Monte Alén National Park () is located near the center of

Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. It has an area of . Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name refers to its location both near the Equ ...

. It was established in 1990. With an area of , it is the country's largest

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

. The goliath frog, one of the prominent

amphibians Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...

found in the park, is the biggest frog in the world; hunting it is prohibited.

Geography and environment

The park has an area of and lies within the elevation range of . It was declared a national park under a presidential decree in 2000 in addition to 13 other areas. The highest peaks of Monte Alén and Monte Mitra lie within the limits of the park. Uoro River lies to the west of the park. The eastern part of the park is bounded by the Niefang-Gabon road. There are a few patches of rock outcrops. Lake Atoc (Lago Atoc) has forest cover throughout its entire catchment. Trekking paths are well laid out in the park. Logging operation within the park is fully controlled.

Climate

The climate is hot humid equatorial, with an average temperature of about in the lowland area and in the highlands. The mean annual rainfall is between .

Wildlife

The park has recorded 265 species of birds and has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

because it supports significant populations of many bird species. Some of the prominent species include three montane species: grey cuckooshrike, pink-footed puffback and black-capped woodland warbler; Uganda woodland warbler, grey-necked rockfowl, Zenker's honeyguide, Tessmann's flycatcher and Gabon batis. The park has 105

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

species which includes 16 species of

primates Primates is an order of mammals, which is further divided into the strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and lorisids; and the haplorhines, which include tarsiers and simians ( monkeys and apes). Primates arose 74–63 ...

. These include black colobus, collared mangabey,

mandrill The mandrill (''Mandrillus sphinx'') is a large Old World monkey native to west central Africa. It is one of the most colorful mammals in the world, with red and blue skin on its face and posterior. The species is Sexual dimorphism, sexually ...

gorilla Gorillas are primarily herbivorous, terrestrial great apes that inhabit the tropical forests of equatorial Africa. The genus ''Gorilla'' is divided into two species: the eastern gorilla and the western gorilla, and either four or five su ...

s and

chimpanzee The chimpanzee (; ''Pan troglodytes''), also simply known as the chimp, is a species of Hominidae, great ape native to the forests and savannahs of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed one. When its close rel ...

s. Other mammal species include bush elephants, forest elephants and Grasse's shrews. Sixty-five species of reptiles are reported, including

crocodile Crocodiles (family (biology), family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large, semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term "crocodile" is sometimes used more loosely to include ...

s. Amphibians include '' Petropedetes palmipes'' and '' Leptodactylodon stevarti'', which are in the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

. Goliath frogs are found in the southern part of the park.

Conservation

In 1989, conservation of the forest area of the park was zoned for purpose of awarding concessions for logging, and agroforestry activities were encouraged. A study conducted under

USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian United States foreign aid, foreign aid and development assistance. Established in 19 ...

observed that hunting of mammals in the park was a serious issue which needed urgent remedial conservation action. By 2005, Caldecott reported that agriculture, hunting, and logging were not allowed in the park.

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monte Alen National Park National parks of Equatorial Guinea Important Bird Areas of Equatorial Guinea Protected areas established in 1990