Lopé National Park

Coordinates: 0°30′00″S 11°30′00″E / 0.500°S 11.500°E / -0.500; 11.500
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Lopé National Park
Panorama of the northern savanna-dominated part Lopé National Park, shortly after the annual burning of the grasses
LocationGabon
Coordinates0°30′00″S 11°30′00″E / 0.500°S 11.500°E / -0.500; 11.500
Area4,910 km2 (1,900 sq mi)
Established2002
Governing bodyNational Agency for National Parks
Official nameEcosystem and Relict Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda
TypeMixed
Criteriaiii, iv, ix, x
Designated2007 (31st session)
Reference no.1147
RegionAfrica
Lopé and the Ogooué River.
Forest elephants
in park savannah
Wasmannia auropunctata
(fire ant) is an invasive alien species blamed for reducing species diversity, tree dwelling insects, and eliminating arachnid populations.

Lopé National Park (

petroglyphs in the region.[2]

Ecology

Lopé National Park has dry weather compared to the rest of Gabon, being located in the rain shadow of the Chaillu Massif. In addition, there is a low band of rainfall along the Ogooué River.[3] As a result, the landscape contains a complex mosaic of dense tropical rainforests and savannas. The boundary (called an ecotone) between the two habitats has shifted since the last ice age, with the rainforest expanding into the savanna, although the dry climate has allowed the savanna ecosystem to persist in the north of the park.

Because of the complex environment, the national park contains unusually high biodiversity across many taxa. Over 1,550 plant species have been recorded to date, with many regions of the park yet to be explored fully.

Microchiroptera bat species.[7]

Human History

Lopé National Park and its surroundings contain evidence of almost continual human occupation over the last 400,000 years.[2] The Ogooué River Valley is much less forested than its surroundings, making an open landscape that may have been used as a corridor and migration route from the coast to the interior of Africa. The oldest Stone Age tools currently known were discovered at Elarmékora in the central region of the valley, in addition to several other Stone Age archeological sites.

petroglyphs have been discovered dating from around the time of the beginning of iron-working, it appears that the valley was abandoned sometime between 600 and 1200 AD, before being repopulated by the present-day Okanda people in the 14th and 15th centuries.[1]

Tourism and Conservation

The park contains a small research station, named as Mikongo and run by the Zoological Society London, based in the village known as Mikongo, from which it gets its name. There exists infrastructure to cater for tourists at the base, including several chalets and a large open air dining room, from which the rainforest is a mere five meters away.[9] The park also hosts CEDAMM Training Centre, a Wildlife Conservation Society-run international conservation education center.

Because of

controlled burns of the savanna have been conducted in the park to reduce the encroachment of the forest vegetation and to provide the required vegetation for the diet of the forest buffalo.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c Lopé-Okanda (Gabon): No. 1147 rev (Report). 20 April 2007. Retrieved 29 Jan 2022.
  2. ^ a b c "Ecosystem and Relict Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Retrieved 29 Jan 2022.
  3. doi:10.5091/plecevo.2011.478
    .
  4. ^ ECOSYSTEM AND RELIC CULTURAL LANDSCAPE OF LOPÉ-OKANDA (Report). International Union on Conservation of Nature. May 2007. Retrieved 29 Jan 2022.
  5. S2CID 86387017
    .
  6. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2028.2004.00518.x
    .
  7. PMID 32836533
    .
  8. PMID 35249387
    . Retrieved 22 Jan 2021.
  9. ^ "AP via Washington Post "UNESCO Committee Renames Auschwitz" 28 June 2007". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
  10. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2028.2007.00757.x
    .
  11. doi:10.1111/aje.12010
    .

External links

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