Sovi Basin
PROTECTED AREA
Fiji’s Largest Protected Area
The Sovi Basin is Fiji’s largest terrestrial protected area with 16,344 hectares of forest protected for conservation. Located 35 kms inland from Suva, the entire basin is filled with undisturbed tropical forest vegetation, rivers and streams. This forest is the habitat of many of Fiji’s remarkable biodiversity. 13 species globally classed as “threatened with extinction” have been found in the Sovi Basin.
A Priceless Gift
Following several decades of preparation with Conservation International, Forestry Department in Fiji, and iTaukei Land Trust Board, Sovi Basin was gifted to the people of Fiji in 2012, through a conservation lease to the National Trust of Fiji (NTF), by the landowners within the Naitasiri and Namosi provinces. The NTF has since worked closely with the Sovi Landowners Committee to co-manage the Sovi Basin.
Biological and Landscape Heritage
Sovi Basin was listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List in 1999, designated as a Key Biodiversity Area by Conservation International and an important Bird Area by Birdlife International. The Sovi Basin is the largest, most diverse and most scenically outstanding of Fiji’s natural forest.
Plant Species
Bird Species
Insect Species
Freshwater Fish Species
Herpeto-fauna Species
Mammal Species
Degeneria Vitiensis (Masiratu)
Vulnerable Endangered on the IUCN Red List
Acmopyle sahniana (Drautabua)
Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List
Long Legged Warbler (Manukalou)
Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List
Samoan Flying Fox (Pteropus samoensis)
Near Endangered on the IUCN Red List
Fiji Tree Frog (Botoniviti)
Near Endangered on the IUCN Red List
The SOVI BASIN is not open to recreational visitors.
Research requests may be submitted on the Research Permit Application Form.