The Eastern Congolian swamp forests are a fairly intact but underresearched

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...

of the

tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Description TSMF is generally found in large, discon ...

biome A biome () is a biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community that has formed in response to the physical environment in which they are found and a shared regional climate. Biomes may span more than one continent. Biome is a broader ...

. It is located within the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

. This is the eastern half of one of the largest areas of swamps in the world.

Setting

The swamp forest is flat, wet forest between in elevation on the left bank of the

Congo River The Congo River ( kg, Nzâdi Kôngo, french: Fleuve Congo, pt, Rio Congo), formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the second largest river in the world by discharge ...

, and spreading across a swathe of the Congo Basin, including some of the Congo's largest tributaries and the Stanley Falls area near

Kisangani Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad) is the capital of Tshopo province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the fifth most populous urban area in the country, with an estimated population of 1,312,000 in 2021, and the larg ...

Climate

The climate is tropical and humid, with little seasonal variation. Average annual rainfall exceeds 2000 mm.

Flora

The forest is a mixture of

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s including

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

s and swamps, with drier forest and

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...

slightly higher and flooded seasonally by the Congo and its tributaries.

Fauna

The region has been insufficiently researched by zoologists but is known to be home to

forest elephants The African forest elephant (''Loxodonta cyclotis'') is one of the two living African elephant species. It is native to humid forests in West Africa and the Congo Basin. It is the smallest of the three living elephant species, reaching a should ...

(''Loxodonta africana cyclotis'') (which may have been reduced by poaching, especially near the larger rivers), and several primates, including the rare bonobo (''Pan paniscus''). The Congo is a natural barrier to movement of wildlife and many species only occur on this eastern side of the river, including many primates: the bonobo and also Angolan colobus (''Colobus angolensis''),

Wolf's mona monkey Wolf's mona monkey (''Cercopithecus wolfi''), also called Wolf's guenon, is a colourful Old World monkey in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in central Africa, primarily between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. It lives in ...

(''Cercopithecus wolfi''),

golden-bellied mangabey The golden-bellied mangabey (''Cercocebus chrysogaster'') is a social Old World monkey found in swampy, humid forests south of the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was previously considered a subspecies of the agile manga ...

(''Cercocebus galeritus chrysogaster''),

black mangabey The black crested mangabey (''Lophocebus aterrimus'') is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is only found in Democratic Republic of the Congo with a small habitat extending to Angola. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tro ...

(''Lophocebus atterimus aterrimus''), southern talapoin (''Miopithecus talapoin'') and the

Dryas monkey The Dryas monkey (''Chlorocebus dryas''), also known as Salonga monkey, ''ekele'', or ''inoko'', is a little-known species of Old World monkey found only in the Congo Basin, restricted to the left bank of the Congo River. It is now established t ...

(''Cercopithecus dryas''). Near-endemic mammals include Hutterer's brush-furred mouse (''Lophuromys huttereri''), Allen's striped bat (''Chalinolobus alboguttatus''), and Muton's soft-furred mouse (''Praomys mutoni''). These rainforests are rich in birdlife including the Congo sunbird (''Cinnyris congensis''), African river martin (''Pseudochelidon eurystomina'') and Congo martin (''Riparia congica''). Endemic amphibians and reptiles include a small frog ('' Cryptothylax minutus''), Chapin's chameleon (''Trioceros chapini''), a wall lizard ('' Gastropholis tropidopholis''), the Zaire snake-eater ('' Polemon robustus''), and a worm lizard ('' Zygaspis dolichomenta'').

Threats and conservation

The Congo River allows access to these forests with subsequent logging and poaching of wildlife, particularly of forest elephants.

Protected areas

25.65% of the ecoregion is in protected areas. Protected areas include the huge

Salonga National Park Salonga National Park is a national park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo located in the Congo River basin. It is Africa's largest tropical rainforest reserve covering about 36,000 km2 or . It extends into the provinces of Mai Ndombe, ...

, Lomami National Park, Yangambi Biosphere Reserve, Lomako-Yokokala Nature Reserve, and Tumba-Lediima Nature Reserve. Salonga National Park is also designated a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. The Ngiri Ramsar Site, a designated wetland of international importance, covers a portion of the ecoregion."Eastern Congolian swamp forests". DOPA Explorer. Accessed 20 October 2021

/ref>

References

External links

*
Eoearth.org: Salonga National Park

Plexusowls.com: Detailed study of Salonga National Park

Zoosociety.org: Bonobo conservation in Salonga National Park
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014000903/http://www.zoosociety.org/Conservation/Bonobo/BCBI/Salonga.php , date=2008-10-14 Afrotropical ecoregions Congolian forests Ecoregions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo * * Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests