Fragmented Nigerian Vegetation Belts , Threat To Wild-lives

Nigeria’s varied vegetation belts comprising rainforests in the South and Savanna in the north offer habitats to a number of  rare and exotic wild lives.

 

African Elephants

Most Endangered African Ape

They include endemic primates such as the Cross River gorilla, the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, the Niger Delta red colobus monkey and the Sclater’s guenon. 

But according to Wildlife Conservation Society, WCS, “unfortunately the area has a very high human population density and the country’s rainforests have been extensively degraded and fragmented, whilst populations of large mammals have been severely reduced by widespread hunting to supply demand for wild meat, known as bush-meat”.

“The northern half of the country is covered by savanna vegetation which still supports important populations of characteristic savanna species such as elephant and lion – though these are also now much reduced”.