Dzanga-Ndoki National Park (6083)
Central African Republic, Africa
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2001
National site name: Dzanga-Ndoki National Park
Central coordinates: Latitude: 2.5000, Longitude: 16.1667
System: freshwater, terrestrial
Elevation (m): 340 to 615
Area of KBA (km2): 4576.0163
Protected area coverage (%): 96.85
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: This National Park, in the extreme south-west of the country, is in two separate parts, a northern Dzanga sector (49,500 ha) and a southern Ndoki sector (72,500 ha). The two are joined by the Dzanga–Sangha Rainforest Reserve (335,900 ha); although controlled hunting (both traditional and safari) and other exploitation is allowed in this buffer zone, it is appropriate to include it here. The Dzanga sector was logged in the 1980s, whereas the southern Ndoki sector is primary forest. The IBA is also contiguous with the protected areas of Lobéké of Cameroon (CM033) and Nouabalé–Ndoki in Congo (CG001). The whole area is on alluvial sands. The forest is of three main types; mainly dryland, semi-evergreen forest, with swamp-forest along the main rivers and, locally, a closed-canopy monodominant Gilbertiodendron dewevrei forest. The dryland forest has an open, mixed canopy (dominated by species of Sterculiaceae and Ulmaceae), with very often a dense understorey of Marantaceae and Zingiberaceae. On alluvial land along the Sangha river there are locally pure stands of Guibourtia demeusii. There are many forest clearings along streams, forming marshy depressions known as ‘bai’.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance because it meets one or more previously established criteria and thresholds for identifying sites of biodiversity importance (including Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, and Key Biodiversity Areas)
Additional biodiversity: See Box and Tables 2 and 3 for key species. Some 357 species have been reported from the National Park in the wider sense (in part the result of an incomplete survey over some two years, plus further shorter visits). Of these species, at least 260 can be expected to breed. The two species of global conservation concern, Bradypterus grandis and Batis minima, are also restricted-range species of the Cameroon and Gabon lowlands EBA. One other species of global conservation concern has been reported, Falco naumanni. Stiphrornis sanghensis has been described as a new species, known so far only from Dzanga–Sangha. However, independent field research there and in neighbouring Cameroon and Congo (Congo-Brazzaville) suggests it is no more than a subspecies of the widespread S. erythrothorax, and it is treated as such here, pending further evidence. In addition, five species of the Sudan–Guinea Savanna biome (A04) have been recorded (see Table 3). Non-bird biodiversity: The National Park is of considerable importance for a number of forest mammals, in particular Pan trogolodytes (EN), Gorilla gorilla (EN), Loxodonta africana (EN) and Tragelaphus eurycerus (LR/nt)
Habitats
Land use: nature conservation and research
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Forest | 97 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 1 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: The Dzanga–Ndoki/Dzanga–Sangha project is at present funded by the World Bank and administered by WWF.