Gashaka Gumti National Park
Nigeria
Located in the mountainous north-east region of Nigeria and close to the Cameroon border, is the Gashaka Gumti National Park; the largest national park in Nigeria. The park can be divided into five distinct ecological zones, which range from scrub to lowland forest. These diverse and rich ecosystems support a vast array of both plantlife and wildlife.
The park is home to a variety of animals including rare and elusive leopards, endangered elephants, lions, wild dogs, antelope, forest hogs, golden cats, as well as eight species of primate, including the chimpanzee, and many more. The park is also abundant with bird life, insects, aquatic life and reptiles.
In 2000, University College London founded the Gashaka Primate Project which aims to better understand the way primates interact with their natural environment. The project has lead to park protection, eco-tourism development and community outreach as well as developing the park infrastructure and biological research.
The park is a popular destination for sport-fishing, mountaineering, wilderness trekking, primate watching and is also home to a museum of natural history exhibiting wildlife specimens, old hunting equipment and fishing gear.
Main image credit: Flickr Richard Toller
