"Protected animals in my country....(Nigeria)"

Hello, friends welcome to my post in which I have discussed "Protected animals in my country " as part of my participation in this 👉contest organized by @steem.ofanimals

Nigeria is one of the countries in the world that is blessed with not just mineral resources alone, but with wildlife, animals, and several other things that can be found in the country. Nigeria and Cameroon share borders, and there is a relationship between these two countries. I will be talking about the profile of the Nigeria-Cameroon Chimpanzee, which is a protected animal in Nigeria.

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Nigeria-Cameroon Chimpanzee

One of the most endangered subspecies of common chimpanzees in the world is the Nigeria-Cameroon Chimpanzee which is going only in a few regions in Africa, which is between the southeastern part of Nigeria and the western part of Cameroon.

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The estimated population of this protected animal is just less than 6,500 of the animals that are left in the wild, and less than 1,000 of these animals are believed to be staying (living) in Nigeria, whereas the rest of the population lives in Cameroon.

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Causes of Habitat and Environmental Changes

This animal is been faced with several threats which have caused the animal to become endangered:

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• Logging and Deforestation: The rapid deforestation from commercial logging and agricultural expansion, such as plantations and cocoa farming, has led to severe habitat loss of the Nigeria-Cameroon Chimpanzee.

• Habitat Fragmentation: Forests are broken into small patches both in Nigeria and Cameroon, thereby isolating this animal group and reducing breeding opportunities for this animal.

• Hunting and Poaching: Chimpanzees are sometimes captured illegally for the pet trade and hunted for bushmeat.

• Human-Wildlife Conflict: As people are clearing forests, chimpanzees come into contact with people, leading to the killing of chimpanzees.

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Legal Status and Legal Protection

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Nigeria-Cameroon Chimpanzee is been protected both internationally and locally under the following:

• It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List

• It is included in Appendix I of CITES, banning international trade

• It is protected under the Nigeria Endangered Species Act 1985

• It is found in protected areas like Cross River National Park and Gashaka Gumti National Park

• The national parks service act of cap. N65, Law of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

I am inviting: @dove11, @ruthjoe, and @Ihorgic