The Togo Mountains is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

which stretches across the central region of the West African country of

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

and across the eastern and western borders of that country into

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

and

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

. In Ghana, the range is also known as the Akwapim Hills, and in Benin it is also known as the Atakora Mountains . Part of the range is associated with the country of

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

, where the W National Park is found.W National Park of Niger. 2009 The

African wild dog The African wild dog (''Lycaon pictus''), also called painted dog and Cape hunting dog, is a wild canine native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest wild canine in Africa, and the only extant member of the genus '' Lycaon'', which is disti ...

, ''Lycaon pictus'', was historically found in this region but may now be

extirpated Local extinction, also extirpation, is the termination of a species (or other taxon) in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinctions. Local extinctions mark a chan ...

from this locale.C. Michael Hogan. 2009

Geography

The Togo Mountains run across the central region of Togo, ranging from the southwest to the northeast. To the northeast, the mountain range extends into

where it is known as the Atakora Mountains, and to the southwest it extends into

where it is known as the Akwapim Hills. The average elevation of these mountains is and the highest peak in Togo is

Mount Agou Mount Agou ( French: ''Mont Agou'', earlier known as ''Baumannspitze'' or Baumann Peak) is the highest mountain in Togo at . It is situated to the south east of Kpalimé in the Plateaux Region of Togo. The mountain lies close to the border with ...

, with a height of . It is in the southwestern part of the range, close to the border with Ghana.

Mont Sokbaro Mont Sokbaro (also spelled as SagbaraoTchaboue, B.I. (2015) ''Tourisme et developpement socio-economique dans la commune de Bassila (Benin)''. Université d'Abomey-Calavi) is a hill that is mostly cited as the highest point of Benin, with an elev ...

, widely cited as the highest point of Benin is part of the Atakora Mountains. To the north of the Togo Mountains, there is undulating savannah, creased by the broad, meandering valley of the

Oti River The Oti River or Pendjari River ( French: ''Rivière Pendjari'') is an international river in West Africa. It rises in Benin, forms the border between Benin and Burkina Faso, flows through Togo, and joins the Volta River in Ghana. Geography The ...

, a tributary of the

River Volta The Volta River (, , ) is the main river system in the West African country of Ghana. It flows south into Ghana from the Bobo-Dioulasso highlands of Burkina Faso. The three main parts of the river are the Black Volta, the White Volta, and ...

, which flows through

Lake Volta Lake Volta (), the largest artificial reservoir in the world based on surface area, is contained behind the Akosombo Dam which generates a substantial amount of Ghana's electricity. It is completely within the country of Ghana and has a surface ...

and into the

Gulf of Guinea The Gulf of Guinea (French language, French: ''Golfe de Guinée''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Golfo de Guinea''; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Golfo da Guiné'') is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez i ...

in Ghana. Several tributaries to this river system flow from the northern side of the Togo Mountains. To the south of the mountains lies a plateau, which further south slopes gently towards the coast. The central and southern sides of the mountains drain into tributaries of the

Mono River The Mono River is the major river of eastern Togo. Approximately long, and draining a basin of about , it rises between the town of Sokodé and the border with Benin, and flows south. Along the southern portion of the river towards its mouth, i ...

, which flows into the Gulf of Guinea through swampland on the borders of Togo and Benin.

References

* C. Michael Hogan. 2009
''Painted Hunting Dog: Lycaon pictus'', GlobalTwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg

Geography

References

See also