World Heritage Identification Number: 1697
World Heritage since: 2023
Category: Natural Heritage
Transboundary Heritage: No
Endangered Heritage: No
Country: 🇷🇼 Rwanda
Continent: Africa
UNESCO World Region: Africa
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Nyungwe National Park: A Biodiversity Haven in Central Africa
Nyungwe National Park, situated in southwestern Rwanda, stands as a testament to the rich biodiversity and unique ecosystems found within Central Africa. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023, this expansive protected area spans over 970 square kilometers and shares its borders with Burundi, Lake Kivu, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
More to come…UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site
This serial property represents an important area for rainforest conservation in Central Africa. The property is home to intact forests and peat bogs, moors, thickets and grasslands, providing habitats to a highly diverse flora and fauna. The Park also contains the most significant natural habitats for a number of species found nowhere else in the world, including the globally threatened Eastern Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii), Golden Monkey (Cercopithecus mitis ssp. kandti) and the Critically Endangered Hills Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hillorum). There are also 12 mammal and seven bird species that are globally threatened, and with 317 species of birds recorded, Nyungwe National Park is one of the most important sites for bird conservation in Africa.Encyclopedia Record: Nyungwe Forest
The Nyungwe Forest is located in southwestern Rwanda, on the border with Burundi, where it is contiguous with the Kibira National Park to the south, and Lake Kivu and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. The Nyungwe rainforest is most likely the best preserved montane rainforest in Africa. It is located in the watershed between the basin of the Congo River to the west and the basin of the river Nile to the east. From the east side of the Nyungwe forest comes also one of the branches of the Nile sources.Additional Site Details
Area: 101,963.7 hectares
Coordinates: -2.5553 , 29.2473333333
Image
© Jonkmania, CC BY-SA 4.0 Resized from original. (This derivative is under the same CC BY-SA license.)