Cameroon

Cameroon is a country at the junction of West and Central Africa. Yaoundé, its capital, is located in the south-central part of the country. The country's name comes from the Rio dos Camarőes, which means the “River of Prawns”. In the southern parts of the country, hot and humid dense rainforests are found, where hardwood evergreen trees can grow up to 60 meters tall. Orchids and ferns are abundant, and mangrove forests grow along the coast and at river mouths. In the central region there are semi-deciduous forests, where many tree species shed their leaves in the dry season. To the north of the semi-deciduous forest, the vegetation is wooded savannah, with scattered trees from 3 to 18 meters tall. The tree density decreases towards the Chad Basin, where it is mainly acacia. Situated at altitudes between 1 200 and 2 400 meters, the tropical rainforest is different from the lowland: the trees are smaller, made up of different species and covered with mosses, lichens and various other epiphytes. Higher up in the rainforest zone are drier forests, tall grasslands or areas of mountain bamboo. The dense forests of the country are home to screaming Red and Green Monkeys, chimpanzees and mandrills, along with rodents, bats and a variety of birds. Some elephants live in the forests and grasslands, where baboons and various kinds of antelope are the most common animals. Originally created to protect elephants, giraffes and antelopes, Waza National Park in the north is rich in both forest and savannah animals, including monkeys, baboons, lions, leopards and birds.