Central African Republic

África

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The Central African Republic occupies the transition between the Congo rainforest, to the southwest, and the Sudanian savannahs of the north and east. At the far southwest, the Dzanga-Sangha complex forms part of the great trinational forest block it shares with Cameroon and the Republic of the Congo, with closed-canopy rainforest, blackwater rivers and swampy clearings where wildlife gathers. In the north and east stretch immense, thinly populated wooded savannahs, crossed by gallery forest, which once held enormous herds of elephants and antelopes and where recovery projects such as Chinko now work. The Ba'Aka peoples of the southwest hold a deep knowledge of the forest and take part in tracking gorillas habituated to human presence.

The nature of Central African Republic

National animal: The elephant, present on the national coat of arms

Did you know?

Dzanga Bai is a swampy clearing in the middle of the rainforest, the size of a few football pitches, visited every day by dozens of forest elephants, sometimes more than a hundred. They do not come to drink but to dig the mud with trunk and tusks in search of mineral salts they cannot find among the vegetation. It is the best place in the world to watch this species, normally invisible under the canopy, and its social behaviour has been studied there for decades.

Biodiversity profile

Africa Central (pais sin litoral)Aprox. 16,6% del territorio bajo alguna forma de proteccion, aunque el apoyo institucional a las areas protegidas ha sido historicamente debil

Climate

•Tropical con estacion seca (Aw) en la mayor parte del territorio
•Tropical humedo (Af) en el suroeste (selva de la Cuenca del Congo)

Main biomes

•Selva tropical humeda del suroeste (parte del complejo trinacional Sangha, compartido con Camerun y Congo)
•Sabana y mosaico de bosque-sabana (centro y norte)
•Bosque seco en el extremo norte
•Selva ecuatorial húmeda
•Claro pantanoso o bai
•Sabana sudanesa arbolada
•Bosque de galería
•Río de aguas negras
•Llanura inundable
•Mosaico bosque-sabana

Marine and coastal ecosystems

•No aplica (pais sin litoral)

Flagship wildlife

•Gorila de llanura occidental
•Bongo de las tierras bajas
•Elefante de bosque africano
•Bufalo de bosque
•Gorila occidental de llanura
•Chimpancé
•Bongo
•Sitatunga
•León africano
•Jirafa de Kordofán
•Hipopótamo
•Pangolín gigante

Notable endemic species

•Aprox. 3.600 especies de plantas, 663 de aves, 131 de mamiferos y 187 de reptiles registradas en el pais, con concentracion de endemismo en el bosque humedo del suroeste

Notable threatened species

•Gorila de llanura occidental (En Peligro Critico)
•Elefante de bosque africano (En Peligro Critico, fuerte presion de caza furtiva por marfil)
•Bongo de tierras bajas (Casi Amenazado)

Notable protected areas

•Parque Nacional Dzanga-Ndoki (parte del complejo trinacional Sangha, Patrimonio Mundial, compartido con Camerun y Congo)
•Parque Nacional de Dzanga-Ndoki
•Reserva Especial de Dzanga-Sangha
•Parque Nacional de Manovo-Gounda-San Floris
•Reserva de Chinko
•Parque Nacional de Bamingui-Bangoran
•Cataratas de Boali

Main conservation threats

•Caza furtiva persistente pese a la designacion formal de areas protegidas, con cazadores y madereros operando incluso dentro de parques nacionales
•Debilidad institucional cronica en la gestion de la conservacion
•Inestabilidad politica y conflicto armado que dificultan el monitoreo efectivo

Notable natural phenomena

•El complejo trinacional Sangha, compartido con Camerun y la Republica del Congo, forma una de las mayores extensiones continuas de selva tropical primaria protegida de la Cuenca del Congo

Conservation

Manovo-Gounda-St Floris has been on the list of World Heritage in Danger since 1997 because of poaching and insecurity. Dzanga-Sangha combines strict protection with use rights for the Ba'Aka communities.

Where and when to watch wildlife

Dzanga Bai year-round, from the observation platform, for forest elephants. The forests of Bai Hokou for habituated gorillas. The northern savannahs in the dry season for large ungulates.

Sources: worldrainforests.com - Congo Conservation | Wikipedia - Northern Congolian forest-savanna mosaic

Savanna Rainforest