Outamba-Kilimi National Park
| Outamba-Kilimi National Park | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Location | Northeast Sierra Leone |
| Nearest city | Kabala |
| Coordinates | 9°46′10″N 12°01′34″W / 9.76944°N 12.02611°W |
| Area | 1,109 km2 (428 sq mi) |
| Established | 1 January 1986 |
Outamba-Kilimi National Park is located in north-west Sierra Leone near the border with Guinea. The park is divided into two areas, Outamba (741 km2) and Kilimi (368 km2). The park is named after its highest peak in one part, Mount Outamba, and its longest river in the other, River Kilimi.
History
[edit]The area became a game reserve in 1974, and was formally gazetted as a National Park in October 1995.[1] It was originally chosen for preservation as it contains a large number of chimpanzees.
Environment
[edit]The terrain is mainly flat with a few hills and some large rivers flowing south-west. The vegetation is a mosaic of gallery forest, closed woodland and grassland. Outamba is characterised by tall-grass savanna and woodland with patches of closed-canopy forest. Kilimi has more open savanna woodland. Both contain patches of raffia palm swamp forest and riverine grassland.[2]
Wildlife
[edit]
Wildlife includes primates such as western chimpanzees, colobus monkeys and sooty mangabeys; hippopotamuses and pygmy hippos; forest elephantss; common warthogs; rare bongo antelopes and over a hundred species of birds. The park has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports significant populations of many bird species.[2] The UN Environment Programme lists the Outamba Area as protected. More information can be seen as a map.
Susu
[edit]The Susu (or Soso) tribe live in and around the park and most park personnel are Susu. Some villages were originally in the park itself, but most agreed to move to the buffer zone. An exception was made for those who had ancestral sites and graves within the park. Those who remain have agreed to only harvest using sustainable methods. Mining and hunting are prohibited. The National Tourism Board is attempting to increase tourism in an effect to compensate them for the loss of revenue.
Buffer zone
[edit]There is a 1 km buffer zone around the park, where most of the villages are. Restrictions are fewer here: hunting is allowed, except for certain protected species; farming is practiced and areas of gmelina trees have been planted to replace the parkland as a source of wood for use as firewood and in making furniture and housing.
Facilities
[edit]
Simple one bed and group huts are available for visitors to the park. These are made using local materials.
References
[edit]- ^ P G Munro,“Geza Teleki and the emergence of Sierra Leone’s wildlife conservation movement” Primate Conservation: 29(2015): 115-122.
- ^ a b "Outamba-Kilimi National Park". BirdLife Data Zone. BirdLife International. 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-05.