Lake Malawi, and the slopes facing towards lake are generally wetter. The highlands are cooler than the surrounding lowlands, with annual temperatures between 13 °C and 19 °C. The highest elevations experience regular nighttime frosts between June and August. Ecology The Southern Highlands are covered with grasslands, savannas, woodlands, and forests. Miombo woodland and savanna predominates at lower elevations. At higher elevations the mountains are home to Afromontane evergreen forests, grasslands, and shrublands, part of the Southern Rift montane forest-grassland mosaic ecoregion, which extends into the nearby mountains of Malawi and Zambia. The highlands are home to several protected areas, including Kitulo National Park, Mpanga-Kipengere Game Reserve, Mount Rungwe Nature Forest Reserve, and forest reserves. Transport Tanzania's A104 highway connects Mbeya with Tanzania's capital Dodoma, and continues west from Mbeya to Tunduma on the Zambian border. The TAZARA Railway parallels the A104 through the highlands. References Bibliography Latham, P. (2008) Plants visited by bees and other useful plants of Umalila, southern Tanzania DFID. Geography of Tanzania Central Zambezian miombo woodlands Eastern miombo woodlands Mountains of Tanzania Southern Rift montane forest–grassland mosaic