Amazing Facts About Cross River National Park

Amazing Facts About Cross River National Park

The Cross River national park is one of the oldest saved rainforests in Africa and the largest rainforest in Nigeria with the concentration of various vegetable life that, in turn, attracts many bird species and butterflies (there are 20% of a total number of types of butterflies known in the world).
In 1979, in the report of UNESCO, the park was described as the most amazing place in the world. Its unique natural features include mangrove swamps, mountain landscapes, and of course, the woods, which are crossed by the rivers and streams. The park is the house for many localized types of plants and animals. Baboons, leopards, red foxes, monkeys, elephants, and buffalos live here. In Nigeria, there are 23 types of primacies. 18 of them can be met on the territory of the park. Gorillas and chimpanzee have a great value. In Cross-River lives the colony of gorillas, unique in Africa to the South from the Sahara.

The Cross River National Park was offered in 1965 for the first time, but seriously planning didn't begin till 1988. The World Wide Fund for Nature of Great Britain plays the leading role for the plan for the creation of two divisions in the park, the divided farmlands and the valley of the river with the budget in $49.9 million. The national park in Nigeria was created by the federal government under the decree of 1991. The initial plan wasn't completely realized, therefore, the park created in 1991 had the only forest. After a small amount of help, financing ran low, and inhabitants became hostile in relation to the administration of the park. However, under the decree of 1999, National parks in Africa were transformed and more plants and animals appeared in the park. 

 In the Cross River, there are four departments: department of protection and preserving of park, ecotourism, department of services and finance and administration. In 2010, 250 of 320 employees worked as protection and preserving the park. Generally, they were men because of the severity of work. This number is insufficient, considering the size of the territory, which they patrolled. Despite training, many workers have the low qualification, are dissatisfied with the salary, a lack of the equipment, motivation and career development. It is the best of all to plan to visit the park during the period from November to May. Thanks to dense vegetation and river flow in all territory of the park, tours are made on foot. The armed rangers who will accompany an excursion are responsible for your safety in this tropical area. The wood remains substantially untouched, but nevertheless, it suffers considerable impact of activities of humans. In some places, there are plantations of an oil palm and rubber. Illegal cabins are the serious threat for the wood, and such threats grow. The population of villages grows, and farmers begin to encroach on the richness of the wood. The level of hunting and fishing grows, causing damage to an ecosystem. 

The chemicals used for fishing affected fish inventories. The situation with the attraction of local communities to the management of the woods underwent to a protest among old and new villages. Residents of the village have the right on about 250 sq.km of lands of forest fund. But they receive big money from the sale of forest products, including meat of endangered species, such as a chimpanzee. The forest Ekuri project was created by means of officials and foreign volunteers for the purpose of enhancement of management of the wood and access to the markets. By means of a financial support, they purchased the interest in preserving the wood. It, as a rule, contrasts with negative consequences when logging or plantations of the company go beyond the territory. The wood possesses various flora (about 1545 types), including 98 types of different families. Some of these types are endemics of the area. Others weren't known until recently. 

Amazing Facts About Cross River National Park

More than 280 bird species were registered in the park, including rare birds of Rockfowl, which lives in mountains, and Greenbul, a rare bird for Nigeria. Gray parrots are under a big threat of extinction. Sights of the park include Kwa falls, in the narrow, deep gorge near river sources. Near it, the deep pool at the bottom of falls was hidden under thick bed curtains of the rainforest. Falls in the park descend several levels through the rainforest. There is a mini zoo, in which many animal species seldom meet in Nigeria. It is the importance of national parks. This small zoo helped to salvage rare species from extinction. The Cross River National Park is a national park of Nigeria, located in Cross River State, Nigeria. There are two separate sections, Okwangwo (established 1991) and Oban (established 1988). The park has a total area of about 4,000 km2, most of which consists of primary moist tropical rainforests in the North and Central parts, with mangrove swamps on the coastal zones. Parts of the park belong to the Guinea-Congolian region, with a closed canopy and scattered emergent trees reaching 40 or 50 meters in height. 

The park has one of the oldest rainforests in Africa, and has been identified as a biodiversity hot spot. Sixteen primate species have been recorded in the park. Rare primates include common chimpanzees, drills and (in Okwangwo) Cross River gorillas. Another primate, the gray-cheeked mangabey, seems to have recently become extinct in the area. Both divisions of the park are threatened by illegal logging, slash and burn farming and poaching. Eco-tourism may support efforts to preserve the park fauna. Assisting villagers in buffer zones to practice sustainable forestry also holds promise. The park was first proposed in 1965, but serious planning did not start until 1988. The World Wide Fund for Nature - UK played a leading role for the plan to establish the park in two divisions separated by farmland and the Cross River valley, with a budget of $49.9 million. The plan envisaged villagers in the buffer zone being involved in running the park and being given development aid. The Cross River National Park (CRNP) was established by Federal Ministry Government Decree in 1991, with the Cross River gorilla chosen as the theme animal. 

Amazing Facts About Cross River National Park

The original plan was not fully implemented, and the park established in 1991 only included existing forest reserves. After a small amount of initial aid, the funding dried up and the villagers became hostile to the park administration. An amending decree in 1999 converted the Nigerian National Park Service, which runs the park, into a paramilitary outfit with increased powers. The Oban Hills Division is 2,800 km2 in area, centered on coordinates 5°25′0″N 8°35′0″E. The division shares a long border with Korup National Park in the Republic of Cameroon, forming a single protected ecological zone. The division has a rugged terrain, rising from 100 m in the river valleys to over 1,000 m 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 and its tributaries. 

The southern parts are drained by the Calabar, Kwa and Korup rivers. The Federal government is courting investors to develop the eco-tourism potential in this and other national parks. The park has been given the motto "The Pride Of Nigeria". The Kanyang tourist village, about one hour's drive from Calabar, will give visitors a base from which to view the park, with a lodge, restaurant and wildlife museum. Activities include game viewing, bird watching, gorilla tracking, mountaineering or hiking, sport fishing, boat cruising and the Botanical garden and Herbarium in Butatong. Attractions include the Kwa Falls, in a narrow, steep gorge near the headwaters of the Kwa River. 

The deep plunge pool at the foot of the waterfall was hidden under the thick canopy of the tropical rainforest before deforestation. The Agbpkim Waterfalls on the Cross River descend in terraces through the tropical rainforest. There is a mini zoological garden housing species of animals rarely found in Nigeria, which has helped save some rare species from extinction. As you can see, this park has a big and interesting story. Nevertheless, there are many problems in it. However, the main thing is the fact that it helps to keep rare species of plants and animals. Without the aid to this park, it would be difficult to present a set of the saved life forms. To be convinced of it, visit Cross River.