The Chad Basin National Park is a

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

in northeastern

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, in the

Chad Basin The Chad Basin is the largest endorheic basin in Africa, centered approximately on Lake Chad. It has no outlet to the sea and contains large areas of semi-arid desert and savanna. The drainage basin is approximately coterminous with the sedimenta ...

, with a total area of about 2,258 km². The park is fragmented, with three sectors. The Chingurmi-Duguma sector is in

Borno State Borno is a States of Nigeria, state in the North East (Nigeria), North-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is bordered by Yobe State, Yobe to the west, Gombe State, Gombe to the southwest, and Adamawa State, Adamawa to the south while its ea ...

, in a Sudanian savanna ecological zone. The Bade-Nguru Wetlands and Bulatura sectors are in

Yobe State Yobe is a States of Nigeria, state located in northeastern Nigeria. A mainly agricultural state, it was created on 27 August 1991. Yobe State was carved out of Borno State. The capital of Yobe State is Damaturu, and its largest city by populati ...

in the

Sahel The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...

ecological zone.

History

Chad Basin National Park lies within the former

Kanem–Bornu Empire The Kanem–Bornu Empire was an empire based around Lake Chad that once ruled areas which are now part of Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, Libya, Algeria, Sudan, and Chad. The empire was sustained by the prosperous trans-Saharan trade and was one of the ...

, which existed from the 9th century to the end of the 19th century and remains part of present-day Borno and Yobo states. It was established in 1991. Before the 10th century, the Empire was established and was one of the most politically well-organised

African empires There were many kingdoms and empires An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The cen ...

tantamount to the

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

and Songhai empires. The then Borno Empire developed within the Conventional Basin of Lake Chad, where the Chad Basin National Park stands.

Status

The park combines the former Chingurmi-Dugoma Game Reserve, Gorgoram and Zurgun Baneri Forest Reserves, and Bulature Oasis. , it had not been surveyed, so the boundaries are not well-established. The park is used by many farmers, grazers and fishermen. Despite significant investment in lodgings for tourists, the park sectors only attract a few hundred visitors each year due to the lack of spectacular wildlife. By 2008, staff at the park office in

Maiduguri Maiduguri ( ) is the capital and the largest city of Borno State in north-eastern Nigeria, on the continent of Africa. The city sits along the seasonal Ngadda River which disappears into the ''Firki'' swamps in the areas around Lake Chad. Maid ...

knew little about the park, the lodgings had been abandoned, and tourists visiting the park sectors had to take off-road vehicles and be prepared to camp out. Due to insecurity in the region, the National Parks Service temporarily suspended operations and research in the Chad Basin National Park in 2021; operations were also suspended in the

Kainji National Park Kainji National Park is a national park in Niger State and Kwara State, Nigeria. Established in 1978, it covers an area of about . The park includes three distinct sectors: a part of the Kainji Lake in which fishing is restricted, the Borgu Game ...

and the Kamuku National Park.

Chingurmi-Duguma sector

The Chingurmi-Duguma sector is in the

Bama Bama or BAMA may refer to: Places * Bama, shortened form of Alabama, a state of the United States of America ** The University of Alabama, a public university serving the state, often known as simply ''Bama'' * Bama, one of the colloquial Burmes ...

Local Government Area of Borno State, adjoining the

Waza National Park Waza National Park is a national park in the Department of Logone-et-Chari, in Far North Region, Cameroon. It was founded in 1934 as a hunting reserve, and covers a total of . Waza achieved national park status in 1968, and became a UNESCO bi ...

in the

Republic of Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

, around coordinates . It has an area of , with a stratified topology. The northern part is within the Sahel zone while southern sector has a typical Sudan–Guinea savanna ecology, and includes ''

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

''-''

Balanites ''Balanites'' is an Afrotropical, Palearctic and Indomalayan genus of flowering plants in the caltrop family, Zygophyllaceae. The name ''Balanites'' derives from the Greek word for an acorn and refers to the fruit. It was coined by Alire Del ...

'' woodlands separated by dense stands of

elephant grass The term Elephant grass may refer to the following grass species: * The Asian ''Miscanthus giganteus'', also known as giant miscanthus, commonly used as a biomass crop * The African ''Cenchrus purpureus ''Cenchrus purpureus'', synonym ''Penniset ...

and

sorghum ''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a species in the Poaceae, grass genus ''Sorghum (genus), Sorghum'' cultivated for its grain. The grain i ...

. Waters from the Dorma river flood much of the sector in the rainy season, creating flood-plain wetlands that attract waterbirds and other wildlife. The resident black crowned crane (''

Balearica pavonina The black crowned crane (''Balearica pavonina'') is a part of the family Gruidae, along with its sister species, the grey crowned crane. It is topped with its characteristic bristle-feathered golden crown. It is usually found in the shallow we ...

'') is abundant, but is considered vulnerable. The helmeted guineafowl (''

Numida meleagris The helmeted guinea fowl (''Numida meleagris'') is the best known of the guinea fowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus ''Numida''. It is native to Africa, mainly south of the Sahara, and has been widely introduced, as ...

'') is also abundant. Demoiselle cranes ('' Grus virgo'') visit in the winter, as well as large numbers of white storks (''

Ciconia ciconia The white stork (''Ciconia ciconia'') is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on the bird's wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average from beak tip to en ...

''). A 2007 report estimated that there were about 100 elephants in the sector, which may still migrate to and from the Waza park. The Cameroon and Nigerian park authorities have been cooperating to prevent poaching of wildlife and to raise awareness among the local people of the longer-term value of conservation. There have been discussions by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

over making the sector and the Waza National Park an internationally designated

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

Bade-Nguru Wetlands sector

The Bade-Nguru Wetlands sector is part of the

Hadejia-Nguru wetlands 300px, Yobe River catchment area showing location of the Hadejia-Nguru wetlands The Hadejia-Nguru wetlands in Yobe State in northern Nigeria, which include Nguru Lake, are ecologically and economically important. They are threatened by reduced r ...

, and has an area of 938 km² around coordinates . It lies in the southwest of the Bade and

Jakusko Jakusko is a local government area in Yobe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Jakusko in the west of the area at . It has an area of 3,941 km and a population of 229,083 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is 63 ...

Local Government Areas of Yobe State. The sector includes the Dagona Waterfowl Sanctuary, an important resting place for migratory birds. It also includes five forest reserves. Annual rainfall ranges between 200–600 mm, during the period late May–September. With reduced flooding due to upstream dams and perhaps climate change, and with increasing population, the environment is degrading. There is growing competition between humans and wildlife. Farmers set out poison to kill the crop-destroying ''

Quelea quelea The red-billed quelea (; ''Quelea quelea''), also known as the red-billed weaver or red-billed dioch, is a small—approximately long and weighing —migratory, sparrow-like bird of the weaver family, Ploceidae, native to Sub-Saharan Africa. ...

'', in the process killing non-target species. Marginal land is now coming under cultivation and tree cover in the forest reserves is being depleted.

Bulatura sector

The Bulatura sector is in the

Yusufari Yusufari is a Local Government Area in Yobe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Yusufari in the south-east of the area at . It shares a border in the north with The Republic of Niger. It has an area of 3,928 km and a populat ...

Local Government Area of Yobe State, and has an area of 92 km² around coordinates . The sector has a series of swampy valleys separated by scenic sand dunes. The valleys contain rich deposits of

potash Potash ( ) includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water- soluble form.

References

{{authority control National parks of Nigeria Borno State Yobe State