Crucial connectivity for the whole Upper Guinean forests and a biodiversity hotspot

The WWZ landscape is classified as a key biodiversity area and is an integral part of the entire ecoregion, being the most westerly tropical rainforest block in Africa and crucial for the viability of the whole.

Swamp and riparian forests can be found embedded within the moist evergreen and semi-deciduous forests, providing home to an enormous level of biodiversity: more than 200 endemic plants, 1 000 vertebrates such as the Diana monkey, red colobus, lesser spot-nosed monkey, sooty mangabey, western chimpanzee, 31 species of bats, 38 species of rodents and 347 species of birds. Prolonged human influence has transformed much of the forest from its primary state.

Conserving the forest blocks and corridors to keep the landscape intact and connected is vital for the survival of endangered species such as the forest elephant, pygmy hippopotamus and many endemic species.