Salomão Bandeira

Societal Impact Statement: Wild edible fruits (WEFs) are an important but underutilised resource for improving food security in sub‐Saharan Africa. In Mozambique, many rural communities rely on these fruits to supplement diets, generate income and cope with periods of food scarcity; yet national‐level knowledge of their diversity has been lacking. This study provides the first comprehensive inventory of WEFs in Mozambique and identifies species and regions of the highest socio‐economic and ecological importance. By highlighting priority taxa and biodiversity hotspots, our findings support evidence‐based conservation, sustainable harvesting and added‐value use of indigenous fruits, with implications for policy, rural development and resilient food systems. Summary: This study aimed to document and assess the diversity, distribution and importance of wild edible fruits (WEFs) in Mozambique, addressing a major knowledge gap in one of Africa's most diverse yet under‐documented countries. WEFs play a key role in nutrition, livelihoods and ecosystem conservation but remain largely overlooked in national food systems. We compiled data from more than 30 years of field surveys, herbarium records, published literature and online databases to produce the first national inventory of Mozambican WEFs. We analysed growth forms, modes of consumption, eco‐geographical distribution and conservation status and developed a Weighted Importance Index (WII) integrating socio‐economic, cultural and ecological attributes. We documented 282 WEF taxa, with Fabaceae, Rubiaceae and Malvaceae as the most represented families. Areas of the highest diversity occur in the Southern Swahili coastal forest and woodlands. High‐importance taxa include Garcinia livingstonei , Sclerocarya birrea subsp. afra , Strychnos spinosa , Trichilia emetica , Vangueria infausta and Ximenia afra . Our findings provide a baseline for identifying indigenous fruit diversity, priority taxa and areas requiring further ecological, ethnobotanical and socio‐economic investigation.

Generic global conservation targets lack the ambition required for certain habitats of critical value for biodiversity and human well-being. Developing more challenging targets for such habitats may offer a solution. Mangrove forests provide an example: any and all future loss will have negative repercussions, while many impacts could be reversed through extensive restoration. The Global Mangrove Alliance, an international grouping of 100 civil society and academic partners, has set goals to halt anthropogenic losses, accelerate restoration and greatly enhance protection by 2030. Using global-scale data, we estimate that achieving these goals will avoid losses of some 1500 km ² ; restore some 4000 km ² ; and secure an additional 36 000 km ² of mangroves under effective and equitable protection. Multiple benefits will follow, and we present values for carbon storage gains and avoided losses. Global datasets can guide broad approaches, while quantifying the challenges and benefits provides inspiration and impetus for change.

Many global biodiversity datasets overlook or misrepresent the knowledge of Indigenous Peoples, Local Communities, and Afro-Descendants (IPLCAD). We propose minimum data and metadata standards for a global data infrastructure on biodiversity knowledge and use, co-designed with IPLCAD, including information on language, community attribution and consent, to ensure data traceability and ethical use. This initiative integrates ancestral and academic sciences to advance inclusive biodiversity governance, addressing historical inequities for global sustainability.

Legumes are staple foods and essential sources of nutrients for populations facing food insecurity in Africa. Within this group, the genus Vigna —including cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata subsp. unguiculata ) — is among the most widely cultivated and consumed. Yet, despite their potential as both food sources and reservoirs of genetic diversity, wild Vigna remain underexplored. This study integrates existing knowledge with new data on the diversity, nutritional value and bioactive properties of wild edible Vigna taxa in Africa. We document 34 taxa traditionally consumed across the continent, characterised by high protein levels, low fat content and appreciable supplies of essential amino acids, starch, fatty acids, minerals and bioactive compounds. Among them, V. frutescens , V. luteola , V. unguiculata subsp. dekindtiana and V. vexillata emerge as particularly nutrient‐rich and agronomically resilient, making them promising candidates for domestication and breeding. Although antinutritional factors may hinder nutrient absorption, processing and selective breeding offer pathways to enhance their value. These findings position wild Vigna as a promising resource for improving food security, nutrition and sustainable, climate‐resilient agriculture in Africa.

Understanding how climate change affects crop wild relatives (CWRs) is crucial for both biodiversity conservation and food security. The present study assesses the current and future habitat suitability of six Vigna CWRs taxa in Mozambique using species distribution modelling. Our results show that Vigna CWRs occupy diverse habitats, primarily in southern and southeastern Mozambique, with coastal areas exhibiting the highest suitability. We identified key climatic factors shaping these taxa distributions, specifically focusing on the precipitation of the warmest month and driest quarter. Future projections indicate sizable habitat losses, ranging from 1 to 99% by 2090, with inland regions expected to experience the highest impact. Taxa with restricted distribution, such as Vigna unguiculata subsp. pawekiae, face the highest risk of extinction. By integrating land cover and land use (LULC) constraints with climatic models, we observed even higher declines in habitat suitability, highlighting the influence of anthropogenic pressures on Vigna’s diversity. Despite these challenges, our findings suggest that coastal habitats may serve as climate refugia in long-term conservation efforts for most Vigna CWRs taxa. However, Mozambique’s protected areas network provides limited coverage of highly suitable areas for these taxa, underscoring the need for urgent implementation of in situ and ex situ conservation measures. Future research should refine habitat suitability models by incorporating additional environmental and anthropogenic factors, along with biotic factors. This research highlights the pressing need for proactive and innovative conservation strategies to protect Vigna CWRs, which are essential for enhancing agricultural resilience and ensuring global food security in the face of climate change.

This paper revises and updates information on the seaweed flora of Mozambique. Out of 367 recorded species, 194 species belong to Rhodophyta, 49 to Heterokontophyta and 124 to Chlorophyta. These species represent sampling at a handful of sites, mainly at sandstone areas in southern Mozambique. Forty-seven new species were added to the list, from field expeditions carried out after 2007, covering sandstone rocky pools, crevices between rock platforms in the midlittoral transition zone to the sublittoral fringe and the sublittoral zone. This update includes a record of the kelp Ecklonia radiata in Zavora, Inhambane. Seaweed specimens were deposited at the LMU Herbarium, Eduardo Mondlane University. A value of 6.49 of the Cheney Index indicates a rather tropical seaweed flora for Mozambique. This seaweed flora update is important from a biodiversity census perspective, as well as identifying species with economic potential.

As sustainability scientists increasingly put forward the relevance of process‐relational approaches to make sense of social‐ecological phenomena, an inquiry on which methods would fit a process‐relational approach is necessary. This paper discusses how a process‐relational approach can be applied to traditional qualitative research methods, namely interviews and coding and the tensions associated with it. Process‐relational perspectives share commonalities with interpretative approaches but also present specific characteristics, such as the importance of material aspects and the understanding of the phenomenon as a moment in which different elements become defined respective to each other. The paper uses data and researchers' experiences from an action research project seeking to support collective action among coastal communities affected by environmental changes in Kenya and Mozambique. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

This study evaluates gleaning exclusion as an approach for the rehabilitation of seagrass ecosystems and as an option for important intertidal resource management that contributes to the social well-being of communities. The monitoring of seagrass plant and invertebrate recovery after the implementation of gleaning exclusion was conducted over 50 plots of 5 m × 5 m each, which were settled in the seagrass meadow of NW Maputo Bay, Mozambique. The exclusion experiment was designed to compensate for the important loss of seagrass in the area due to gleaning activity characterized mainly by digging and revolving sediments to collect mostly clams. Results showed that, in general, seagrass plant shoot density started having significant positive recovery after five months: three months for Halophila ovalis, five months for Halodule uninvervis, and much more time (>six months) for the IUCN Red List endangered Zostera capensis. For invertebrates, 194 individual invertebrates were collected belonging to 13 species. Solen cylindraceus was the most dominant edible invertebrate species in the local community, and Dosinia hepatica for non-edible species. The result of the experiment showed a positive recovery in the abundance and diversity of invertebrates. The results support previous findings, suggesting that the installation of a no-take zone can enhance the health of an ecosystem. Therefore, to limit the violation and conflicts of the no-take zones, the creation of alternative activities for harvesters and the flexibility of restrictions are vital. Further investigation should be considered to obtain an effective management of the zones, including documentation of species, gleaning practices, and an effective restoration of seagrass meadows.

Marine macroinvertebrate communities play a key role in ecosystem functioning by regulating flows of energy and materials and providing numerous ecosystem services. In Mozambique and São Tomé and Príncipe marine macroinvertebrates are important for the livelihood and food security of local populations. We compiled a dataset on marine invertebrates from Mozambique and São Tomé and Príncipe through an extensive data search of digital platforms, scientific literature, and natural history collections (NHC). This dataset encompasses data from 1816 to 2023 and comprises 20,122 records, representing 617 families, 1552 genera, 2137 species, providing species occurrence in mangrove forests, seagrass beds, coral reefs, and other coastal and offshore habitats. The dataset has a Darwin Core standard format and has been fully released in the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). It is accessible through the GBIF portal under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. The data are standardized and validated with tools such as WoRMS, GEOLocate, and Google Maps. Therefore, they can be readily used for further studies on species richness, distribution, and functional traits. Overall, this dataset contributes baseline information on marine biodiversity for future research.

Mangroves and seagrasses present with high marine macroinvertebrate biodiversity that contributes to their structure and functioning. Macroinvertebrates possess a broad range of functional traits, making them excellent models for biodiversity and available-trait-based studies. This study aimed to characterize the biodiversity of marine macroinvertebrates as two different ecosystems situated along the coastline of Maputo Bay by compiling dispersed data from online databases. Specifically, this study addressed species richness, taxonomic and functional diversity based on two traits (habitat occupation and trophic guild), and the community structure of these traits. Mangroves presented with a higher species richness and taxonomic diversity than seagrasses. The functional diversity of mangroves was mostly explained by the trophic guild trait. In the case of seagrasses, functional diversity was mostly due to differences in habitat occupation in the 20th century, but the trophic guild accounted for this functional diversity from 2000 onwards. The comparison of community compositions between the two ecosystems showed low or no similarity. The use of digital databases revealed some limitations, mostly regarding the sampling methods and individual counts. The trends and data gaps presented in this study can be further used to inform subsequent systematic data acquisition and support the development of future research. A further step that may be taken to improve the use of digital data in future biodiversity studies is to fully incorporate functional traits, abundance and sampling methods into online databases.