robusta. See also the photograph of the tree in Figure 66.

145. Documented with collection No. 6; correctly identified.

146. Probably correctly identified.

147. Not documented by collection; possibly Acacia horrida (L.) Willd. subsp. benadirensis (Chiov.) Hillc.

148. Probably correctly identified.

149. Probably correctly identified, but Euphorbia ruspolii Chiov. is now a synonym of Euphorbia robecchii Pax, which is common in the region.

150. Documented with collection No. 36, which is Blepharispermum obovatum Chiov.

151. Not documented; possibly Sansevieria forsskaoliana (Schult. f) Hepper & Wood.

152. Apparently not documented, and not identified; no specimen of Heliotropium from the expedition found at FT, and no specimen is tentatively identified as ‘Heliotropium’ in Reghini’s field notes.

153. Apparently not including the more widely cultivated durra and maize.

154. One of the tuculs of the Italian Resident at El Carrè is seen in Figure 33.

155. This must refer to small ledges on steep slopes, or where soil has accumulated on or between protruding rocks.

156. Possibly Acacia senegal; see note 122.

157. Documented with collection No. 52; this collection is an unidentified species of Abrus.

158. Probably correctly identified.

159. Documented with collection No. 19, which has not been traced at FT; the species cannot be identified without documentation; type material is mixed.

160. May be correctly identified; documentation needed.

161. Documented with collection No. 7; this is Commiphora africana.

162. Cannot be identified without documentation; Commiphora rivae Engl. is now considered a synonym of C. myrrha, but the name is often misapplied.

163. Commiphora cornii Chiov. is now considered a synonym of C. cyclophylla Chiov., but without a collection Reghini’s plant cannot be identified with certainty.

164. Cannot be identified without documentation; the name is often misapplied.

165. Probably correctly identified; however, the tree in Figure 52 called ‘Ficus sicomorus’ at Mansi Ur Nascidle is probably F. thonningii Bl.

166. Not identified; see note 143.

167. Not identified; Ficus scassellatii, in the current sense, is restricted to the coast of the Indian Ocean from South Somalia to Tanzania.

168. Dobera glabra and D. macalusoi are now considered conspecific and named Dobera glabra.

169. Documented with several collections, Nos. 15, 16 and 28; all Buxus hildebrandtii (Bail.) van Tiegh.

170. Hut.

171. Documented with collection No. 33; this is Gossypium barbadense L., which is not an indigenous species of cotton.

172. Now a synonym of Pyrenacantha malvifolia Engl.; see a well-developed plant in Figure 60.

173. Documented with collection No. 13, but not found at FT. A climber called Canavalia gladiata, can be seen in Figure 37, covers what looks like a species of Acacia., can be seen in

174. Waterfalls near El Carrè can be seen in Figures 25 and 26.

175. An example is shown in Figure 57, a photograph of the vegetation along the wadi at El Marà.

176. Documented with collection No. 35; this is Breonadia salicina (Vahl) Hepper & Wood; see Figures 38, 43 and 67, all photographed near El Carrè.

177. Not documented or identified with certainty. Along a small stream near El Carrè Reghini collected No. 22, which can be identified as Trichocladus ellipticus Eckl. & Zeyh. subsp. malosanus (Bak.) Verdc., but that collection is only reported to reach a height of up to 5 m.

178. Documented with collection No. 26; but that collection has not been found at FT.

179. Ricinus communis L.; not documented.

180. Documented with the collections No. 27, Adiantum capillus-veneris L., No. 2, Negripteris tricholepifera Pic. Serm. and No. 3, Anemia schimperiana C. Presl.

181. Documented with collection No. 18; Commelina stefaniniana Chiov.

182. Apparently not documented, and not identified; no specimen of Heliotropium from the expedition found at FT, and no specimen is tentatively identified as ‘Heliotropium’ in Reghini’s field notes.

183. Documented with collection No. 21; this is Blepharispermum obovatum Chiov.

184. Documented with collection No. 8; this is Asparagus leptocladodius Chiov.

185. Documented with No.10; this is Dorstenia barnimiana Schweinf.

186. Probably correctly identified.

187. Documented with collection No. 6; correctly identified.

188. Probably correctly identified.

189. See Figures 62 and 63.

190. This is the case to the west of the Ellot village, east and south of the village the soil seems at least in 2014–2016 to be significantly poorer than on the Bur Caddas plateau.

191. Documented with collection Nos. 41 and 42; this is Tarchonanthus camphoratus L.

192. Documented with collections Nos. 37 and 38; this is Dodonaea angustifolia L. f.

193. Documented with collection No. 40; this is Terminalia polycarpa Engl. & Diels.

194. The identity of this is uncertain without proper documentation; Euphorbia abyssinica Gmel. has not been recorded from BA, but could possibly occur.

195. Not documented; the name is now a synonym of Commiphora schimperi (O. Berg) Engl., but Reghini’s plant cannot be identified with certainty without documentation.

196. Not documented; the name is now a synonym of Commiphora alata Chiov., but Reghini’s plant cannot be identified with certainty without documentation.

197. Not documented; as noted above, this is an accepted name, but Reghini’s plant cannot be identified with certainty without documentation.

198. Documented with collection No. 17; this is Commiphora myrrha (Nees) Engl.

199. Synonym of Pyrenacantha malvifolia Engl. A large plant of this species is seen in Figure 60.

200. The plants here called ‘Cordyline’ must refer to species of Dracaena, of which only two have been observed on the plateaux of Ellot and Bur Caddas by the present author: Dracaena ombet Kotschy & Peyritsch subsp. schizantha (Baker) Bos, which is not documented, but described in the notes to the collections, and D. ellenbeckiana Engl., documented by collections (see next note). Figure 61 shows two young plants of Dracaena ombet subsp. schizantha.

201. Documented with collections Nos. 29 and 30, these are both Dracaena ellenbeckiana Engl. There is not enough evidence to identify the three first mentioned forms of Dracaena, but they may simply be different forms of D. ellenbeckiana.

202. This is almost certainly Dracaena ombet Kotschy & Peyr. subsp. schizanta (Baker) Bos, which again almost certainly is the plant shown in Figure 61.

203. Documented with collections Nos. 31, 32 and 39; this is Juniperus procera Endl.; see also the photographs in Figures 41 and 64.

204. Documented with No. 49; this is Olea europaea L. subsp. cuspidata (Wall. ex G. Don.) Cif.

205. Does not seem to be documented; probably correctly identified.

206. Documented with collection No. 50; see also Figure 65, this is Cussonia holstii Harms ex Engl.

207. Documented with collection No. 51; this is Protea gaguedi J.F. Gmel.

208. Documented with collection No. 47, but this collection has not been found at FT.

209. ‘Sciambe’ in the Italian text; probably plural and derive from the Swahili word ‘shamba’, meaning an area of cultivated ground, often partly enclosed fields near the houses.

210. The Gerire name ‘tarfi’ or ‘taff’ for the oil plant Guizotia abyssinica is surprisingly like the Amharic name ‘teff’ for the grain Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter.

211. Documented with collection No. 44; this is Lepidium sativum L. var. sativum.

212. See Figures 44 and 45.

213. Now known as Macrotermes bellicosus, a widespread species that builds large mounds; it occurs almost throughout the tropical African savanna ecosystems from Senegal to the Horn of Africa (in places as far as c. 18°N) and south to Angola and KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa (in places as far as c. 28°S). Described from Sierra Leone as Termes bellicosus by Smeathman (1781), it was named Amplitermes bellicosus in the revision by Sjöstedt (1926, p. 85) and referred to as Macrotermes bellicosus in the catalogues by Snyder (1949) and Krishna et al. (2013, p. 1029).

214. Now known as Odontotermes classicus. The species was described as Termes classicus by Sjöstedt (1912) from Eritrea and is known from Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. The name Termes classicus was upheld by Sjöstedt (1926), and the species was referred to as Odontotermes classicus in the catalogues by Snyder (1949) and Krishna et al. (2013, p. 1159). The species of Odontotermes builds much lower and more inconspicuous mounds than the species of Macrotermes.

215. Lesser Kudu (Tragelaphus imberbis), indicated by Kingdon (1997) for large areas in the lowlands of the Horn of Africa.

216. According to Kingdon (1997), there are two species of dik-dik in the general area, both of almost the same size: Salt’s Dik-Dik (Madoqua saltiana swaynei) and Guenther’s dik-dik (Madoqua guentheri).

217. According to Kingdon (1997), the Leopard (Panthera pardus) is no longer as common in the drier parts of the Horn of Africa as before, but still not rare between Wabe Shebele and Weyb. Lion (Panthera leo) does also occur and was much hunted by the earlier travellers, but is not mentioned in the report.

218. The Italian name, ‘lince’, normally refers to the Eurasian Lynx (Lynx lynx) or, less frequently, to the Iberian Lynx (Lynx pardinus). Almost certainly, the report here refers to the Caracal (Felis caracal) which, according to Kingdon (1997), is widespread in almost all woodland and bushland regions of Africa, including the Horn.

219. It is not clear if the author of this part of the report refers to the Wild Cat (Felis sylvestris), which according to Kingdon (1997) occurs with F. s. brockmani in the lowlands of the Horn of Africa and F. s. ocreata in the remaining part of Ethiopia, or if the author refers to the slightly larger Serval Cat (Felis serval). Even larger cats, the Caracal (Felis caracal) and the Golden Cat (Felis aurata) occur on the Horn of Africa, including around the Gerire Hills, and may be included in the expression ‘other small felines of old Somalia’.

220. According to Kingdon (1997), there are two species of hyenas in the area, Striped Hyaena (Hyaena hyaena) and Spotted Hyaena (Crocuta crocuta), of which the latter is the larger and most often seen and particularly heard. Only the Spotted Hyaena is recorded for the valleys and the plateau, whereas both species are recorded for the plains.

221. According to Kingdon (1997), there are two species of jackals in the area, Black-backed Jackal (Canis mesomelas), which is mentioned in this report, and Golden Jackal (Canis aureus). It is not clear why only the Black-backed Jackal is mentioned.

222. The report does not mention the distinction between the Common Warthog (Phacocoerus africanus) and the Desert Warthog (Phacocoerus aethiopicus), and probably the author of this part of the report may not have been aware of any distinction. The Common Warthog is widespread in the savanna regions of Africa, while the Desert Warthog was disjunctly distributed with a population in south and south-west Africa and one in eastern Kenya, eastern Ethiopia and Somalia. According to Kingdon (1997), the South African population of the Desert Warthog is now considered extinct; the distribution area of the north-east African population of the Desert Warthog is not supposed to overlap with the Ethiopian population of the Common Warthog, and the Gerire Hills are located within the area where the Desert Warthog is supposed to occur.

223. According to Kingdon (1997), the porcupine of the entire Horn of Africa is the Crested Porcupine (Hystrix cristata).

224. This is presumably the Ethiopian Rock Hyrax (Procavia habessinica), which according to Kingdon (1997) is widespread on dry rocks throughout the Horn of Africa and eats grass. In the same general area lives the Yellow-spotted Hyrax (Heterohyrax brucei), which eats leaves and bark, but presumably the author of this part of the report refers to the Rock Hyrax.

225. According to Kingdon (1997), there is only one species of baboon in the area, Yellow baboon (Papio cynocephalus), which is widespread in eastern Africa. The Sacred Baboon (Papio cynocephalus) occurs in Afar and the drier parts of the Ogaden, while the Olive Baboon (Papio anubis) is restricted to more humid areas of Ethiopia.

226. According to Kingdon (1997), the only species of monkey in the area is Vervet Monkey (Cercopithecus aethiops pygerythrus), which is widespread in eastern and southern Africa.

227. According to Kingdon (1997), there is only one species of the prosimians in the area, Somali Galago (Galago gallarum).

228. According to Ash and Atkins (2009), the number of birds of prey observed near the Gerire Hills is quite large, including Pygmy Falcon (Polihierax semitorquatus), the Black Kite (Milvus migrans), Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus), Hooded Vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus), White-backed Vulture (Gyps africanus), White-headed Vulture (Trigonoceps occipitalis), Lappet-faced Vulture (Torgos tracheliotus), Bateleur (Terathopius ecaudatus), Gabar Goshawk (Micronisus gabar), Shikrar (Accipiter badius), Grasshopper Buzzard (Bustatur rufipennis), Tawny Eagle (Aquila rapax) and Martial Eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus).

229. According to Ash and Atkins (2009), the Vulturine Guineafowl (Acryllium vulturinum) is common or very common in large areas of south-eastern Ethiopia.

230. It is not certain which species is meant by this name; according to Ash and Atkins (2009), the Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida maleagris) is common in lowland and medium-altitude wooded grassland and bushland throughout Ethiopia, and has also been recorded at the Gerire Hills.

231. It is not certain which species of bustard is referred to here; according to Ash and Atkins (2009), the Buff-crested Bustard (Lophotis gindiana) is common around the Gerire Hills, while the White-bellied Bustard (Eupodotis senegalensis) and the Black-bellied Bustard (Lissotis melanogaster) have been recorded from the area.

232. It is not certain which species of dove are referred to here; according to Ash and Atkins (2009), African White-winged Dove (Streptopelia reichenowi), African Mourning Dove (Streptopelia decipiens), Red-eyed Dove (Streptopelia semitorquata), Ring-necked Dove (Streptopelia capocola) and Namaqua Dove (Oena capensis) are all known from the surroundings of the Gerire Hills.

233. According to Ash and Atkins (2009), the only pigeon recorded from near the Gerire Hills is the Speckled Pigeon (Columba guinea).

234. It is almost certain that the report here refers to species of sparrows or weavers, of which, according to the maps by Ash and Atkins (2009), there are c. 10 species known from the area around the Gerire Hills, but more could occur.

235. Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros), see Figures 68 and 69; according to Kingdon (1997), the Greater Kudu is more scattered in the Horn of Africa than the Lesser Kudu and thought to be endangered in Somalia.

236. According to Kingdon (1997), the Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardis) is now very rare or extinct in Ethiopia and Somalia, but G. c. reticulata was once widespread in Somalia and the arid parts of south-eastern Ethiopia.

237. According to Kingdon (1997), this must be the Beisa Oryx (Oryx beisa), which migrates in areas with short, dry grassland; it has particularly declining populations in Somalia.

238. According to Kingdon (1997), the Gerenuk (Litocranius walleri) is distributed in semi-arid bushland below 1200 m from the Horn of Africa to north-eastern Tanzania.

239. This must refer to the Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus), which according to Kingdon (1997) was formerly much more widespread in the non-forested parts of Africa, including the Horn of Africa.

240. The animals listed from the plains and the bases of the mountains are mostly the same as those listed for the upper mountain slopes and the plateau, with exception of the Giraffe, the Oryx, the Gerenuk and the Wild Dog.

241. Generally, tuberculosis has not been often reported in Ethiopia in the past, but seems now to be more frequent (Biniam Gebremedhin et al. 2005), and Hodes (2007) reports that in recent years it has been the most frequent deadly disease in Ethiopia as a whole (10.1% of deaths); it is not known if the frequency of tuberculosis is also rising in the Gerire Hills.

242. In Ethiopia, transmission of malaria usually occurs at altitudes below 2000 m (Hodes 2007), and could therefore occur in the entire area of the Gerire Hills, including on the plateaux. However, in many lowland areas there is immunity to malaria. In recent years, it has been the third most important cause of death in the country, after tuberculosis and pneumonia (Hodes 2007).

243. Apart from syphilis, gonorrhoea is also a very common venereal disease throughout Ethiopia (Biniam Gebremedhin et al. 2005).

244. In this respect, the situation in the Gerire Hills was similar to the situation in Ethiopia at large, where syphilis was extremely widespread before the coming of modern medicine (Pankhurst 2010).

245. This is an unusual situation in Ethiopia, where trachoma is widespread in the highlands and onchocerciasis (‘river blindness’) in the western and southern parts of the country (Biniam Gebremedhin et al. 2005).

246. An infection of the middle ear; not mentioned by Biniam Gebremedhin et al. (2005) as a particular problem in Ethiopia in general.

247. True scabies (the Italian word is ‘scabbia’) is a contagious skin disease caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei, which is not mentioned in the section of the report dealing with parasites. Attacks by the mite cause itchiness and rash, and is not mentioned by Biniam Gebremedhin and Bustorf (2005) as a particular problem in Ethiopia in general.

248. A map in 1:100,000 has not been found with the copy of this report at the Centro Studi Erbario Tropicale in Firenze.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Carlsbergfondet [CF14-0047, CF15-0074, CF16-0040]. The publication was sponsored and financed by Centro Studi Erbario Tropicale (Herbarium FT), Università di Firenze.