Bakossi National Park

Central Africa > Cameroon > Bakossi National Park

Summary

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• Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes ellioti) are present in Bakossi National Park.
• The population size is unknown.
• The chimpanzee population trend is unknown.
• The site has a total size of 293km².
• Chimpanzees are mainly threatened by hunting.
• Conservation activities are not documented.
• The site is part of the Bakossi Landscape Area.

Site characteristics

Bakossi National Park is located in western Cameroon, to the south of the Banyang-Mbo Wildlife Sanctuary and covers an area of 29,320 ha. The altitude in the park ranges from 300m to 1895 m above sea level, giving rise to three main vegetation types: sub-montane forest, Atlantic forest of the North West type with semi-deciduous elements, and the Atlantic Biafran forest rich in Caesalpiniaceae. This accounts for the huge floral variety of the area and a high level of endemism, and a corresponding high diversity of fauna species (Enukwa et al. 2022). The site is a hotspot for many primate species, including the drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus), one of the most endangered primate species in the world, and the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes). Other primates include Preuss’s red colobus, red-eared guenon, Preuss’s guenon, putty-nosed monkey, mona monkey and other important mammals like blue duikers, red river hog, red-fronted duiker, black-fronted duikers, sitatunga, and long-tailed pangolin (WWF). The Bakossi forests support several small streams, cascading waterfalls and deep pools, and the Mungo River which flows through the park. Along the way, thousands of people far beyond the site depend on the river for their livelihoods through activities such as fishing, sand extraction, and logs and food transportation (WWF).

Table 1. Basic site information for Bakossi National Park

Area	293 km²
Coordinates	5.069109, 9.586158
Designation	National Park
Habitat types	Subtropical/tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical/tropical moist montane forest

IUCN habitat categories Site designations

Ape status

In a survey of the southeastern section of the park, chimpanzees were recorded entirely in the montane forest (Enukwa et al. 2022).

Table 2. Ape population estimates in Bakossi National Park

Species	Year	Abundance estimate (95% CI)	Density estimate [ind./ km²] (95% CI)	Encounter rate (nests/km)	Area	Method	Source	Comments	A.P.E.S. database ID
Pan troglodytes ellioti	2022			1.2	Southeast of Bakossi National Park, approx. 12 km2	Index survey	Enukwa et al. 2022	Reconnaissance walk covered a total of 61 km. Signs recorded: nests 0.9 per km, and feeding signs 0.3 per km

Threats

Table 3. Threats to apes in Bakossi National Park

Category	Specific threats	Threat level	Quantified severity	Description	Year of threat
1. Residential & commercial development		Unknown
2. Agriculture & aquaculture		Unknown
3. Energy production & mining		Unknown
4. Transportation & service corridors	4.1 Roads & railroads	Present, but threat severity unknown		An old, abandoned road along the south-eastern edge of Bakossi is being reopened with European funds (BirdLife International 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
5. Biological resource use	5.1 Hunting & collecting terrestrial animals	High		Hunting of large mammals (BirdLife International 2023).	Ongoing (2023)
6. Human intrusion & disturbance		Unknown
7. Natural system modifications		Unknown
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases		Unknown
9. Pollution		Unknown
10. Geological Events		Absent
11. Climate change & severe weather		Unknown
12. Other options		Absent

IUCN Threats list

Conservation activities

Table 4. Conservation activities in Bakossi National Park

Category	Specific activity	Description	Year of activity
1. Residential & commercial development	Not reported
2. Agriculture & aquaculture	Not reported
3. Energy production & mining	Not reported
4. Transportation & service corridors	Not reported
5. Biological resource use	Not reported
6. Human intrusion & disturbance	Not reported
7. Natural system modifications	Not reported
8. Invasive & other problematic species, genes, diseases	Not reported
9. Pollution	Not reported
10. Education & Awareness	Not reported
11. Habitat Protection	11.2. Legally protect primate habitat	The park was established in 2007.	2007-Ongoing (2023)
12. Species Management	Not reported
13. Livelihood; Economic & Other Incentives	Not reported

Conservation activities list (Junker et al. 2017)

Challenges

Table 5. Challenges reported for Bakossi National Park

Challenge	Source
Not reported

Research activities

Documented behaviours

Table 6. Ape behaviors reported for Bakossi National Park

Behavior	Source
Not reported

Exposure to climate change impacts

As part of a study on the exposure of African great ape sites to climate change impacts, Kiribou et al. (2024) extracted climate data and data on projected extreme climate impact events for the site. Climatological characteristics were derived from observation-based climate data provided by the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISIMIP, www.isimip.org). Parameters were calculated as the average across each 30-year period. For 1981-2010, the EWEMBI dataset from ISIMIP2a was used. For the two future periods (2021-2050 and 2071-2099) ISIMIP2b climate data based on four CMIP5 global climate models were used. For future projections, two Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) were used. RCP 2.6 is a scenario with strong mitigation measures in which global temperatures would likely rise below 2°C. RCP 6.0 is a scenario with medium emissions in which global temperatures would likely rise up to 3°C by 2100. For the number of days with heavy precipitation events, the 98th percentile of all precipitation days (>1mm/d) was calculated for the 1979-2013 reference period as a threshold for a heavy precipitation event. Then, for each year, the number of days above that threshold was derived. The figures on temperature and precipitation anomaly show the deviation from the mean temperature and mean precipitation for the 1979-2013 reference period. The estimated exposure to future extreme climate impact events (crop failure, drought, river flood, wildfire, tropical cyclone, and heatwave) is based on a published dataset by Lange et al. 2020 derived from ISIMIP2b data. The same global climate models and RCPs as described above were used. Within each 30-year period, the number of years with an extreme event and the average proportion of the site affected were calculated (Kiribou et al. 2024).

Table 7. Estimated past and projected climatological characteristics in Bakossi National Park

	1981-2010	2021-2050, RCP 2.6	2021-2050, RCP 6.0	2071-2099, RCP 2.6	2071-2099, RCP 6.0
Mean temperature [°C]	25.3	26.4	26.3	26.6	27.6
Annual precipitation [mm]	2566	2672	2686	2749	2756
Max no. consecutive dry days (per year)	36.5	29.3	34.4	32.6	36
No. days with heavy precipitation (per year)	6	8.2	8	9	8.9

Table 8. Projected exposure of apes to extreme climate impact events in Bakossi National Park

	No. of years with event (2021-2050, RCP 2.6)	% of site exposed (2021-2050, RCP 2.6)	No. of years with event (2021-2050, RCP 6.0)	% of site exposed (2021-2050, RCP 6.0)	No. of years with event (2070-2099, RCP 2.6)	% of site exposed (2070-2099, RCP 2.6)	No. of years with event (2070-2099, RCP 6.0)	% of site exposed (2070-2099, RCP 6.0)
Crop failure	3.5	0.33	4	0	0.5	0.13	5.5	0.01
Drought	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Heatwave	8	100	7	100	7.5	100	10.5	100
River flood	2.5	0.7	1	0.86	1.5	2.05	5	1.81
Tropical cyclone	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Wildfire	30	0.63	30	0.65	29	0.63	29	0.66

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  Precipitation anomaly in Bakossi National Park
• 

  Temperature anomaly in Bakossi National Park

External links

WWF Bakossi NP

References

Enukwa, E. H., Augustine, M. A., Ndumbe, L. N., & Namuene, K. S. (2022). Cameroon-Nigeria Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes ellioti Matschie, 1914) distribution and habitat affinities in Bakossi National Park. Journal of Wildlife and Biodiversity, 6(3), 1-11.
BirdLife International (2023) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Bakossi mountains. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 15/05/2023.
Kiribou, R., Tehoda, P., Chukwu, O., Bempah, G., Kühl, H. S., Ferreira, J., ... & Heinicke, S. (2024). Exposure of African ape sites to climate change impacts. PLOS Climate, 3(2), e0000345.

Page completed by: A.P.E.S. Wiki team Date:13/05/2023