Wildlife of Mauritania

Wildlife of Mauritania

Mauritania has special wildlife because it lies in two natural regions. The north is part of the Palearctic, which stretches from the Sahara Desert. The south is in the Afrotropic realm, which covers much of Africa south of the Sahara.

This mix makes Mauritania important for many birds. Each winter, birds from the Palearctic fly to Mauritania for warmer weather and food. This makes the country a key place for birds during their yearly journeys.

Faunal regions and habitats

Most of northern Mauritania, up to about 19° north latitude, is part of the Palearctic region and includes the Sahara desert and nearby coastal areas. The southern part of the country is in the Afrotropical region, where animals from this area are more common. The southernmost part of Mauritania is in the West Sudanian savanna area.

Wetlands are very important in Mauritania. The two main protected areas are Banc d'Arguin National Park, which safeguards shallow coastal and marine environments next to the Sahara desert, and Diawling National Park, which is located in the northern part of the Senegal River delta. Other wetlands in Mauritania usually only exist for a short time and depend on seasonal rains. These wetlands are very important for migratory birds.

Mammals

See also: List of mammals of Mauritania

Many large mammals do not live in Mauritania anymore. Some antelopes like the scimitar-horned oryx, addax, korrigum, and dama gazelle are gone. Others such as the bohor reedbuck, Buffon's kob, dorcas gazelle, and red-fronted gazelle are also not seen here. The bushbuck and slender-horned gazelle are rarely spotted.

In Diawling National Park, the last lion was seen in 1970. We no longer see manatees or hippopotamus there. The Mediterranean monk seal still lives in the coves near Nouadhibou along the Cap Blanc Peninsula.

Today, common mammals in Mauritania include the fennec fox, African golden wolves, warthogs, African wildcats, Cape hares, and patas monkeys.

The waters near Mauritania are home to many whales and dolphins. You can find the blue whale, sei whale, and Bryde's whale there. Other sea animals include the harbour porpoise, Atlantic spotted dolphin, bottlenose dolphin, sperm whale, short-finned pilot whale, and orca.

Birds

See also: List of birds of Mauritania

More than 500 kinds of birds live in or visit Mauritania. Some special birds you can find there are the scissor-tailed kite, Nubian bustard, Arabian bustard, houbara bustard, Egyptian plover, golden nightjar, chestnut-bellied starling, Kordofan lark, and Sudan golden sparrow.

Wetlands along the coast are important for birds that travel from far away for the winter. Over two million birds from fifteen groups come here, including dunlin, bar-tailed godwit, curlew sandpiper, and common redshank. Some of these birds are more than 100,000. Visitors also include more than 30,000 greater flamingos. Birds that stay and raise families in Mauritania include the great white pelican, reed cormorant, gull-billed tern, Caspian tern, royal tern, and common tern. There are also special types of grey heron and Eurasian spoonbill, as well as some western reef heron.

Herpetofauna

Mauritania is home to the West African crocodile, though only in small numbers. The country has many other reptiles, including the African chameleon, Senegal chameleon, Nile monitor, and several types of geckos and lizards. Some snakes can also be found.

In total, many different reptiles live in Mauritania. There are also amphibians in the country, especially in the south.

Fish

The fish in the waters near Mauritania are very important for fishing. People catch fish for business, food, and fun. The waters have many types of fish. Some fish are usually found in colder, northern areas like the European seabass, European hake, Norwegian skate, and gilt-head bream. There are also fish that live in warmer waters, such as the whale shark, Atlantic bluefin tuna, Atlantic sailfish, tarpon, and Atlantic blue marlin. Scientists have found records of different kinds of freshwater fish in Mauritania.