The African forest elephant is one of the two living species of African elephant. It is native to humid tropical forests in West Africa and the Congo Basin. It is the smallest of the three living elephant species, reaching a shoulder height of 2.4 m. As with other African elephants, both sexes have straight, down-pointing tusks, which begin to grow once the animals reach 1–3 years old. The forest elephant lives in highly sociable family groups of up to 20 individuals. Since they forage primarily on leaves, seeds, fruit, and tree bark, they have often been referred to as the 'megagardener of the forest'; the species is one of many that contributes significantly to maintaining the composition, diversity and structure of the Guinean Forests of West Africa and the Congolese rainforests. Seeds of various plants will go through the elephant’s digestive tract and eventually pass through in the animal’s droppings, thus helping to maintain the spread and biodiversity of the forests.
The Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War or the Great War of Africa or the Great African War, began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in August 1998, little more than a year after the First Congo War, and involved some of the same issues.
The blue duiker is a small antelope found in central, southern and eastern Africa. It is the smallest species of duiker. The species was first described by Swedish naturalist Carl Peter Thunberg in 1789. 12 subspecies are identified. The blue duiker reaches 32–41 centimetres (13–16 in) at the shoulder and weighs 3.5–9 kilograms (7.7–19.8 lb). Sexually dimorphic, the females are slightly larger than the males. The dark tail measures slightly above 10 centimetres (3.9 in). It has short, spiky horns, around 5 centimetres (2.0 in) long and hidden in hair tufts. The subspecies show a great degree of variation in their colouration. The blue duiker bears a significant resemblance to Maxwell's duiker.
The eastern lowland gorilla or Grauer's gorilla is a Critically Endangered subspecies of eastern gorilla endemic to the mountainous forests of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Important populations of this gorilla live in the Kahuzi-Biega and Maiko National Parks and their adjacent forests, the Tayna Gorilla Reserve, the Usala forest and on the Itombwe Massif.
The Congo–Ocean Railway links the Atlantic port of Pointe-Noire with Brazzaville, a distance of 502 kilometres (312 mi). It bypasses the rapids on the lower Congo River; from Brazzaville, river boats are able to ascend the Congo River and its major tributaries, including the Oubangui River to Bangui.
The Albertine Rift montane forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in east-central Africa. The ecoregion covers the mountains of the northern Albertine Rift, and is home to distinct Afromontane forests with high biodiversity.
The long-nosed mongoose is a mongoose native to Central African wetlands and rainforests. It has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List since 1996. Although formerly classified in Herpestes, more recent studies indicate that it belongs in the monotypic taxon Xenogale.
The pied butterfly bat, also known as the pied bat or badger bat, is a rare species of vesper bat in the family Vespertilionidae.
The beaded hylomyscus or beaded wood mouse is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Uganda. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.
The Stella hylomyscus or Stella wood mouse is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.
The rusty-bellied brush-furred rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, and Uganda. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, arable land, and pastureland.
The African giant toad, Congo toad, or Cameroon toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, possibly Liberia, and possibly Sierra Leone. The toad's natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, plantations, and heavily degraded former forest. While it is a "least concern" species, it is threatened by habitat loss.
The Bouchia clawed frog is a species of frog in the family Pipidae found in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and possibly the Republic of the Congo. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, swamps, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, rural gardens, and heavily degraded former forests.
The forest hinge-back tortoise, also known commonly as the serrated hinge-back tortoise or Schweigger's tortoise, is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is indigenous to the tropical forests and marshes of central and western Africa.
Bates's shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. This large black shrew was first described by the British zoologist Guy Dollman in 1915, the type locality being the vicinity of the Como River in Gabon. The exact definition of this species is unclear; it is often included in Fraser's musk shrew, or reported as Wimmer's shrew. Its karyotype is 2n=50, FN-76, which is identical to the Nigerian shrew, and the species complex is in need of a thorough revision.
Ludia's shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, and Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
Johnston's forest shrew is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae found in Burundi, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland and montane forest.
The Peters's epauletted fruit bat is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitat is in riverine or evergreen forest, or moist woodland, where there are fruit-bearing trees.
The lesser Angolan epauletted fruit bat is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in Angola and the Republic of the Congo. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry and moist lowland forest, and savanna.
Iolaus neavei, or Neave's sapphire, is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. The species was first described by Hamilton Herbert Druce in 1910. It is found in Nigeria, Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Tanzania. The habitat consists of forests.
