View source for Afrotropical realm

{{Short description|One of Earth's eight biogeographic realms}}
{{See also|Sub-Saharan Africa}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2023}}
[[Image:Ecozone Afrotropic.svg|thumb|320px|The Afrotropical realm (in blue)]]

The '''Afrotropical realm''' is one of the Earth's eight [[biogeographic realm]]s. It includes [[Sub-Saharan Africa]], the southern [[Arabian Peninsula]], the island of [[Madagascar]], and the islands of the western [[Indian Ocean]].<ref name="Burgess">{{Cite book |last1=Burgess |first1=Neil D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjbwAAAAMAAJ |title=Terrestrial Ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: A Conservation Assessment |last2=Hales |first2=J.D. |last3=Underwood |first3=E. |last4=Dinerstein |first4=E. |author-link4=:de:Eric Dinerstein |date=2004 |publisher=Island Press |isbn=978-1-55963-364-2 |language=en}}</ref> It was formerly known as the '''Ethiopian Zone''' or '''Ethiopian Region'''.

== Major ecological regions ==
Most of the Afrotropical realm, except for Africa's southern tip, has a [[tropics|tropical]] climate. A broad belt of [[desert]]s, including the [[Atlantic coastal desert|Atlantic]] and [[Sahara]] deserts of northern Africa and the [[Arabian Desert]] of the [[Arabian Peninsula]], separates the Afrotropic from the [[Palearctic realm]], which includes northern Africa and temperate [[Eurasia]].

=== Sahel and Sudan ===
South of the [[Sahara]], two belts of [[tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands|tropical grassland and savanna]] run east and west across the continent, from the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to the [[Ethiopian Highlands]]. Immediately south of the Sahara lies the [[Sahel]] belt, a transitional zone of semi-arid short [[grassland]] and [[vachellia]] savanna. Rainfall increases further south in the [[Sudanian Savanna]], also known simply as the [[Sudan (region)|Sudan region]], a belt of taller [[grasslands]] and [[savanna]]s. The [[Sudanian savanna|Sudanian Savanna]] is home to two great [[flooded grasslands and savannas|flooded grasslands]]: the [[Sudd]] wetland in [[South Sudan]], and the [[Niger Inland Delta]] in [[Mali]]. The [[forest-savanna mosaic]] is a transitional zone between the grasslands and the belt of [[tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests|tropical moist broadleaf forests]] near the [[equator]].

=== Southern Arabian woodlands ===
South Arabia, which includes [[Yemen]] and parts of western [[Oman]] and southwestern [[Saudi Arabia]], has few permanent forests. Some of the notable ones are [[Jabal Bura]], Jabal [[Raymah]], and Jabal Badaj in the Yemeni highland escarpment and the seasonal forests in eastern Yemen and the [[Dhofar]] region of Oman. Other [[woodland]]s that scatter the land are small, predominantly ''[[Juniperus]]'' or ''[[Vachellia]]'' forests.

=== Forest zone ===
{{Main|Guineo-Congolian region}}

The [[forest zone]], a belt of lowland [[tropical moist broadleaf forests]], runs across most of equatorial Africa's [[Intertropical Convergence Zone]]. The [[Upper Guinean forests]] of West Africa extend along the coast from [[Guinea]] to [[Togo]]. The [[Dahomey Gap]], a zone of forest-savanna mosaic that reaches to the coast, separates the Upper Guinean forests from the [[Lower Guinean forests]], which extend along the [[Gulf of Guinea]] from eastern [[Benin]] through [[Cameroon]] and [[Gabon]] to the western [[Democratic Republic of the Congo]]. The largest tropical forest zone in Africa is the [[Congolian forests]] of the [[Congo Basin]] in Central Africa.

A belt of tropical moist broadleaf forest also runs along the Indian Ocean coast, from southern [[Somalia]] to [[South Africa]].

=== Somali–Masai region ===
In northeastern Africa, semi-arid [[Acacia–Commiphora bushland|Acacia-Commiphora woodlands, savannas, and bushlands]] are the dominant plant communities. This region is called the Somali-Masai center of [[endemism]] or Somali-Masai region. It extends from central [[Tanzania]] northwards through the [[Horn of Africa]] and covers portions of [[Tanzania]], [[Kenya]], [[Ethiopia]], [[Somalia]], [[Djibouti]], and [[Eritrea]]. Thorny, dry-season [[deciduous]] species of ''[[Vachellia]]'' and ''[[Senegalia]]'' (formerly ''[[Acacia sensu lato|Acacia]]'') and ''[[Commiphora]]'' are the dominant trees, growing in open-canopied woodlands, open savannas, dense bushlands, and [[thicket]]s. This region includes the [[Serengeti]] ecosystem, which is renowned for its wildlife.<ref name="White">{{Cite book |last=White |first=Frank F. |author-link=Frank White (botanist) |title=The vegetation of Africa: A descriptive memoir to accompany the Unesco/AETFAT/UNSO vegetation map of Africa |publisher=[[UNESCO]] |year=1983 |isbn=92-3-101955-4}}</ref>

=== Eastern Africa's highlands ===
{{main|Afromontane}}
The [[Afromontane]] region extends from the [[Ethiopian Highlands]] to the [[Drakensberg Mountains]] of South Africa, including the [[East African Rift]]. This region is home to distinctive flora, including ''[[Podocarpus]]'' and ''[[Afrocarpus]]'', as well as giant ''[[Lobelia]]s'' and ''[[Dendrosenecio|Senecios]]''.
* [[Ethiopian Highlands]]
* [[Albertine rift montane forests]]
* [[East African montane forests]] and [[Eastern Arc forests]]

=== Zambezian region ===
{{Main|Zambezian region}}

The [[Zambezian region]] includes woodlands, savannas, grasslands, and thickets. Characteristic plant communities include [[Miombo woodlands]], drier [[mopane]] and ''[[Baikiaea]]'' woodlands, and higher-elevation [[Bushveld]]. It extends from east to west in a broad belt across the continent, south of the [[rainforest]]s of the [[Guineo-Congolian region]], and north of the deserts of southeastern Africa, the countries are [[Malawi]], [[Angola]], [[Botswana]], [[Mozambique]], [[Zambia]], and [[Zimbabwe]], and the subtropical.<ref name=":0" />

=== Deserts of Southern Africa ===
[[File:Afrotropic-Ecozone-Southern-Africa-Desert-Location-Approximations.svg|200px|thumb|Southern Africa as described in Plant Taxonomic Database Standards No. 2. Approximate locations of deserts are overlaid in red.]]

Southern Africa contains several deserts. The [[Namib Desert]] is one of the oldest deserts in the world and extends for over 2,000 kilometers along the Atlantic coasts of [[Angola]], [[Namibia]], and [[South Africa]]. It is characterized by towering [[dune]]s and a diversity of [[Endemism|endemic]] wildlife. Further inland concerning the Namib Desert, the [[Kalahari Desert]] is a semi-arid savanna spanning [[Botswana]], [[Namibia]], and [[South Africa]]. The Kalahari is known for its diversity of mineral resources, particularly [[diamond]]s, as well as a variety of flora. South of the Namib and Kalahari deserts is the [[Karoo]]. A semi-desert natural region, the Karoo desert spans across parts of the Western and Eastern Cape in South Africa and contains vast open spaces and unique vegetation, such as certain species of [[Asteraceae]] flowering plants. Within the boundaries of the larger Karoo, the [[Tankwa Karoo]] is a more arid sub-region known for harsher conditions and starker landscapes. Further to the west, the [[Richtersveld]], a mountainous desert in the northwestern corner of South Africa, presents a rugged landscape. It is celebrated as a [[World Heritage Site|UNESCO World Heritage Site]] for its unique [[biodiversity]] and cultural significance to the local [[Nama people]].

=== Cape floristic region ===
The [[Cape floristic region]] at Africa's southern tip is a [[Mediterranean climate]] region that is home to a significant number of endemic [[taxa]], as well as to plant families like the [[protea]]s (''Proteaceae'') that are also found in the [[Australasian realm]].

=== Madagascar and the Indian Ocean islands ===
{{Main|Ecoregions of Madagascar}}

[[Madagascar]] and neighboring islands form a distinctive sub-region of the realm, with numerous endemic [[taxon|taxa]], such as [[lemur]]s. Madagascar and the [[Granitic Seychelles]] are old pieces of the ancient [[supercontinent]] of [[Gondwana]], and broke away from Africa millions of years ago. Other [[List of islands in the Indian Ocean|Indian Ocean islands]], like the [[Comoros]] and [[Mascarene Islands]], are [[volcanic island]]s that formed more recently. Madagascar contains various plant habitats, from rainforests to mountains and deserts, as its biodiversity and ratio of endemism are extremely high.

== Endemic plants and animals ==
=== Plants ===
The Afrotropical realm is home to several endemic plant families. [[Ecoregions of Madagascar|Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands]] are home to ten endemic families of flowering plants; eight are endemic to Madagascar ([[Asteropeiaceae]], [[Didymelaceae]], [[Didiereaceae]], [[Kaliphoraceae]], [[Melanophyllaceae]], [[Physenaceae]], [[Sarcolaenaceae]], and [[Sphaerosepalaceae]]), one to [[Seychelles]] ([[Medusagynaceae]]), and one to the [[Mascarene Islands]] ([[Psiloxylaceae]]). Twelve plant families are endemic or nearly endemic to South Africa (including [[Curtisiaceae]], [[Heteropyxidaceae]], [[Penaeaceae]], [[Psiloxylaceae]], and [[Rhynchocalycaceae]]) of which five are endemic to the [[Cape floristic region|Cape floristic province]] (including [[Grubbiaceae]]). Other endemic Afrotropic families include [[Barbeyaceae]], [[Dirachmaceae]], [[Montiniaceae]], [[Myrothamnaceae]], and [[Oliniaceae]].

=== Animals ===
{{Main|Fauna of Africa}}

The [[African Great Lakes|East African Great Lakes]] ([[Lake Victoria|Victoria]], [[Lake Malawi|Malawi]], and [[Lake Tanganyika|Tanganyika]]) are the center of biodiversity of many freshwater fishes, especially [[cichlid]]s (they harbor more than two-thirds of the estimated 2,000 species in the family).<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Farias |first1=I.P. |last2=Ortí |first2=G. |last3=Meyer |first3=A. |date=2000-04-15 |title=Total evidence: molecules, morphology, and the phylogenetics of cichlid fishes |url=https://kops.uni-konstanz.de/bitstreams/de197cc4-594d-4d4a-8548-f2eb617d15cd/download |journal=[[Journal of Experimental Zoology]] |volume=288 |issue=1 |pages=76–92 |doi=10.1002/(SICI)1097-010X(20000415)288:1<76::AID-JEZ8>3.0.CO;2-P |pmid=10750055 |bibcode=2000JEZ...288...76F |via=[[PubMed]]}}</ref> The West African coastal rivers region covers only a fraction of West Africa, but harbors 322 of West Africa's fish species, with 247 restricted to this area and 129 restricted even
to smaller ranges. The central rivers [[fauna]] comprise 194 fish species, with 119 endemics and only 33 restricted to small areas.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Moritz |first1=Timo |last2=Linsenmair |first2=K. Eduard |date=2005 |chapter=West African fish diversity – distribution patterns and possible conclusions for conservation strategies |title=African Biodiversity |pages=187–195 |doi=10.1007/0-387-24320-8_16 |isbn=978-0-387-24320-7 |via=[[Springer Link]]}}</ref>

The Afrotropic has various endemic [[bird]] families, including [[ostrich]]es (Struthionidae), the [[secretary bird]] (Sagittariidae), [[guineafowl]] (Numididae), and [[mousebird]]s (Coliidae). Several families of [[passerines]] are limited to the Afrotropics, including [[rock-jumper]]s (Chaetopidae) and [[rockfowl]] (Picathartidae).

Africa has three endemic orders of mammals, the [[Tubulidentata]] ([[aardvark]]s), [[Afrosoricida]] ([[tenrec]]s and [[golden mole]]s), and [[Macroscelidea]] ([[elephant shrew]]s). The [[tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands|East-African plains]] are well known for their diversity of large mammals.

Four species of [[great apes]] ([[Hominidae]]) are endemic to Central Africa: both species of [[gorilla]] ([[western gorilla]], ''Gorilla gorilla'', and [[eastern gorilla]], ''Gorilla beringei'') and both species of [[Common chimpanzee|chimpanzee]] ([[common chimpanzee]], ''Pan troglodytes'', and [[bonobo]], ''Pan paniscus''). [[Human]]s and their ancestors originated in Africa.

== Afrotropical terrestrial ecoregions ==
[[File:Afrotropical biomes.svg|thumb|600px|center|The outlined ecoregions of the Afrotropical realm, each of a colored biome. Note that this realm has 9 of [[Biome#Olson & Dinerstein (1998) biomes for WWF / Global 200|14 biomes]], or major habitat types, as defined by Olson & Dinerstein, et al. (2001).<ref name="Olson2001">Olson, D. M., Dinerstein, E., Wikramanayake, E. D., Burgess, N. D., Powell, G. V. N., Underwood, E. C., D'Amico, J. A., Itoua, I., Strand, H. E., Morrison, J. C., Loucks, C. J., Allnutt, T. F., Ricketts, T. H., Kura, Y., Lamoreux, J. F., Wettengel, W. W., Hedao, P., Kassem, K. R. (2001). Terrestrial ecoregions of the world: a new map of life on Earth. ''Bioscience'' 51(11):933–938, [http://wolfweb.unr.edu/~ldyer/classes/396/olsonetal.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120917072415/http://wolfweb.unr.edu/~ldyer/classes/396/olsonetal.pdf|date=2012-09-17}}.</ref>
{{Legend|#447821|01. [[Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests]]}}
{{Legend|#D4AA00|02. [[Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests]]}}
{{Legend|#66FF00|03. [[Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests]]}}
{{Legend|#71C837|04. [[Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests]]}}
{{Legend|#005500|05. [[Temperate coniferous forests]]}}
{{Legend|#2CA05A|06. [[Taiga|Taiga and Boreal forest]]}}
{{Legend|#FFDD55|07. [[Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#CDDE87|08. [[Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#80B3FF|09. [[Flooded grasslands and savannas]]}}
{{Legend|#C6AFE9|10. [[Montane grasslands and shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#87DECD|11. [[Tundra]]}}
{{Legend|#C87137|12. [[Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub]]}}
{{Legend|#FFF6D5|13. [[Deserts and xeric shrublands]]}}
{{Legend|#D400AA|14. [[Mangrove forest|Mangroves]]}}
{{Legend|#ECECEC|Rock and Ice, or Abiotic Land Zones}}]]

{{Afrotropical tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical tropical and subtropical grassland, savanna, and shrubland ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical temperate grassland, savanna, and shrubland ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical flooded grassland and savanna ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical montane grassland and shrubland ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical mediterranean forest, woodland, and scrub ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical desert and xeric shrubland ecoregions}}
{{Afrotropical mangrove ecoregions}}

== Habitats ==
The tropical environment is rich in terms of biodiversity. Tropical African forest is 18 percent of the world's total and covers over 3.6 million square kilometers of land in West, East, and Central Africa. This total area can be subdivided to 2.69 million square kilometers (74%) in Central Africa, 680,000 square kilometers (19%) in West Africa, and 250,000 square kilometers (7%) in [[East Africa]].<ref name="coast">{{Cite web |title=Study of Land-Use and Deforestation In Central African Tropical Forest Using low-Resolution SAR Satellite Imagery |url=http://southport.jpl.nasa.gov/centralafrica/africa_proposal.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19971018202828/http://southport.jpl.nasa.gov/centralafrica/africa_proposal.html |archive-date=1997-10-18 |access-date=2007-08-24}}</ref> In [[West Africa]], a chain of rain forests up to 350&nbsp;km long extends from the eastern border of [[Sierra Leone]] to [[Ghana]]. In Ghana, the forest zone gradually dispels near the [[Volta river]], following a 300&nbsp; km stretch of [[Dahomey]] savanna gap. The rain forest of West Africa continues from east of Benin through southern Nigeria and officially ends at the border of [[Cameroon]] along the [[Sanaga river]].

[[File:Rainforest - Ituri (20874628148).jpg|thumb|[[Ituri Rainforest]]]]
Semi-deciduous rainforests in West Africa begin at the fringed coastline of [[Guinea-Bissau|Guinea Bissau]] (via Guinea) and run through the coasts of Sierra Leone, [[Liberia]], [[Ivory Coast]], Ghana, continuing through Togo, [[Benin]], Nigeria and Cameroon, and ending at the [[Congo Basin]]. Rainforests such as these are the richest, oldest, most prolific, and most complex systems on Earth, are dying, and in turn, are upsetting the delicate ecological balance. This may disturb global [[hydrological cycle]]s, release vast amounts of [[greenhouse gas]]es into the atmosphere, and lessen the planet's ability to store excess [[carbon]].

The rainforest vegetation of the Guinea-Congolian transition area, extending from [[Senegal]] to western [[Uganda]] is constituted of two main types: The semi-deciduous rainforest is characterized by a large number of trees whose leaves are left during the dry season. It appears in areas where the dry period (rainfall below about 100&nbsp; mm) reaches three months. Then, the evergreen or the semi-evergreen rainforest climatically adapted to somewhat more humid conditions than the semi-deciduous type and is usually there in areas where the dry period is shorter than two months. This forest is usually richer in [[legumes]] and a variety of species and its maximum development is around the [[Bight of Biafra]], from [[Eastern Nigeria]] to Gabon, and with some large patches leaning to the west from Ghana to Liberia and to the east of Zaïre-Congo basin.

Among rainforest areas in other continents, most of the African rainforest is comparatively dry and receives between 1600 and 2000&nbsp;mm of rainfall per year. Areas receiving more rain than this mainly are in coastal areas. The circulation of rainfall throughout the year remains less than in other rainforest regions in the world. The average monthly rainfall in nearly the whole region remains under 100&nbsp; mm throughout the year. The variety of the African rainforest flora is also less than the other rainforests. This lack of flora has been credited to several reasons such as the gradual infertility since the [[Miocene]], severe dry periods during [[Quaternary]], or the [[refuge theory]] of the cool and dry climate of tropical Africa during the last severe ice age of about 18,000 years ago.<ref name="coast" />

== Fauna ==
[[File:Forest elephant family (6987538203).jpg|thumb|[[African forest elephant]]]]
The Tropical African rainforest has rich fauna, commonly smaller mammal species rarely seen by humans. New species are being discovered. For instance, in late 1988 an unknown shrub species was discovered on the shores of the Median River in Western Cameroon. Since then many species have become extinct. However, undisturbed rainforests are some of the richest habitats for animal species. Today, undisturbed rainforests are remnant but rare. [[Timber extraction]] not only changes the edifice of the forest, but it also affects the tree species spectrum by removing economically important species and terminating other species in the process. The species that compose African rainforests are of different evolutionary ages because of the contraction and expansion of the rainforest in response to global climatic fluctuations.<ref name="coast" />

The [[pygmy hippopotamus]], the [[giant forest hog]], the [[water chevrotain]], [[insectivores]], rodents, bats, tree frogs, and bird species inhabit the forest. These species, along with a diversity of fruits and insects, make a special habitat that allows for a diversity of life. The top canopy is home to monkey species like the [[red colobus]], Black-and-white Colobus, and many other Old-World monkey species. Many of these rare and unique species are endangered or critically endangered and need protection from poachers and provided ample habitat to thrive.

== Flora ==
In Tropical Africa, about 8,500 plant species have been documented, including 403 [[orchid]] species.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Sharkey |first1=Michael J. |last2=Janzen |first2=Daniel H. |last3=Hallwachs |first3=Winnie |last4=Chapman |first4=Eric G. |last5=Smith |first5=M. Alex |last6=Dapkey |first6=Tanya |last7=Brown |first7=Allison |last8=Ratnasingham |first8=Sujeevan |last9=Naik |first9=Suresh |last10=Manjunath |first10=Ramya |last11=Perez |first11=Kate |last12=Milton |first12=Megan |last13=Hebert |first13=Paul |last14=Shaw |first14=Scott R. |last15=Kittel |first15=Rebecca N. |date=2021-02-02 |title=Minimalist revision and description of 403 new species in 11 subfamilies of Costa Rican braconid parasitoid wasps, including host records for 219 species |url=https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/55600/ |journal=ZooKeys |language=en |issue=1013 |pages=1–665 |doi=10.3897/zookeys.1013.55600 |doi-access=free |pmid=34512087 |issn=1313-2970|pmc=8390796 }}</ref>

Species unfamiliar with the changes in forest structure for industrial use might not survive.<ref name="coast" /> If timber use continues and an increasing amount of farming occurs, it could lead to the mass killing of animal species. The home of nearly half of the world's animals and plant species are tropical rainforests. The rainforests provide economic resources for over-populated developing countries. Despite the stated need to save the West African forests, there are varied opinions on how best to accomplish this goal. In April 1992, countries with some of the largest surviving tropical rainforests banned a rainforest protection plan proposed by the [[Government of the United Kingdom|British government]]. It aimed at finding endangered species of tropical trees to control their trade. Experts estimate that the rainforest of West Africa, at the present rate of [[deforestation]], may disappear by the year 2020.<ref name="coast" />

Africa's rainforest, like many others emergent in the world, has a special significance to the [[indigenous peoples of Africa]] who have occupied them for millennia.<ref name="coast" />

== Region protection ==
Many African countries are in economic and political change, overwhelmed by conflict, making various movements of forest exploitation to maintain forest management and production more and more complicated.

Forest legislation of ATO member countries aims to promote the balanced utilization of the forest domain and of wildlife and fishery to increase the input of the forest sector to the economic, social, cultural, and scientific development of the country.<ref name="coast" />

===Deforestation===
{{tone|section|date=July 2018}}
The rate of [[deforestation in Africa]] is less known than the rate of other tropical regions. A lack of dependable data and survey information in some countries has made change in areas of unbroken forest difficult to ascertain.

The cultivation of various [[cash crop]]s has led to forest depletion. West African countries depend on products like gum, [[copal]], [[rubber]], [[cola nuts]], and [[palm oil]] as a source of steady income. [[Land use change]] spoils entire habitats with the forests. The conversion of forests into timber is another cause of deforestation. Over decades, the primary forest product was commercial [[timber]]. Urbanized countries account for a great percentage of the world's wood consumption, which increased greatly between 1950 and 1980. Simultaneously, preservation measures were reinforced to protect European and American forests.<ref name="coast" /> Economic growth and growing environmental protection in industrialized European countries caused increased demand for tropical hardwood from West Africa. In the first half of the 1980s, an annual [[forest loss]] of {{convert|7200|km2|abbr=on}} was noted down along the [[Gulf of Guinea]], a figure equivalent to 4-5 percent of the total remaining rainforest area.<ref name="coast" /> By 1985, 72% of West Africa's rainforests had been transformed into fallow lands and an additional 9% had been opened up by timber exploitation.<ref name="coast" />

Tropical timber was used in Europe following [[World War II]], as trade with East European countries stopped and timber noticeably became sparse in western and southern [[Europe]]. Despite efforts to promote lesser-known timber species use, the market continued to focus on part of the usable timber obtainable. West Africa was prone to selective harvesting practices; while [[conservationists]] blamed the timber industry and the farmers for felling trees, others believe rainforest destruction is connected to the problem of fuel wood.<ref name="coast" /> The contribution of fuel wood consumption to tree stock decline in Africa is believed to be significant. It is generally believed that [[firewood]] provides 75% of the energy used in sub-Sahara Africa.<ref name="coast" /> With the high demand, the consumption of wood for fuel exceeds the renewal of [[forest cover]].

Other observed changes in these forests are forest disintegration (changing the spatial continuity and creating a mosaic of forest blocks and other land cover types), and selective logging of woody species for profitable purposes that affect the forest subfloor and the biodiversity.<ref name="coast" />

[[File:Living on the rainforest 2.jpg|thumb|[[African Pygmies]] living in the [[Dzanga-Sangha Special Reserve]]]]
The rainforests that remain in West Africa now greatly differ in condition from their state 30 years ago. In Guinea, Liberia, and the Ivory Coast, there is almost no primary forest cover left unscathed; in Ghana, the situation is much worse, and nearly all of the rainforest is being removed. [[Guinea-Bissau]] loses {{convert|200|to|350|km2|abbr=on}} of forest yearly, Senegal {{convert|500|km2|abbr=on}} of wooded savanna, and Nigeria 6,000,050,000 of both. Liberia loses {{convert|800|km2|abbr=on}} of forests each year. Extrapolating from present rates of loss, [[botanist]] Peter Raven pictures that the majority of the world's moderate and smaller rainforests (such as in Africa) could be destroyed in forty years. Tropical Africa comprises 18% of the world's total land area covering {{convert|20|e6km2|abbr=unit}} of land in West and Central Africa.<ref name="coast" /> The region has been facing deforestation in various degrees of intensity throughout the recent decades. The actual rate of deforestation varies from one country to another and accurate data does not exist yet. Recent estimates show that the annual pace of deforestation in the region can vary from {{convert|150|km2|abbr=on}} in [[Gabon]] to {{convert|2900|km2|abbr=on}} in [[Côte d'Ivoire]]. The remaining tropical forests still cover major areas in Central Africa but are abridged by patches in West Africa.

The African Timber Organization member countries eventually recognized the cooperation between rural people and their forest environment. Customary law gives residents the right to use trees for firewood, fell trees for construction, and collect of forest products and rights for hunting or fishing and grazing or clearing of forests for maintenance agriculture. Other areas are called "protected forests", which means that uncontrolled clearings and unauthorized logging are forbidden. After World War II, commercial exploitation increased until no West African forestry department was able to make the law. By comparison with rainforests in other places of the world in 1973, Africa showed the greatest infringement though in total volume means, African timber production accounted for just one-third compared to that of [[Asia]].<ref name="coast" /> The difference was due to the variety of trees in Africa forests and the demand for specific wood types in Europe.

[[Forestry]] regulations in East Africa were first applied by colonial governments. The Tropical Forestry Action Plan was conceived in 1987 by the [[World Resources Institute]] in cooperation with the [[Food and Agriculture Organization]], the [[United Nations Development Program]], and the [[World Bank]] with hopes of halting tropical forest destruction.<ref name="coast" /> In its bid to stress forest conservation and development, the [[World Bank]] provided $111,103 million to developing countries, especially in Africa, to help in developing long-range forest conservation and management programs meant for ending deforestation.

== Historical temperature and climate ==
In early 2007, scientists created an entirely new proxy to determine the annual mean air temperature on land—based on molecules from the cell membrane of soil-inhabiting bacteria. Scientists from the NIOZ, [[Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research]] conducted a temperature record dating back to 25,000 years ago.<ref name="News">{{Cite web |date=2007-03-26 |title=Microfossils Unravel Climate History Of Tropical Africa |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070323104706.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607061457/http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-03/nofs-muc032307.php |archive-date=2011-06-07 |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=Science Daily}}</ref>

In concordance with their German colleagues at the [[University of Bremen]], this detailed record shows the history of land temperatures based on the [[molecular fossils]] of soil bacteria. When applying this to the outflow core of the [[Congo River]], the core contained eroded land material and microfossils from marine algae. That concluded that the land environment of tropical Africa cooled more than the bordering Atlantic Ocean during the last ice age. Since the Congo River drains a large part of tropical central Africa, the land-derived material gives an integrated signal for a very large area. These findings further enlighten natural disparities in climate and the possible costs of a warming earth on precipitation in central Africa.<ref name="News" />

Scientists discovered a way to measure sea temperature—based on organic molecules from algae growing off the surface layer of the Ocean. These organisms acclimatize the molecular composition of their cell membranes to ambient temperature to sustain regular physiological properties. If such molecules sink to the sea floor and are buried in sediments where [[oxygen]] does not go through, they can be preserved for thousands of years. The ratios between the different molecules from the algal cell membrane can approximate the past temperature of the sea surface. The new “proxy” used in this sediment core obtained both a continental and a [[sea surface temperature]] record. In comparison, both records show that ocean surface and land temperatures behaved differently during the past 25,000 years. During the last ice age, African temperatures were 21&nbsp;°C, about 4&nbsp;°C lower than today, while the tropical [[Atlantic Ocean]] was only about 2.5&nbsp;°C cooler. Lead author Johan Weijers and his colleagues concluded that the land-sea temperature difference has by far the largest influence on continental rainfall. The relation of air pressure to temperature strongly determines this factor. During the [[Last glacial period|last ice age]], the land climate in tropical Africa was drier than it is now, whereas it favors the growth of a lush rainforest.<ref name="News" />

== See also ==
* [[African Rainforest Conservancy]] (ARC)
* [[Global 200]]
* [[Plant Resources of Tropical Africa]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* Burgess, N., J.D. Hales, E. Underwood, and E. Dinerstein (2004). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjbwAAAAMAAJ Terrestrial Ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: A Conservation Assessment].'' Island Press, Washington, D.C.
* Thieme, M.L., R. Abell, M.L.J. Stiassny, P. Skelton, B. Lehner, G.G. Teugels, E. Dinerstein, A.K. Toham, N. Burgess & D. Olson. 2005. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=3nkL9NqqlscC Freshwater ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: A conservation assessment].'' Washington D.C.: World Wildlife Fund.

== Further reading ==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070928103533/http://www.ittis.org/profiles/profile_af.htm Production Land use study]

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikivoyage|African wildlife}}
* [https://www.worldwildlife.org/publications/terrestrial-ecoregions-of-the-world Terrestrial ecoregions of the world]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080820143549/http://www.africaninvertebrates.org.za/ ''African Invertebrates'' — A journal of Afrotropical biodiversity research]
* [https://www.nhm.ac.uk/our-science/our-work/biodiversity/manual-afrotropical-diptera.html Manual of Afrotropical Diptera]
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20160303191256/http://www.humidtropics.org/ CGIAR Research Program on integrated systems in the humid tropics]}}

{{Biodiversity of South Africa}}
{{Biomes}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Afrotropical realm}}
[[Category:Afrotropical realm| ]]<!--please leave the empty space as standard-->
[[Category:Biogeographic realms]]
[[Category:Biota of Africa]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of Asia|.]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of Africa|.]]
[[Category:Tropics]]
[[Category:Biogeography]]
[[Category:Natural history of Asia]]
[[Category:Natural history of Africa]]
[[Category:Regions of Africa]]