Douala-Edéa National Park, formerly known as Douala-Edéa Wildlife Reserve, is a national park in the Littoral Region of

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 ...

Location

The park is located on either side of the mouth of 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 ...

along the shores of the

Bight of Biafra The Bight of Biafra (known as the Bight of Bonny in Nigeria) is a bight off the West African coast, in the easternmost part of the Gulf of Guinea. Geography The Bight of Biafra, or Mafra (named after the town Mafra in southern Portugal), between ...

opposite 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 ...

. Lake Tissongo, a lagoon connected to the south bank of the Sanaga River by a tidal channel, is included in the reserve.

Mouanko Mouanko is a town and commune in the Littoral Region of Cameroon, lying on the north bank of the Sanaga River. It is the main town of the Douala Edéa Wildlife Reserve. See also *Communes of Cameroon The Arrondissements of Cameroon are the thi ...

is the main town in the reserve, on the north shore of the

. File:Lac tisongo, mouanko.png, Lake Tissongo File:River Sanaga.jpg, Sanara River

History

The reserve was established in 1932. Cameroon designated the reserve as a wildlife park for scientific purposes in 1971, and by 1974 the reserve had a conservator and guard post. It was designated a national park in 2018. As of 2000, it covered . Upgrade to full national park status was delayed since oil had been discovered in Cameroon's coastal areas, and the area could hold important reserves. In October 2018, it was upgraded to national park status.

Flora

80% of the reserve is covered by tropical lowland equatorial forest, and 15% by Atlantic mangrove forests. The Mouanko reserve between the Sanaga and the

Wouri estuary The Wouri estuary, or Cameroon estuary is a large tidal estuary in Cameroon where several rivers come together, emptying into the Bight of Biafra. Douala, the largest city in Cameroon, is at the mouth of the Wouri River where it enters the estu ...

holds about of mangrove forests. The mangroves form a buffer against

coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward ...

, and are a refuge for 80% of the local marine and aquatic species for at least part of their lifecycle. They are threatened by logging for construction timber and for firewood used in fish smoking, as well as by urban infrastructure development. Illegal loggers were expelled from the park in 1976.

Fauna

Fauna include

forest elephant 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 shoulde ...

s, primates (

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 ...

, monkey Singes de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 14species such as

black colobus The black colobus (''Colobus satanas''), or satanic black colobus, is a species of Old World monkey belonging to the genus ''Colobus''. The species is found in a small area of western central Africa. Black colobuses are large, completely covered ...

), antelopes (

sitatunga The sitatunga or marshbuck (''Tragelaphus spekii'') is a swamp-dwelling antelope found throughout central Africa, centering on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, parts of Southern Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, ...

blue duiker The blue duiker (''Philantomba monticola'') is a small antelope found in central, southern and eastern Africa. It is the smallest duiker. The species was first described by Swedish naturalist Carl Peter Thunberg in 1789. 12 subspecies are ident ...

, etc.),

West African manatee The African manatee (''Trichechus senegalensis''), also known as the West African manatee, is a species of manatee that inhabits much of the western region of Africa – from Senegal to Angola. It is the only manatee species to be found in the O ...

s, sea turtles, dolphins, crocodiles, alligator, many fish species, terrestrial and water bird species. The

red-capped mangabey The collared mangabey (''Cercocebus torquatus''), also called red-capped mangabey and white-collared mangabey is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae of Old World monkeys. It formerly included the sooty mangabey as a subspecies. As ...

was reported to be common in the reserve in 1972. The endangered red-eared nose-spotted guenon was reported in the Lombé part of the reserve in densities of 2–3 groups per square kilometers, but populations had dropped elsewhere due to hunting. Animals in the reserve are poorly protected and poaching is widespread. Central chimpanzees in the reserve are threatened by hunters. File:Loxodontacyclotis.jpg, Forest elephant File:Singes de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 21.jpg, Forest view File:Singes de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 04.jpg, Monkeys on a motor way at the park File:Singes de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 19.jpg, Lunch time by a river File:Singes de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 14.jpg, Black specie Monkeys by a stream at the Douala-Edea reserve File:Singe de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 07.jpg, A Monkey on Bamboo branches File:Singe de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 17.jpg, A male monkey climbing a tree in the park File:Singes de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 15.jpg, Adult Monkeys with children eating banana fruits File:Singe de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 16.jpg, Monkey File:Singe de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 05.jpg File:Singe de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 09.jpg File:Singe de la réserve de faune de Douala - Edea 03.jpg File:Chimpanzé, R.F Douala-édea,Mouanko.png, Chimpanzee

References

Cited sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Douala Edea Wildlife Reserve Douala National parks of Cameroon Protected areas established in 1932