According to indexdotcom, the cross-border World Heritage Site in the triangle of Guinea, Liberia and the Ivory Coast is the habitat of a unique flora and fauna, a large part of which only occurs here, such as B. a live-bearing toad species. The nature reserve lies at an altitude of 450 to 1752 m and is severely endangered by mining activities.
Nimbaberge: facts
Official title:
Nimbaberge nature reserve
Natural monument:
Establishment of the nature reserve in 1943 and 1944 with a size of 130 km² in Guinea and 50 km² in the Ivory Coast, highest point in the Nimbamassiv with 1752 m the Mont Richard Molard; Average annual rainfall around 3000 mm and humidity up to 99%
Continent:
Africa
Country:
Guinea and Ivory Coast
Location:
Mount Nimba, triangle of Liberia, Guinea and Ivory Coast, southeast of Nzérékoré
Appointment:
1981, expanded 1982
Meaning:
Habitat of a unique viviparous toad and 200 other animal species that are only found in this nature reserve worldwide
Flora and fauna:
Grassland with the species Blaeria nimbana, which only occurs here, but also the silver tree species Protea angolensis; from gallery forests on 1000 to 1600 m pierced savannah as well as predominant primary forest with occurrence of Terminalia ivorensis, a total of more than 2000 plant species described, 16 of which only occur here; more than 200 species of animals found only here; Occurrence of mammals such as Maxwell’s and black-backed duiker, pygmy hippopotamus, white-bellied pangolin, pardle roller, capotter, the newly discovered species Micropotamogale lamottei, the half-monkey Senegalgalago and chimpanzees and, as a specialty, the live-bearing toad species Nectophrynoides occidentalis
Where rivers never dry up
A two-year-old chimpanzee jumps excitedly in the air and loses its feet on landing. Now he is stretched out on his back. Meanwhile, his mother is handling a large stone. She places this “anvil” in a carefully chosen spot near a palm tree. The young chimpanzee approaches and places a palm nut on this stone – it rolls down. The mother then takes the matter in hand, holds the nut between thumb and forefinger and strikes with the fist-sized stone, a kind of hammer – the nut breaks open. The young chimpanzee immediately gets to grips with the inside of the nut before his mother is able to claim her share for herself. The chimpanzees described here belong to a group that lives on Mount Nimba. Here along a mountain range known as the “Guinea spine,” the first time chimpanzees were seen using tools in the wild. The ability to use tools is not inherited, but rather passed on from one generation to the next. The rocky outcrops and the mosaic of grassland and forest that cover the slopes and incisions of the hard quartzite mountain range are shrouded in clouds for most of the year. They rain down in the heights of the massif, and the forest then turns into a huge sponge that absorbs the water and releases it into rivers and streams that arise here and thanks to the regular downpours never dry out. but conveyed from one generation to the next. The rocky outcrops and the mosaic of grassland and forest that cover the slopes and incisions of the hard quartzite mountain range are shrouded in clouds for most of the year. They rain down in the heights of the massif, and the forest then turns into a huge sponge that absorbs the water and releases it into rivers and streams that arise here and thanks to the regular downpours never dry out. but conveyed from one generation to the next. The rocky outcrops and the mosaic of grassland and forest that cover the slopes and incisions of the hard quartzite mountain range are shrouded in clouds for most of the year. They rain down in the heights of the massif, and the forest then turns into a huge sponge that absorbs the water and releases it into rivers and streams that arise here and thanks to the regular downpours never dry out.
In the constant twilight of the forest floor there is little plant life apart from a few saplings and a few lianas that have fallen from the branches of the “iron tree”. Here and there you come across fallen trees that have made a hole in the forest roof and allow sunlight to penetrate through the canopy into the depths of the forest.
A large pygmy hippopotamus leisurely moves away from its wallow. Unimpressed by obstacles, it makes its way between young ebony trees, and the red leaves of the “iron tree” rustle under its steps. With constant grunts, it searches the forest floor for fallen fruits. Meanwhile you can hear the croaking of long-winged African gray parrots in the roof of the jungle.
A group of chimpanzees are moving uphill. The forest changes on the flanks of the massif: it becomes lighter and drier. The shape of the white-bellied pangolin looks like a giant pine cone, which is currently climbing a “wawa tree”. To protect itself from the search for ants, it rolls its long tail around the trunk of the tree. With its long, sticky tongue, it strokes the gray-colored scaly bark of the tree and successfully prey on it. The group of chimpanzees can be heard from afar when they discovered a “bean tree” that promises a feast for them. Meanwhile, a sleepy bush pig sticks its head out of the den. It seems as if the old man of the forest has woken up with him: gray whiskers sprout on his face, and the ends of his pointed ears run out into gray, bushy brushes.
Undaunted, the chimpanzees continued their way into the “cloud forest”. Here, wrapped in the clouds, lush green mosses, lush ferns and orchids grow on gnarled branches. A tree that resembles a giant cauliflower is the target of chimpanzees. For them, the plum-like fruit of the sougué is a delicacy.
Above the cloud cover lives a small, viviparous toad that is only three centimeters long. There you will also come across a Cape Hyrax, which has a vigilant eye on its surroundings so as not to be surprised by leopards and eagles. As the chimpanzees approach, he makes a whistling sound. As a result, a handful of his fellow species run in all directions and take refuge in crevices in the rock. The chimpanzees don’t care: they look for beetles and grasshoppers in the grass. When dusk falls, they set out again to lower altitudes to look for their sleeping trees.
