Gashiga - Demsa (6109)
Cameroon, Africa
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2001
National site name: Gashiga - Demsa
Central coordinates: Latitude: 9.5000, Longitude: 13.2833
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 250 to 550
Area of KBA (km2): 121.62095
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: The site is located some 30 km north-west of the town Garoua, between the villages of Gashiga and Demsa, near the border with Nigeria. The site is bisected by the road from Garoua to Demsa, on the international border, which is intensively used for fuel traffic. The soils are sandy and the vegetation is wooded Sudanian savanna with the herbaceous layer dominated by Hyparrhenia rufa, Panicum spp. and Pennisetum spp. grasslands.
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 Table 3 for key species. To date, 144 species have been recorded. These include Musophaga violacea, Galerida modesta, Anthoscopus parvulus, Pytilia phoenicoptera and Euschistospiza dybowskii. In addition, one species of the Sahel biome (A03) occurs (see Table 3). Non-bird biodiversity: The mammal Gazella rufifrons (VU) occurs.
Habitats
Land use: agriculture
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Shrubland | 7 | |
| Grassland | 5 | |
| Savanna | 5 | |
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 82 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: This site is unprotected, including by any traditional law and is, apart from those benefiting from legal protection, the only remaining wooded area in the North Province of Cameroon. It has hitherto remained largely intact merely because the area was uninhabited. Now, however, with new settlements in many parts of the Bénoué plain of people from the densely populated Mandara mountains, this site is subject to disturbance. The area is thus being used for grazing, food crops and cotton cultivation. Three major threats are firewood-collection, expansion of cotton farms and the installation of new villages. By January 2000, one village had been established on the site with consequent damage to the vegetation for a radius of 2 km. The site, however, retains the potential to be designated a forest reserve.
Additional information
References: COC (2000a).