How big is the congo rainforest. The Congo Rainforest 2022-12-23
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The Congo rainforest, also known as the Congo Basin, is the second largest rainforest in the world, covering an area of approximately 1.75 million square miles. It is located in central Africa and spans across six countries: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Republic of Congo, and Equatorial Guinea.
The Congo rainforest is home to a vast array of plant and animal species, many of which are found nowhere else in the world. It is estimated that the rainforest is home to over 10,000 species of plants and more than 1,000 species of mammals, including gorillas, chimpanzees, elephants, and leopards. The rainforest is also home to a diverse array of birds, reptiles, and amphibians, as well as thousands of species of insects.
One of the most unique and iconic features of the Congo rainforest is the Okapi, a rare and elusive animal that is closely related to the giraffe. The Okapi is found only in the rainforest and is known for its distinctive striped coat and long, flexible tongue that it uses to feed on leaves and branches.
In addition to its rich biodiversity, the Congo rainforest is also an important source of livelihood for millions of people who live in and around the forest. Many people in the region rely on the forest for their food, medicine, and other basic needs. The rainforest is also an important source of timber, rubber, and other resources that are used around the world.
Despite its importance, the Congo rainforest faces a number of serious threats, including deforestation, illegal logging, and mining. These activities have led to the loss of large areas of forest and have had a negative impact on the people and animals that rely on the rainforest for their survival.
In conclusion, the Congo rainforest is a vast and diverse ecosystem that is home to a wide array of plant and animal species. It is an important source of livelihood for millions of people and plays a vital role in the global ecosystem. However, it is also facing a number of serious threats that must be addressed in order to protect this vital resource for future generations.
The World's Second Largest Rainforest: Congo
Though technically rapids rather than a waterfall, if one accepts rapids as a waterfall, then the Livingstone Falls are the largest-volume waterfalls in the world. Cameroon has several protected areas such as the Campo Maian National Park, Dja Reserve, Lobeke National Park, Waza National Park, and Korup National Park. Some days were spent walking up and down the trail for up to eight hours, which only left us with a few hours of sunlight to actually work. Or maybe I just wasn't paying close enough attention. Poaching continues to be a growing problem in the Congo Basin, even within national parks and other protected areas. Logging not only reduces the amount of suitable habitat for the wildlife in the rainforest but also leads to increases in poaching. They live in mountainous regions with altitudes between 500-1000 metres and in swamp forests below 500 meters.
The biodiversity of tropical rain forests is the hope of human development medicine. The current US administration is trying to 7. Much of the region is protected either by national parks or reserves making it one of the least-threatened rainforests in the world. When establishing a settlement, these peoples clear the undergrowth and small trees but leave the canopy intact, so that it protects them from extreme weather including intensive heat and heavy downpours. They still receive upwards of 2,000mm of year-round rainfall, but experience drier summers. Demand for Natural Resources The Congo Basin is extremely rich in wood, oil and minerals such as diamonds, gold and coltan used to make cell phones. The falls are named after the famous British explorer David Livingstone, even though he never visited them.
Researchers have found that Central African forests have a lower density of smaller trees compared to the Amazon or Borneo forests. The leading cause of wildlife loss in the Congo Basin is the commercial bushmeat trade, driven by an ever increasing market. Ensuring protection of the Congo Basin requires a massive effort that reaches beyond political borders, especially when six countries have a direct stake. You might also Like rosoph March 25, 2011 A lot of the Congo Rainforest animals are animals that I always pictured to be found in Africa, just not in the rainforest. In 2008, the Congolese President signed a deal with the EU to reduce the negative effects of deforestation which helped add to the countries commitment to manage forests sustainably. The Congo rainforest, the tropical rainforest of the African Congo Basin, is second only to the tropical rainforest of theAmazon Basin in South America.
Congo originates at an altitude of 1,600 meters above sea level, about 9 ° south latitude and 32 ° east longitude, between the lakes of Niassa and Tanganaika, skirting the southern side of Lake Bangweola, taking its source. The authors say the work will help conservation agencies, governments, and scientists better understand how the expansion of logging is impacting the forest, its inhabitants, and global climate. Did he explore the Congo Rainforest and just never see the falls? In places where corruption might undermine whistleblower protections, whistleblowers can also use U. Michael Anissimov Michael is a longtime CulturalWorld contributor who specializes in topics relating to paleontology, physics, biology, astronomy, chemistry, and futurism. A man selling dead monkeys on a road in Impfondo, Likouala region, Congo-Brazzaville.
But plants also move water from soil up through their roots to leaves, where it can escape as water vapor, or transpire. Only some of the sporadic low cliffs caused by faults break this monotonous landscape to some extent. According to the opens in new tab , the forest includes at least 10% of Earth's total biodiversity, or variety of plants, animals and other living things. Industrial logging has been the largest driver of forest degradation. Today, the Congo Basin provides food, medicine, water, materials and shelter for over 75 million people. Through unscrupulous officials, foreign companies are abusing artisanal permits—meant for local community logging—to clear-cut wide swathes of tropical forest in the country.
The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay. This is because the roads made for logging make the forest more accessible to poachers. The area experiences a population increase of 1. To protect this important area, we are working to implement low-impact logging practices and leave some areas undisturbed. The sixth largest island in the world was once covered with thick jungle from coast to coast. Photo by Rhett A. As the amount of land available for plantations runs out in other parts of the world, investors are increasingly turning towards the Congo Basin to grow products such as rubber, palm oil and sugar.
Species counts for Congo Basin countries Country Birds Amphibians Mammals Reptiles Fish Vascular plants D. They are moistforests that grow on mountain ranges, usually along western coasts where westerly winds bring highprecipitation. The commercial bushmeat trade is one of the leading causes of wildlife loss in the Congo Basin. Bushmeat A rising population in the DRC coupled with widespread poverty and displacement from war has forced many Congolese to become dependent on the meat of wild animals, typically referred to as bush meat. The Congo rainforest is located within the Congo Basin, one of the most biodiverse regions in the world.
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In the DRC alone, over a million tons of bushmeat are consumed each year. Despite their immense value,the largest rainforests in the world are under constant threat. All of this has indirect knock-on effects with logging roads opening up areas of the Congo to commercial poaching, leading to a 3. . Congo 1087 244 430 294 1480 11007 Cameroon 874 218 335 283 1042 8260 Gabon 606 96 182 138 774 6651 Republic of Congo 606 75 197 344 771 6000 Central African Republic 711 56 219 198 164 3602 Equatorial Guinea 433 49 174 73 551 3250 Key news articles about the Congo Rainforest The peatlands of the Congo Basin are home to more than just massive carbon stocks and some of our closest — and most threatened — relatives in the animal kingdom, including gorillas and chimpanzees. However, this vast wilderness is under relentless threat from large-scale farming and ranching,development, logging, mining and climate change.
The Congo region is 300,000 square miles 777,000 square kilometres in size. However, scientists warn that the threats posed by industries are growing. To reduce deforestation from small-holder agriculture, it is crucial that local communities are involved in plans to protect the forest. Logging roads have opened up vast areas of the Congo to commercial hunting, leading to a poaching epidemic in some areas and Looking forward, the biggest threats to the Congo rainforest come from industrial plantations, especially for palm oil, rubber, and sugar production. In addition to being an avid blogger, Michael is particularly passionate about stem cell research, regenerative medicine, and life extension therapies. Alarmingly, this lucrative business is causing the forest to become empty of species. Like many African countries, most of the Congo basin countries are politically unstable, and the eastern Congo is known for having the highest rate of sexual brutality in the entire world.
Image credit: Shutterstock opens in new tab The opens in new tab. Related infrastructure projects—such as roads and dams—have environmental impacts and increase access to remote forest areas for hunters. Congo Basin forests soak up approximately 1. Between 2003 and 2013, the population of forest elephants fell by 62%, caused in large part by illegal poaching. Conducting a review of more than 160 papers and reports on trends in wildlife populations, hunting, and land use in the Congo Basin, an international team of researchers conclude that unless effective management plans are put into place, hunting pressure in the region is likely to increase, with knock-on ecological effects.
