The Conservancy's project is located in a biodiversity hotspot convergence zone—where the coastal forests of Eastern Africa and Horn of Africa meet. Much of the area is comprised of Somali Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets. The coastal forests of Eastern Africa hotspot (shown in the rotating map above as the lower yellow circle), which also includes portions of the Tana River north of the coast, has over 1,700 threatened endemic plants and animals, including three highly threatened monkey species and two species of bushbabies.

The coastal forests of Kenya are part of a forest mosaic that extends from the Kenya-Somalia border to the Tanzania-Mozambique border and serve as important repositories for endemic plants and animals:

• Plant species in this region are under extreme pressure from local and commercial harvesting.
• Besides the endangered African wild dog, species include the critically endangered hirola and Tana River red colobus, and the endangered Tana River mangabey and Golden-rumped elephant shrew (sengi).

The Horn of Africa biodiversity hotspot covers more than 1.5 million km² and is one of only two hotspots that is entirely arid. It is also one of the most degraded of all global hotspots with only about 5 percent of the original habitat remaining. Livestock grazing is a major cause of degradation, followed by charcoal harvesting and political instability. This region has over 2,700 endemic plants and animals, including threatened antelopes, and more reptiles than anywhere in Africa. The bushlands of northeastern Kenya are found here.