Guinean forests of West Africa

The Guinean forests of West Africa are a very special place full of many different plants and animals. They are called a biodiversity hotspot, which means they have lots of life that needs protection. These forests run along the coast of West Africa, starting from Sierra Leone and Guinea in the west all the way to the Sanaga River in Cameroon in the east.

There is a dry area called the Dahomey Gap in Togo and Benin, which splits the Guinean forests into two parts: the Upper Guinean forests and the Lower Guinean forests. The Upper Guinean forests stretch from Sierra Leone and Guinea through Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire, and Ghana to Togo. The Lower Guinean forests go from Benin through Nigeria and Cameroon, and even further south into places like Gabon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Sadly, many of these forests have been cut down. Some experts say that about 90% of the original forests in West Africa are gone because of deforestation. This makes it very important to take care of the remaining forests to protect the animals and plants that live there.

Ecoregions

The World Wide Fund for Nature groups the Upper and Lower Guinean forests into several special areas called ecoregions.

Upper Guinean forests

• Western Guinean lowland forests (Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire)
• Guinean montane forests (Guinea, Sierra Leone, Côte d'Ivoire)
• Eastern Guinean forests (Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin)

Lower Guinean forests

• Nigerian lowland forests (Benin, Nigeria)
• Niger Delta swamp forests (Nigeria)
• Cross-Niger transition forests (Nigeria)
• Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests (Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea)
• Cameroonian Highlands forests (Nigeria, Cameroon)
• Mount Cameroon and Bioko montane forests (Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea)