Land-cover change threatens tropical forests and biodiversity in the Littoral Region, Cameroon

Abstract

Tropical forest regions in equatorial Africa are threatened with degradation, deforestation and biodiversity loss as a result of land-cover change. We investigated historical land-cover dynamics in unprotected forested areas of the Littoral Region in south-western Cameroon during 1975–2017, to detect changes that may influence this important biodiversity and wildlife area. Processed Landsat imagery was used to map and monitor changes in land use and land cover. From 1975 to 2017 the area of high-value forest landscapes decreased by c. 420,000 ha, and increasing forest fragmentation caused a decline of c. 12% in the largest patch index. Conversely, disturbed vegetation, cleared areas and urban areas all expanded in extent, by 32% (c. 400,000 ha), 5.6% (c. 26,800 ha) and 6.6% (c. 78,631 ha), respectively. The greatest increase was in the area converted to oil palm plantations (c. 26,893 ha), followed by logging and land clearing (c. 34,838 ha), all of which were the major factors driving deforestation in the study area. Our findings highlight the increasing threats facing the wider Littoral Region, which includes Mount Nlonako and Ebo Forest, both of which are critical areas for regional conservation and the latter a proposed National Park and the only sizable area of intact forest in the region. Intact forest in the Littoral Region, and in particular at Ebo, merits urgent protection.

Kupeantha yabassi(Coffeeae- Rubiaceae), a new Critically Endangered shrub species of the Ebo Forest area, Littoral Region, Cameroon

“…The inventory of its Flora is far from completed, and the few remaining sizable areas of intact forest such as Ebo Forest, in the Littoral Region, are seriously threatened by clearance. Unfortunately, there is an increasing pressure to convert critical areas for biodiversity into oil palm plantations, and logging concessions (Mahmoud et al . 2019).…”

“…As stated in the introduction, efforts are being made to delimit the highest priority areas in Cameroon for plant conservation as Tropical Important Plant Areas (TIPAs) (Darbyshire et al . 2017) to avoid the extinction of narrowly endemic species (Cheek et al 2018a; Mahmoud et al . 2019).…”

“…The inventory of its Flora is far from completed, and the few remaining sizable areas of intact forest such as Ebo Forest, in the Littoral Region, are seriously threatened by clearance. Unfortunately, there is an increasing pressure to convert critical areas for biodiversity into oil palm plantations, and logging concessions (Mahmoud et al 2019). As stated in the introduction, efforts are being made to delimit the highest priority areas in Cameroon for plant conservation as Tropical Important Plant Areas (TIPAs) (Darbyshire et al 2017) to avoid the extinction of narrowly endemic species (Cheek et al 2018a;Mahmoud et al 2019).…”

“…Unfortunately, there is an increasing pressure to convert critical areas for biodiversity into oil palm plantations, and logging concessions (Mahmoud et al 2019). As stated in the introduction, efforts are being made to delimit the highest priority areas in Cameroon for plant conservation as Tropical Important Plant Areas (TIPAs) (Darbyshire et al 2017) to avoid the extinction of narrowly endemic species (Cheek et al 2018a;Mahmoud et al 2019). However, the pressure for forest and wildlife resources is a stronger driver in the rapid decrease of primary forests and biodiversity.…”

Genetic Differentiation and Population Structure of Threatened Prunus africana Kalm. in Western Cameroon Using Molecular Markers

“…While there still are large areas of continuous tropical forest, southern Cameroon is experiencing rapid forest loss [67]. Deforestation and the changing of forested land for unregulated agricultural practices by farmers negatively influenced biodiversity and threatened the natural forest ecosystems in the Littoral and South-West Regions [68]. Habitats are becoming more fragmented and gene flow could be impacted for many species [69].…”