Ikpan wetland rainforest: an area of high biodiversity importance in south-eastern Nigeria

International audience ; A careful survey for marnmals, reptiles, and amphibians, was conducted at the wetlands and rainforests of Ikpan Forest block, Cross River State (south-eastern Nigeria), during the period 1 998-200 1 . The surveys proved that Ikpan Forest, although formally not protected at either regional or national levels, bouses an extraordinarily rich biodiversity, including many vertebrates of ecological, biogeographie, and conservation importance. Among mammals, the most important taxa are primates ( 1 1 different species, including Mandrillus leucophaeus, Pan troglodytes, Procolobus badius preussi), forest elephants, forest buffalos, and many ungulates. Manatees and leopards may also be present. Among reptiles, Osteolaemus tetraspis, Kinixys spp . , Varanus niloticus amatus, Python sebae, and chameleons are especially important in conservation terms. Moreover, the study forest bouses a conspicuous diversity of species of snakes (27) and arnphibians (27), including many species which are good ecological indicators of forest quality, and sorne species which were rarely recorded in Nigeria before (e.g. , the anurans Bufo superciliaris and Conraua crassipes) . The study area bas potentials for conservation and sustainable development (eco-tourism), but should certainly be monitored carefully in the next years to avoid the negative effects of timber extraction, local hunting, farming, and fishing with dynamites. ; Un inventaire détaillé des mammifères, reptiles et amphibiens a été conduit dans les zones humides et de forêt de terre ferme du bloc forestier d'Ikpan (Cross River State, sud-est du Nigéria) durant la période 1998-2001. Les prospections ont montré que l'Ikpan Forest, bien que formellement non protégée tant au niveau régional qu'au plan national, héberge une remarquable biodiversité qui inclut de nombreux vertébrés de grand intérêt écologique et biogéographique et qui sont importants en termes de conservation. Parmi les mammifères, les taxons les plus importants sont les primates (11 espèces ...