The Oban Hills are a range of hills in Cross River State

Cross River State

Cross River State is a coastal state in southeastern Nigeria, bordering Cameroon to the east. Its capital is at Calabar, and it is named for the Cross River , which passes through the state...

, Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

.
They lie within the Oban Hills Division of the Cross River National Park

Cross river national park

The Cross River National Park is a national park of Nigeria, located in Cross River State, Nigeria.There are two separate sections, Okwangwo and Oban ....

.

Geography

The hills are rugged, rising from 100 metres (328.1 ft) in the river valleys to over 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft) in the mountains.
The soils are highly vulnerable to leaching and erosion where stripped of plant cover.
The rainy season lasts from March to November, with annual rainfall of over 3,500mm.
The northern part is drained by the Cross river

Cross River (Nigeria)

Cross River is the main river in southeastern Nigeria and gives its name to Cross River State.It originates in Cameroon, where it takes the name of the Manyu River....

 and its tributaries.
The southern parts are drained by the Calabar

Calabar River

The Calabar River in Cross River State, Nigeria flows from the north past the city of Calabar, joining the larger Cross River about to the south. The river at Calabar forms a natural harbor deep enough for vessels with a draft of ....

, Kwa

Great Kwa River

The Great Kwa River flows through Cross River State, Nigeria, draining the east side of the city of Calabar...

 and Korup rivers.

Land use

The Oban hills, which take their name from the small town of Oban to the south, contain the largest area of unexploited lowland rain forest in Nigeria.
It is possible that at one time the region was home to more people, perhaps being depopulated due to its proximity to the slave trading center of Calabar

Calabar

Calabar is a city in Cross River State, southeastern Nigeria. The original name for Calabar was Atakpa, from the Jukun language....

, and that the forest may actually be fairly recent growth.
A 1988 report said that the remaining patches of forest on mountainous slopes were being encroached upon for logging and farming. Primates such as Preuss's Guenon were being hunted for meat.
The Oban Hills Forest Reserve was made a part of the Cross River National Park in 1991.

Sources

|url=http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/sitefactsheet.php?id=6740
|work=BirdLife International
|year=2010
|title=Important Bird Areas factsheet: Cross River National Park: Oban Division
|accessdate=2010-11-05}}