Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests

• Category: Forest Biomes.
• Geographic Location: Africa.
• Summary: The Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests are critical for the conservation of the large forest mammals of Africa under pressure from hunting, poaching, and indiscriminate land uses.

Covering about 73,244 square miles (189,700 square kilometers) and extending along the Atlantic coast from low, undulating hills in the north to mountains farther south and east, the Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests biome is a tropical moist broadleaf forest zone of central Africa, stretching over the Atlantic coasts of Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of Congo, Angola, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. It forms the southernmost part of the Lower Guinea forests complex in the west, transits into the North Congolian lowland forests, is bounded to the southeast by the Western Congolian forest–savanna mosaic, and lies to the east of the Atlantic Ocean.

The Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests zone consists of Precambrian metamorphic rocks such as schists, amphibolites, quartzites, and gneiss. The southern boundary is marked by the limits of these Precambrian rock outcroppings, with younger rocks on either side. Several important river systems crisscross the region. The northern limit is the Sanaga River; farther south are the Ogooué and Nyanga Rivers, which form extensive coastal deltas that are prone to significant flooding, and the Kouilou River, just north of the Congo River.

Biodiversity

The Atlantic equatorial coastal forests are located in the tropics and receive high rainfall, though seasonal variation occurs in some areas. Therefore, the diversity of life here is immense. The region holds about 50 percent of the endemic (evolved specifically in and unique to a biome) plant life of tropical west Africa. The southern Cristal Mountains contain more than 3,000 species of plants. The Mayombe area—on the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, and the Republic of Congo—is home to the sun-tailed guenon, long-footed shrew, lesser Angolan epauletted fruit bat, and African smoky mouse. The forests are also very rich in bird life. The area is home to at least 95 bird species, including the African grey parrot and the great crested turaco. Because of this, the Mayombe ecosystem is internationally recognized as an Important Bird Area. Prevalent amphibians in the area include the Ogowe river frog, Gabon dwarf-clawed frog, Apouh night frog, and Perret’s snout-burrower.

The region is most globally known for its richness of forest mammals, from lowland gorillas and chimpanzees to forest elephants and African buffalo. Most parts of these forests are used as areas for conservation of large mammals, though they are also good habitats for small mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates. Between 2023 and 2025, Central African countries strengthened transboundary conservation initiatives and expanded protected forest landscapes under programs such as the Central African Forest Initiative (CAFI) to improve biodiversity protection and sustainable forest management.

Effects of Human Activity

Humans living in and near the area have long relied on hunting the area’s animals for bushmeat. They also hunt because certain parts of some animals are believed to bring good health or luck. Most of the animals are relatively easy to hunt, and their populations are slow to recover when many individual members of their populations are killed. Furthermore, there is little or no official government protection for these animals, making them easy prey for hunters and poachers. The 2025 State of the Forests in the Congo Basin report identified insufficient national capacity, lack of funding, and legal frameworks poorly suited to local conditions as barriers to implementing forest and environmental agreements in Central Africa. Other threats to flora and fauna come from extensive logging and indigenous agricultural activities. In 2024, Congo Basin countries lost 780,000 hectares of primary forest, a 14.2 percent increase from 2023, with small-scale shifting agriculture remaining the dominant driver of tree cover loss across much of the region. The area overall, however, is very thinly populated by humans, which can be attributed to the density of the forests and the belief in some quarters that such forests are the abode of supernatural powers and spirits, and not to be ventured into.

The southern region (in Cameroon) is highly forested and contains the Kribi Coastal Resort and the Campo Ma’an National Park. The entire mainland of Equatorial Guinea is also in this region. In Gabon, the forests, including logging camps, are inhabited by small groups of agricultural and fishing people, mainly traditional forest dwellers such as the Bakola and Bagyeli, indigenous hunter-gatherer people in southern Cameroon. The Gabonese towns within the coastal forests include Lambaréné, the logging base of Ndjolé; Fougamou, a base for visiting Waka National Park; and Gamba, an oil hub and base for visiting Loango National Park.

In the context of global climate change, the Atlantic Equatorial coastal forests biome has been recognized as a key tropical ecosystem for its capacities to act as a carbon sink, absorbing large quantities of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Coastal habitats are important for capturing carbon—but their destruction poses a great risk. When these habitats are damaged or destroyed, their carbon absorption capacity is not the only thing that is lost. The carbon the habitat has stored can also be released, which will result in increased levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Unfortunately, coastal habitats around the world are rapidly declining, in many cases due to coastal development for housing, ports, and commercial facilities. While future precipitation and temperature regimes in the area are subject to uncertainties as climate change accelerates, species in the Atlantic Equatorial coastal forest biome and around the world will benefit if sustainable forestry practices are encoded and enforced in this biome. Along with establishing large protection areas in key areas, conservation efforts should include implementing sustainable logging practices, getting local communities involved in conservation efforts, and working to connect damaged forest patches through key areas like Cameroon to allow for species movement and genetic diversity. The 2025 Congo Basin Assessment Report emphasized strengthening governance, financing, and community-based forest management in coastal and lowland forest regions to support ecosystem resilience.

Bibliography

Barnes, R. F. W., et al. “Estimating Forest Elephant Numbers With Dung Counts and a Geographic Information System.” Journal of Wildlife Management, vol. 61, no. 2, 1997, pp. 159–63, doi:10.1046/j.1365-2028.2002.00362.x. Accessed 2 May 2026.

Blaney, S., and M. Thibault. Utilisation des Ressources Naturelles Pour la Sécurité Alimentaire et Nutritionnelle des Populations d’une Aire Protégée du Sud-ouest du Gabon. World Wildlife Fund Central Africa Regional Program Office, 2001.

“CAFI Portfolio and Progress.” Central African Forest Initiative, 2025, www.cafi.org/portfolio. Accessed 2 May 2026.

“Coastal Blue Carbon.” National Ocean Service, NOAA oceanservice.noaa.gov/ecosystems/coastal-blue-carbon/. Accessed 2 May 2026.

Fleshman, M. “Saving Africa’s Forests, the ‘Lungs’ of the World.” Africa Renewal, Jan. 2008, un.org/africarenewal/magazine/january-2008/saving-africa%E2%80%99s-forests-%E2%80%98lungs-world%E2%80%99. Accessed 2 May 2026.

Hilton-Taylor, C. The IUCN 2000 Red List of Threatened Species. International Union for Conservation of Nature, 2000.

Kamdem Toham, A., J. et al., editors. Biological Priorities for Conservation in the Guinean-Congolian Forest and Freshwater Region. World Wildlife Fund, 2000.

Kingdon, J. The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. Associated Press, 1997.

“Mayombe Forest Transfrontier Protected Area.” Transfrontier Conservation Areas, tfcaportal.org/node/438. Accessed 2 May 2026.

Nkuintchua, Teodyl, et al. “Why Forest Loss in the Congo Basin Requires Immediate Action.” Global Forest Watch, 25 Feb. 2026, www.globalforestwatch.org/blog/forest-insights/congo-basin-forest-loss-trends/. Accessed 2 May 2026.

2025 Congo Basin Assessment Report: Executive Summary. Sustainable Development Solutions Network, 10 Nov. 2025, www.unsdsn.org/resources/2025-congo-basin-assessment-report-executive-summary/.

“The 2025 State of the Forests in the Congo Basin Report Has Been Released: A Look at the Implementation of International Conventions and Agreements.” ATIBT, 24 Apr. 2026, www.atibt.org/en/news/13848/the-2025-state-of-the-forests-in-the-congo-basin-report-has-been-released-a-look-at-the-implementation-of-international-conventions-and-agreements. Accessed 2 May 2026.