What rainforests are there in africa

Today, the governments of rainforest countries are now torn between the need to protect their endangered rainforests and the need for the money, roads and jobs that foreign logging companies bring in. Growing populations, swollen by war refugees, are razing rainforest to make way for farm land; poachers are picking off chimpanzees and gorillas to sell to the profitable bushmeat trade.

Will the Congo Basin follow the fate of West Africa? Follow the links to learn more about these amazing places in Africa's rainforests! The present-day distributions of different species owe much to climate change over the millennia, and the ability of individual species to survive as forests have contracted during dry periods and re-colonise areas as warmer, wetter conditions take hold and forests are able to expand.

Thus conservation of the full range of African rainforest species requires protection of a network of carefully selected sites, each protecting a different suite of species.

This is because the forests that store the most carbon are not necessarily home to the most species. In particular, we found that they store more carbon than those in the Amazon. This makes designing policies that protect them all the more important, and more complex.

At first glance, incentives to protect forests for their carbon should also benefit biodiversity. This is because they encourage more forests to be protected.

But protecting one area often diverts threats to other areas. So, protecting some forests for their carbon could increase human pressure on others.

Previous studies have found that ecosystem functions like carbon storage increase with biodiversity. This site uses cookies to deliver website functionality and analytics. If you would like to know more about the types of cookies we serve and how to change your cookie settings, please read our Cookie Notice. By clicking the "I accept" button, you consent to the use of these cookies. Tropical forests are essential for sustainable growth in Africa. They also have economic, environmental, and social implications that extend far beyond the continent.

Yet these forests are being cleared at a rate of 18 million hectares a year. One industry that could be impacted heavily is the pharmaceuticals industry. Tropical forests also matter in the fight against climate change. When a forest is cleared, the trees release this stored carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

We cannot solve climate change without also addressing deforestation. Deforestation also affects rainfall.