The Northwest Congolian lowland forests sprawl across western Central Africa where Cameroon, Gabon, the Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic meet, forming part of one of the world's last great tracts of intact tropical rainforest. More than ninety percent of the region is closed broadleaf evergreen forest, ranging from mixed semi-evergreen stands to single-dominant groves, with characteristic timber trees such as Entandrophragma, Pentaclethra, Pericopsis elata (African teak), and Gilbertiodendron dewevrei. The climate is consistently warm and humid, with annual rainfall between roughly 1,400 and 2,000 millimeters falling in two distinct wet seasons. These forests are among the richest in Africa for primates and shelter the largest known population of the western lowland gorilla, the ecoregion's flagship species, though forest elephants have declined sharply from poaching. Along rivers and in damp valleys, raffia palms thrive, lending the waterways their distinctive fringe of towering fronds.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 1.7°N, 14.2°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +4.1°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Realm
Afrotropic
Approximate area
167,695 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
About the tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome
Warm, wet, highly productive forests — including tropical rainforests — with closed canopies, near year-round growing seasons, and the richest terrestrial biodiversity on Earth. Low seasonality and high rainfall sustain dense, layered vegetation from canopy to forest floor.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
No catalog plants intersect this ecoregion's zone range. As the catalog grows to cover this region's climate band, suggestions will surface here.
Collections for this ecoregion
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregions to explore: