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he Western Congo Basin Moist Forests are among the richest and most intact tropical forest regions in the world. This Global 200 ecoregion is made up of these terrestrial ecoregions: Northwestern Congolian lowland forests; Western Congolian swamp forests Few places in the world boast a greater diversity of plants and animals than the Western Congo Basin Moist Forests. This ecoregion is home to a rich assemblage of mammals, birds, amphibians, fishes, and butterflies and ranks among the greatest tropical forest wildernesses left on Earth.
The Western Congo Basin Moist Forests form part of the Congolian Forest Region in Central Africa, which is the second largest contiguous rain forest after the Amazon. Here, relatively intact large blocks of forest are home to many species, particularly large vertebrate populations.
Many large mammals inhabit the spacious Western Congo Basin Moist Forests. Forest-dwelling African elephants amble under the trees, yanking up grasses, bushes, and other plants to feed their large bodies. Giant forest hogs grunt quietly as they feed in the dense undergrowth. Western lowland gorillas feed on fruits, leaves, and wild ginger, while deerlike bongos munch on grasses, shrubs, and low-growing vines. The primate Mangabey feeds on fruits, foliage, and seeds. Among the many birds inhabiting these forests are the African river martin and Bates’s weaver.
While the forests of this ecoregion are relatively intact, they are threatened by increasing logging activity and clearing for agriculture.
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