By Brighton Kaoma, Columbia University MPA Alum; Victor Nyambok, WWF Regional Office for Africa Communications Manager, and Alice Ruhweza, Africa Regional Head, WWF
The food we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink and the climate that makes our planet habitable all come from nature. During these exceptional times, nature is sending us a message: to care for ourselves, we must care for nature. It’s time to wake up. To take notice. To raise our voices. It’s time to build back better for people and the planet.
Africa is immensely rich in biodiversity. Its living organisms comprise around a quarter of global biodiversity and it supports the Earth’s largest intact assemblages of large mammals, which roam freely in many countries. Africa’s biomes extend from mangroves to deserts, from Mediterranean to tropical forests, from temperate to sub-tropical and montane grasslands and savannas, and even to ice-capped mountains.
Today on World Environment Day, we are pleased to share with you some of Africa’s unique Biodiversity.
Four times the size of California, the Congo basin forms the core of humid forest in Central Africa. The Congo basin comprises five ecoregions of humid forest, and three additional ecoregions of forest- savannah mosaic on the edges of the basin in the north and south. The Congo basin contains about 1.8 million square kilometers of rainforest, or about 90 percent of all African rainforests; other regions are the Guinean lowlands of West Africa and the rainforests of Madagascar. Reducing deforestation is essential because removing trees and vegetation releases more CO2 than transportation. Photo: WWF
Green turtle hatchlings emerge from a nest on a beach in Lamu seascape, Kenya. WWF and its partners are working with communities in coastal Kenya to protect marine turtles. Five of the seven species of marine turtle are found in the waters of Kenya’s Lamu seascape – green, olive ridley, leatherback, loggerhead, and the critically endangered hawksbill. Of these, green, olive ridley and hawksbills are known to nest in Kenya. Even under ‘natural’ conditions, relatively few young turtles survive their first year of life — it’s estimated only about one in a thousand hatchlings makes it to adulthood. By working with communities, including fishermen and local women’s groups, WWF is helping to reduce human impact on marine turtles by monitoring and protecting nest sites and changing damaging fishing practices. Photo: Getty
The black leopard, the first to be reported in nearly 100 years, confirmed the existence of black leopards in Africa, and the first in Kenya. Their dark coloration is hypothesized camouflage them from predators or prey. Photo: Nick Pilfold
Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer), one of four distinct subspecies of the African buffalo, are the most common. They’re distinguished by coloring, size, and even horn shape. There’s also the forest buffalo, the West Africa savanna buffalo, and the Central Africa savanna buffalo. All of them are endemic to Africa. Photo: WWF
Mangrove forests capture massive amounts of carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, and then trap and store them in their carbon-rich flooded soils for millennia. This is an important ecosystem service as we face climate change. This buried carbon is known as “blue carbon” because it is stored underwater in coastal ecosystems like mangrove forests, seagrass beds and salt marshes. Photo: WWF
The smooth stingray, also known as the short-tail stingray, is the largest of the world’s stingrays. Found around South Africa and Mozambique, it can weigh well over 350 kg (770 lbs), measure over 2 m (6 ft) in diameter, and have an overall length of up to 4.3 m (14ft). Photo: IUCN
The Succulent Karoo ecoregion boasts more than 6,000 plant species, 40 percent of which are endemic. It is also home to more than 250 bird species, nearly 80 mammal species, 132 reptile and amphibian species, and an unknown number of insects. If we don’t act to protect this natural heritage, we will lose this valuable diversity. Photo: Shutterstock
The DRC has just over 200 of the extremely rare mountain gorillas, of which there are only 680 in the world. Habitat loss is a major threat: agriculture, illegal mining, and forest destruction for charcoal production have degraded their forests. They often get caught in snares laid out to trap other animals for bushmeat. Climate change also poses a threat: While gorillas are adaptive, moving to higher elevations in response to warmer temperatures, those areas are densely populated with little forest remaining. Photo: WWF
Locally known as Butwa, the Kafue Flats wetland is a massive area of open lagoon, swamp and plains that are seasonally flooded. It is located within the wider basin of the Zambezi River in Zambia. It stretches for approximately 240km from the east to the west along the Kafue River and has a width of around 50km. Kafue Flats support more than 900,000 people who depend on it for water and other ecosystem services. Photo: WWF
Also known as mountains of the moon. Rwenzori Mountain is one Africa’s breath-taking glaciated peaks. Mountain Rwenzori is characterised by spectacular glaciers, crystal clear rivers, snow-capped peaks and eye-popping waterfalls plus interesting flora and fauna. They are home to over 250 bird species and 15 butterfly species at a height of 5,109 meters above sea level. Photo: WWF
Identified by a team of researchers in Gabon in 2015, the Sirdavidia flowering plants are believed to be the first plant genus – a taxonomical ranking one step above a species – named after the broadcaster, Sir David Attenborough. Sirdavidia solannona was found in the Kinguele dam in the Monts de Cristal national park, Mbé sector, and in the Ivindo National Park. Four-fifths of the central Africa country are covered by rainforest, and researchers expressed surprise at finding a new endemic species and genus in a place considered well-known botanically. Photo: Thomas Couvreur
Rhumsiki, also spelled Rumsiki and Roumsiki, is a village in the Far North Region of Cameroon. Rhumsiki is located in the Mandara Mountains 3 km (2 mi) from the border with Nigeria. The village is similar to many others in northern Cameroon. The inhabitants, members of the Kapsiki ethnic group, live in small houses built from local stone and topped with thatched roofs; these homes are scattered throughout the village and surrounding valley. Photo: Unsplash
The River Nile is about 6,670 km (4,160 miles) in length and is the longest river in Africa and in the world. Twenty-two percent of the Nile’s course runs through Egypt. The rest runs through Uganda, Ethiopia and Sudan. In Egypt, the River Nile creates a fertile green valley across the desert. It was by the banks of the river that one of the oldest civilizations in the world began. The ancient Egyptians lived and farmed along the Nile, using the soil to produce food for themselves and their animals. Photo: ishassan
While we may be apart, today on World Environment Day our voices will join as one.
It’s time to appreciate the benefits that nature provides. It’s time to take action to protect & restore our natural world. This World Environment Day, it’s #TimeForNature.
