A 182,550 ha tract of largely forested land encompassing the eastern part of the island has been identified by
BirdLife International as an
Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports populations of several
threatened or
endemic bird species. The site extends from the rocky cliffs of the coast to the island's central Bauro Highlands, including the catchments of the Warihito and Raro Rivers, reaching an altitude of 1,200 m, and consisting largely of
tropical rainforest. The landscape is rugged, with steep-sided valleys, many streams and waterfalls, and small perched floodplains. Potential threats to the environment are
logging,
invasive species and human
population growth.
Birds Significant birds include
Melanesian scrubfowl,
yellow-legged pigeons,
crested cuckoo-doves,
red-knobbed and
chestnut-bellied imperial pigeons,
white-headed fruit doves,
Makira boobooks,
pied goshawks,
Sanford's sea eagles,
San Cristobal dwarf kingfishers,
Meek's and
duchess lorikeets,
yellow-bibbed lories,
green pygmy-parrots,
Makira honeyeaters,
sooty myzomelas,
long-tailed trillers,
dusky fantails,
Makira flycatchers,
white-collared and
Makira monarchs,
island leaf-warblers,
shade bush warblers,
grey-throated white-eyes,
Makira starlings,
Makira thrushes and
mottled flowerpeckers. The
Makira woodhen, or moorhen, has not been seen since 1953; the
thick-billed ground dove has not been recorded since 1927 and is presumed extinct.
Other biota Five species of restricted-range
bats have been recorded, as well as a possibly new species of giant rat (
Solomys). There are two species of endemic fig (
Ficus). == Notable people ==