The Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests are a

tropical moist broadleaf forest Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat (ecology), habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Description TSMF is generally foun ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

of west-central

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. This is lush forest rich in flora and birdlife.

Location and description

The region includes the lowland and coastal forests of southeastern

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, southwestern

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

, and the lowlands of the island of

Bioko Bioko (; historically Fernando Po; bvb, Ëtulá Ëria) is an island off the west coast of Africa and the northernmost part of Equatorial Guinea. Its population was 335,048 at the 2015 census and it covers an area of . The island is located of ...

, covering an area of . The ecoregion extends from the Cross River in southeastern Nigeria to the

Sanaga River The Sanaga River (formerly german: Zannaga) is the largest river in Cameroon located in East Region, Centre Region and Littoral Region. Its length is about from the confluence of Djérem and Lom River. The total length of Sanaga-Djérem Rive ...

in southeastern Cameroon, and up to 300 km inland from the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

coast. In Nigeria the region more or less covers

Cross River State ) , image_map = Nigeria - Cross River.svg , map_alt = , map_caption = Location of Cross River State in Nigeria , coordinates = , coor_pinpoint ...

. The highlands of

Mount Cameroon Mount Cameroon is an active volcano in the South West region of Cameroon next to the city of Buea near the Gulf of Guinea. Mount Cameroon is also known as Cameroon Mountain or Fako (the name of the higher of its two peaks) or by its indigenous n ...

and of Bioko island, above 900 meters elevation, are a distinct ecoregion, the

Mount Cameroon and Bioko montane forests The Mount Cameroon and Bioko montane forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in central Africa. It occupies the upper slopes of coastal Mount Cameroon in Cameroon, and the mountains of nearby Bioko island in Equatorial Guinea. Ge ...

, as are the

Cameroonian Highlands forests The Cameroonian Highlands forests, also known as the Cameroon Highlands forests, are a montane tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion located on the range of mountains that runs inland from the Gulf of Guinea and forms the border between Camero ...

further inland. To the west, across the Cross River, lies the Cross-Niger transition forests ecoregion. Towards the drier interior, the coastal forests transition to the

Guinean forest–savanna mosaic The Guinean forest-savanna mosaic is an ecoregion of West Africa, a band of interlaced forest, savanna, and grassland running east to west and dividing the tropical moist forests near the coast from the West Sudanian savanna of the interior. Set ...

to the north and the

Northern Congolian forest–savanna mosaic The Northern Congolian forest–savanna mosaic is a forest and savanna ecoregion of central Africa. It extends east and west across central Africa, covering parts of Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Suda ...

to the east. South of the Sanaga River along the coast lies the

Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests The Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests, also known as the Congolian coastal forests, are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of Central Africa, covering hills, plains, and mountains of the Atlantic coast of Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, G ...

ecoregion. The climate is wet with heavy rainfall all year round and many rivers cross the region as well as the Cross and the Sanaga.

Flora

The area is home to over 3,000 endemic species of plant, half of those found in West Africa, with nearly 2,000 found in Cameroon's

Korup National Park Korup National Park is in the Southwest Province of Cameroon and extends over 1,260 km2 of mostly undisturbed primary forest. It is reputedly one of Africa’s oldest and richest tropical forests in terms of floral and faunal diversity. It is ...

alone.

Fauna

Wildlife in the area includes

forest elephants The African forest elephant (''Loxodonta cyclotis'') is one of the two living African elephant species. It is native to humid forests in West Africa and the Congo Basin. It is the smallest of the three living elephant species, reaching a should ...

and many primates such as

Cross River gorilla The Cross River gorilla (''Gorilla gorilla diehli'') is a critically endangered subspecies of the western gorilla (''Gorilla gorilla''). It was named a new species in 1904 by Paul Matschie, a mammalian taxonomist working at the Humboldt Univer ...

s and

chimpanzees The chimpanzee (''Pan troglodytes''), also known as simply the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forest and savannah of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed subspecies. When its close relative the ...

(particularly in

Cross River National Park The Cross River National Park is a national park of Nigeria, located in Cross River State, Nigeria. There are two separate sections, Okwangwo (established 1991) and Oban (established 1988). The park has a total area of about 4,000 km2, most ...

in Nigeria), while

Preuss's red colobus Preuss's red colobus (''Piliocolobus preussi'') is a red colobus primate species endemic to the Cross-Sanaga Rivers ecoregion. An important population occurs in Korup National Park, Southwest Province, Cameroon, but the species' distribution is ...

(''Procolobus pennanti preussi'') is found only in this ecoregion and a number of others are nearly endemic including

red-eared guenon The red-eared guenon (''Cercopithecus erythrotis''), also called red-eared monkey, or russet-eared guenon is a primate species in the family Cercopithecidae. It is native to subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests in Cameroon, Equatorial G ...

(''Cercopithecus erythrotis''), crowned guenon (''Cercopithecus pogonias''),

drills A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a bit, either a drill or driverchuck. Hand-operated types are dramatically decreasing in popularity and cordless battery-powered ones proliferating due to i ...

(''Mandrillus leucophaeus''),

northern needle-clawed bushbaby The northern needle-clawed bushbaby (''Euoticus pallidus'') is a species of strepsirrhine primate in the family Galagidae. It is found in the coastal region of Cameroon and Nigeria, and on the island of Bioko, Equatorial Guinea in lower-elevation ...

(''Euoticus pallidus''), and

Pennant's colobus Pennant's colobus or Pennant's red colobus (''Piliocolobus pennantii'') is a species of tree-dwelling primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to tropical Central Africa. Three subspecies have traditionally been recognised but its dis ...

, one population of which is found on Bioko. There is also a great variety of amphibians and reptiles including the

Goliath frog The goliath frog (''Conraua goliath''), otherwise known commonly as the giant slippery frog and the goliath bullfrog, is a species of frog in the family Conrauidae. The goliath frog is the largest living frog. Specimens can grow up to in lengt ...

. The forests are also extremely rich in butterflies including the '' Charaxes superbus'' and '' Charaxes acraeoides''.

Threats

In 2006, it was estimated that annually more than 1,3 million mammals, about 64,650 reptiles and at least 7,700 birds are hunted in the Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests for the

bushmeat Bushmeat is meat from wildlife species that are hunted for human consumption, most often referring to the meat of game in Africa. Bushmeat represents a primary source of animal protein and a cash-earning commodity for inhabitants of humid tropi ...

trade.

Conservation

A 2017 assessment found that 13,197 km², or 26%, of the ecoregion is in protected areas.Eric Dinerstein, David Olson, et al. (2017). An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm, BioScience, Volume 67, Issue 6, June 2017, Pages 534–545; Supplemental material 2 table S1b

/ref> One of the largest blocks of forest is in and around

Visiting the region

in Cameroon is one of the most accessible ways into the forest, while in Nigeria Cross River State can be accessed from the capital

Calabar Calabar (also referred to as Callabar, Calabari, Calbari and Kalabar) is the capital city of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was originally named Akwa Akpa, in the Efik language. The city is adjacent to the Calabar and Great Kwa rivers and cre ...

, where there is a drill monkey sanctuary and from Calabar one can reach the

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests Afrotropical ecoregions Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Ecoregions of Cameroon Ecoregions of Equatorial Guinea Ecoregions of Nigeria Forests of Cameroon Cross River (Nigeria)