ABSTRACT
The Iringa region is located in the southern highlands of Tanzania lying between 7°46′12″ S and 35º41′24″ E and covering an area of about 58,936 km2 (Figure 1). The region is surrounded by three major mountainous ranges of the Kipengere and Livingstone Mountains to the south and the Udzungwa Mountain in the northeast. Most of the region is composed of highlands and escarpments ranging from 1200 m to 2700 m, though there are a few lowland areas ranging between 900 m and 1200 m above sea level. Highlands and escarpments are mainly composed of Precambrian migmatites, granite and Konse group outcrops that form most of the rock-shelters and overhangs (Howell et al., 1962 cited in Bushozi, 2012; Harpum, 1970; Harris, 1981). These rock-shelters and overhangs served as prehistoric human settlements as they accommodated humans during the glaciations phases of the Middle and Upper Pleistocene, the period in which most of tropical Africa was characterized by prolonged series of dry and harsh environmental conditions (Willoughby, 2007).
