Central Congolian lowland forests
Encyclopedia
The Central Congolian lowland forests are an ecoregion
Ecoregion
An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...

 within the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...

. This is a remote, inaccessible area of low-lying dense wet forest, undergrowth and swamp in the Cuvette Centrale
Cuvette Centrale
The Cuvette Centrale is a region of forests and wetlands in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Cuvette Centrale lies in the center of the Congo Basin, and is bounded on the west, north, and east by the arc of the Congo River....

 region of the Congo Basin
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...

 south of the arc of the River Congo.1

Fauna

The region has been insufficiently researched by zoologists but is known to be home to antelopes, forest elephants, and several primates, including the rare bonobo
Bonobo
The bonobo , Pan paniscus, previously called the pygmy chimpanzee and less often, the dwarf or gracile chimpanzee, is a great ape and one of the two species making up the genus Pan. The other species in genus Pan is Pan troglodytes, or the common chimpanzee...

 (pan paniscus), De Brazza's Monkey
De Brazza's Monkey
De Brazza's monkey is an Old World monkey endemic to the wetlands of central Africa.- Taxonomy :Locally known as swamp monkeys, these primates are named after the Italian-French explorer Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza. They were given the species name neglectus because of their skill in hiding from...

, Crested mangabey
Crested mangabey
The crested mangabeys are West-African Old World monkeys, belonging to the genus Lophocebus. They tend to have dark skin, eyelids that match their facial skin, and crests of hair on their heads. Another genus of mangabeys, Cercocebus, was once thought to be very closely related, so much so that all...

 and the lowland gorilla. There is only one known strictly endemic mammal, the Dryas Monkey
Dryas Monkey
The Dryas monkey , also known as Salonga monkey or ntolu, is a little-known species of guenon found only in the Congo Basin, restricted to the left bank of the Congo River. It is now established that the animals previously classified as Cercopithecus salongo were in fact Dryas monkeys...

 (Cercopithecus dryas). Other near-endemic mammals include the Golden-bellied mangabey
Golden-bellied Mangabey
The golden-bellied mangabey is a social Old World monkey found in swampy, humid forests south of the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was previously considered a subspecies of the agile mangabey .-References:...

 (Cercocebus chrysogaster), bonobo (Pan paniscus, EN), okapi
Okapi
The okapi , Okapia johnstoni, is a giraffid artiodactyl mammal native to the Ituri Rainforest, located in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Central Africa...

 (Okapia johnstoni), Allen's swamp monkey
Allen's Swamp Monkey
Allen's swamp monkey is a primate species that is categorized in its own genus Allenopithecus in the Old World monkey family...

 (Allenopithecus nigroviridis), Angolan Kusimanse (Crossarchus ansorgei), Thollon's Red Colobus
Thollon's Red Colobus
Thollon's red colobus , also known as the Tshuapa red colobus, is a species of red colobus monkey from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and lower Republic of the Congo. It is found south of Congo River and west of Lomami River. It had once been considered a subspecies of the P. badius...

 (Procolobus tholloni) and Wolf's Mona Monkey
Wolf's Mona Monkey
The Wolf's mona monkey , also called Wolf's guenon, is a colorful Old World monkey in the Cercopithecidae family. It is found in central Africa, primarily between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. It lives in primary and secondary lowland rainforest and swamp forest.-Taxonomy:Wolf's...

 (Cercopithecus wolfi).

There are two birds that are near-endemic in the region the Congo Peafowl
Congo Peafowl
The Congo Peafowl is a species of peafowl. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Afropavo.The male is a large bird of up to in length. Its feathers are deep blue with a metallic green and violet tinge. It has bare red neck skin, grey feet, and a black tail with fourteen feathers...

 (Afropavo congensis, VU) and the Yellow-legged Weaver
Yellow-legged Weaver
The Yellow-legged Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is endemic to Democratic Republic of the Congo.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.It is threatened by habitat loss....

 (Malimbus flavipes).

Threats and conservation

The forest remains largely unspoilt as human population is limited to small communities who hunt and fish along the many rivers that cross this remote, swapmy region. However many animals are vulnerable to poaching, and their movements are restricted by the network of waterways. Meanwhile Salonga National Park
Salonga National Park
Salonga National Park is a national park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo located in the Congo River basin. It is Africa's largest tropical rainforest reserve covering about 36,000 km². Animals in the park include bonobos, Salonga monkeys, Tshuapa red colobus, Zaire peacocks, forest...

 is a huge protected area within the region, one of the largest national parks in the world, and the second largest tropical forest national park in the world.

Urban areas and settlements

The Cuvette Centrale is remote and sparsely populated, there are some riverside markets and villages such as Ikela
Ikela
Ikela is a market town in Tshuapa District in the Democratic Republic of Congo, lying on the Tshuapa River east of Boende. Founded by Belgium in the early twentieth century as a trading post, it became an important local centre....

but access to this area is difficult (by dugout canoe) and/or expensive (there are airstrips near Salonga Park).

External links

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