West Africa

===Nature===
[[File:Rhinoceros blanc- réserve de Bandia - panoramio.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A [[rhinoceros]] in Bandia Nature Reserve, [[Senegal]]]]
[[File:Yankari Elephants.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[African bush elephants]] in [[Yankari National Park]], Nigeria]]

Before [[Scramble for Africa|European colonisation]], West African countries such as those from the [[Senegambia|Senegambia region]] (Senegal and the Gambia) used to have a diverse [[wildlife]] including [[lion]]s, [[hippopotamus]], [[elephant]]s, [[antelope]]s, [[leopard]]s etc.<ref>Koslow, Philip, ''Senegambia: Land of the Lion'', Chelsea House Publishers (1997), pp. 11, 35–47, {{ISBN|9780791031353}}.</ref> However, during colonization, the European colonizers such as the French and British killed most of the wildlife particularly the lions, using their body parts as trophies. By the turn of the 20th century, the Senegambia region had lost most of its lion population and other exotic animals due to [[poaching]]. By the 1930s, the Gambian elephant population became extinct. That phenomenon was not only limited to the Senegambia region but affected much of West Africa as the region lost much of its "natural resources once tied so closely to its cultural identity. [[Poaching]] has stolen most of its wildlife." The British issued poaching licenses, and although they would later try to reverse the damage that had been done by attempting to preserve what was left of the local wildlife, but by that time, it was too late.<ref name="New York Times">''[[The New York Times]]'', [https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/30/world/africa/senegal-baobabs-climate-change.html "Across Senegal, the Beloved Baobab Tree Is the 'Pride of the Neighborhood{{'"}}], by Dionne Searcey (Sept. 30, 2018) (Retrieved 1 April 2019)</ref><ref name="Somerville">Somerville, Keith, ''Ivory: Power and Poaching in Africa'', [[Oxford University Press]] (2016), p. 84–85 {{ISBN|9781849046763}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=D2sjDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA85] (Retrieved 1 April 2019)</ref> During the 1930s, the elephant population in the [[Gold Coast (region)|Gold Coast]] was about 300, and Sierra Leone between 500 and 600. Although a small number of elephants survived in Nigeria, hunting, [[agricultural expansion]] and [[Deforestation in Nigeria|clearing of forest in that country]] drastically affected its wildlife population, particularly elephants.<ref name="Somerville"/>

Despite the historical damage that has been done to the region's wildlife populations, there are still some protected nature reserves within the region. Some of these include:

* The Bandia Nature Reserve in Senegal (French: ''Réserve de Bandia''), animal life includes: [[giraffes]], [[zebras]], [[rhinos]], a variety of antelopes, [[African buffalo|buffaloes]], [[monkeys]], [[crocodiles]], [[tortoises]]. apes and a variety of exotic birds.<ref>Bandia Nature Reserve is sometimes called ''Bandia park reserve'', [[Lonely Planet]], ''Half-Day Somone Lagoon and Bandia Park Safari from Dakar'', [https://www.lonelyplanet.com/senegal/dakar/activities/half-day-somone-lagoon-and-bandia-park-safari-from-dakar/a/pa-act/v-28135P1/355589] (Retrieved 1 April 2019)</ref>
* The [[Yankari National Park]] in Nigeria, animal life includes: the [[African bush elephant]], [[olive baboon]], [[patas monkey]], [[Tantalus monkey]], [[roan antelope]], [[Hartebeest|western hartebeest]], [[West African lion]], [[African buffalo]], [[waterbuck]], [[bushbuck]] and [[hippopotamus]].<ref>Lonely Plane, ''Yankari National Park''[https://www.lonelyplanet.com/nigeria/northern-nigeria/yankari-national-park] (Retrieved 1 April 2019)</ref>
#The [[Ankasa Conservation Area]] in Ghana, animal life includes: the elephant, [[bongo (antelope)|bongo]], leopard, [[Common chimpanzee|chimpanzee]], [[Diana Monkey|Diana monkey]], and other primates.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tilahun|first1=Mesfin|last2=Damnyag|first2=Lawrence|last3=Anglaaere|first3=Luke C.N.|title=The Ankasa Forest Conservation Area of Ghana: Ecosystem service values and on-site REDD + opportunity cost|journal=Forest Policy and Economics|volume=73|pages=168–176|doi=10.1016/j.forpol.2016.08.011|year=2016}}</ref>
* The [[Mole National Park]] is Ghana's biggest wildlife refuge. It is home to over 83 mammal species including about 800 resident elephants, buffalo, hippos, and warthogs<ref>{{Cite book|last=Riley|first=Laura|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/59347952|title=Nature's strongholds : the world's great wildlife reserves|date=2005|publisher=Princeton University Press|others=William Riley|isbn=0-691-12219-9|location=Princeton, N.J.|oclc=59347952}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Brodowsky|first=Pamela K.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/233549707|title=Destination wildlife : an international site-by-site guide to the best places to experience endangered, rare, and fascinating animals and their habitats|date=2009|publisher=Penguin|others=National Wildlife Federation|isbn=978-0-399-53486-7|location=New York|oclc=233549707}}</ref> as well as various fauna and flora.

West Africa is also home to several [[Adansonia|baobab]] trees and other [[plant life]]. Some baobab trees are several centuries old and form part of the local folklore, for example, a mythical baobab tree named ''Ngoye njuli'' in Senegal which is regarded as a sacred site by the [[Serer people|Serer]]. The tree itself is rather majestic and looks like a huge [[phallus]] and a deformed animal or thing is protruding from it. It is said to be the dwelling place of a [[pangool]]. Ngoye njuli is protected by the Senegalese authorities and attracts visitors. In West Africa, as in other parts of Africa where the baobab tree is found, the leaves are mixed with couscous and eaten, the bark of the tree is used to make ropes, and the fruit and seeds used for drinks and oils.<ref name="New York Times"/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Martin |first1=V. |last2=Becker |first2=C. |title=Lieux de culte et emplacements celebres dans les pays Sereer (Sénégal) |trans-title=Places of worship and famous locations in the Sereer countries (Senegal) |language=fr |journal=Bulletin de l'Institut Fondamental d'Afrique Noire, Série B: Sciences humaines |date=1979 |volume=41 |pages=133–189 }}</ref><ref name="SRC">{{Cite web|url=https://www.seereer.org/|title=The Seereer Resource Centre (SRC)|website=The Seereer Resource Centre (SRC)|access-date=1 April 2019|archive-date=30 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430163337/https://www.seereer.org/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
[[File:Deforestation in Nigeria (3509228297).jpg|thumb|200px| [[Deforestation in Nigeria]].]]