Western Congolian swamp forests

Western Congolian swamp forests

The Western Congolian swamp forests are an ecoregion of the Republic of the Congo and Democratic Republic of the Congo. Together with the adjacent Eastern Congolian swamp forests, it forms one of the largest continuous areas of freshwater swamp forest in the world. It is a flooded forest with a high canopy, dense undergrowth and has a muddy floor. It has not been disturbed very much by outside influences and so remains largely pristine as getting through this forest is called "almost impossible".[1]

Flora

The ecoregion contains areas of permanently flooded swamp forest, seasonally flooded swamp forest, and flooded grassland. The permanently flooded swamp forests are home to extensive stands of Raphia palm. Trees in the seasonally flooded forests include species of Garcinia and Manilkara.

Fauna

The ecoregion is home to the endangered western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) and African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis).

See also

References

  1. ↑ World Wildlife Fund (2001). "Western Congolian swamp forests". WildWorld Ecoregion Profile. National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on 2010-03-08. Retrieved July 10, 2011.

External links

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