Cross River State

Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary is situated in south-east Nigeria along the border with Cameroon. Most of the forest in this area has been removed but, because of its mountainous, rugged terrain, the sanctuary was never logged and farming has been limited. It therefore retained much of the original forest cover until recently, and is of global importance for biodiversity.  It is home to the rarest gorilla subspecies in the world, the Cross River gorilla, Gorilla gorilla diehli, of which an estimated 200 survive. FFI has been working to strengthen the protection of the sanctuary by providing logistical support, training, equipment and basic infrastructure to staff of the Cross River State Forestry Commission responsible for the sanctuary, and funding community outreach and education programmes. Activities include the development of a tree nursery close to the sanctuary.

Cross River State has over 30 globally threatened tree species. FFI is also working with the Iroko Foundation to support tree conservation activities being developed by the Calabar Botanic Garden.

Forests in Taraba and Adamawa States

In 2001, a book entitled The Forests of Taraba and Adamawa States, Nigeria was published. It was based on detailed fieldwork from the 1970s and described the botanical composition of a range of forest types from lowland to montane. These forests are also rich in primates, birds and small mammals. A project funded by the Flagship Species Fund is currently undertaking a pilot study to re-survey the mountain forests described in the book, recording forest location and extent, current presence of threatened species and the threats to them. The results will be used to produce an updated version of the book and also to develop long-term collaboration between British and Nigerian institutions.