Kainji National Park; Established in 1979 and located in Kwara State, the wildlife park is one of Nigeria’s most flaunted resort centres and is one of the largest game reserves in the West Coast. It incorporates the Borgu Game Reserve and Zugurma Game Reserve to the southeast in Niger State. The Bourgu sector of the…
Lake Chad; at the farthest northeast end of Nigeria sharing close boundary with Niger, Cameroon, and Chad republics. The Chad basin, 2258 kilometers wide, was in 1991 designated as a tourist site in Borno and Yobe states[i]. The International Court of Justice, ICJ ruled on Thursday, October 10, 2002 that the boundary in the Lake…
Obudu Cattle Ranch; now called the Obudu Mountain Resort rather than the Obudu Cattle Ranch. It is located at the Obaniku Local Government area of the northern part of Cross River State and just about 30 minutes drive from Obudu town and about five hours from Calabar, the state capital. It can also be accessed…
Okomu National Park; a rainforest ecosystem in the outskirts of Benin City is home only to the endangered White-throated monkeys. The park, 1082 kilometers in area size, was established in 1999[i]. Typically, visitors who throng the young and futuristic conservation enclave indulge in discussing the famous monkeys. Unknown to many people even the villagers, Okomu…
Old Oyo National Park; Nigerian park-system in Oyo primarily facilitating preservation and protection of indigenous Nigerian flora and fauna. The park also protects the architectural and historical sites of Oyo Ile, the capital of Old Oyo founded many hundreds years in the past. The 22 relics abides, sites of the aafin (palace of the king),…
Gashaka Gumti; National Park established in 1991 as a tourist site[i], Gasha Gumti is believed by many to be the largest, most scenic and biologically diverse conservation site in the world. It is one of the seven national parks in the country and one of Africa’s best kept conservation site. Gashaka Gumti is located in…
Bate’s Dwarf Antelopes, Neotragus batesi, are very small antelopes, only some 5.5 cm long, and weighing from 2-3 kg. Males are a lot bigger than the female and it is only they that posses horns. This species considered shy and secretive because of its inconspicuous coat, coupled with the way it moves about its dense…
Straw-colored Fruit Bat, Eidolon helvum, is a species of bats, called Àdón in Yoruba, a mammal having the distinguishing feature of their forelimbs being developed as wings, thereby becoming the only mammal that flies. The neck and back of this species display the straw color, hence the name, while the ventral side of the body…
African Wild Dog, scientific name, Lycaon pictus, means painted or ornate wolf. It is called Ajá in Yoruba and used metaphorically in the culture to denote promiscuity, uncritical followership and ill table manner. The fur of L. pictus is short, with little or no underfur, and the blackish skin is sometimes visible where fur is sparse.…