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44-416: There are seventeen districts in the county and it has lower tropical forests which has mid size hills composed of various valleys and water courses. Sapo National Park (180,436 ha (445,870 acres), a National protected area, Sankwehn Proposed Reserve, occupying an area of 80,348 ha (198,540 acres), a National proposed reserve and LTPC Reforestation Project with an area of 154.2 ha (381 acres) are

88-419: A large area of uninhabited forest. Its southeastern area has lower elevations of approximately 100 m (328 ft) and gentle hills, while there are elevations of about 400 m (1,312 ft) and steep ridges in the north. There are many small streams and rivers between these ridges. Sinoe River is the largest river in the park. Mount Putu 's 640 m (2,100 ft) summit is the highest elevation in

132-561: A reverence for the chimpanzee and, therefore, a taboo against their hunting. Seven species of duiker antelopes are found in Sapo National Park, including the vulnerable Jentink's duiker and zebra duiker . Bay duikers and Maxwell's duikers are reported to be locally abundant. Sapo National Park contains populations of the pygmy hippopotamus , an endangered species which has legal protection in Liberia under

176-483: A very high rainfall ranging from 3,000 mm (120 in) to 4,100 mm (160 in) per year in two distinct seasons. It has evergreen forests. While in the uplands it is conducive for rice cultivation, the low-lying areas are conducive for yam, cocoa, plantains, potatoes, vegetables, rubber, coffee and sugarcane. Sinoe County has two community forests: Nitrian with an area of 958 ha (2,370 acres) and Nimopho with an area of 7,320 ha (18,100 acres). It has

220-480: Is "the only realistic choice" of a "of suitable conservation area" for the Pygmy Hippopotamus. In February 2008, automatic heat- and motion-sensing cameras set up in Sapo National Park captured the first photographs of the pygmy hippopotamus ever taken in Liberia. The photographs confirmed the continued presence of the species inside the boundaries of the park; previously, scientists did not know whether

264-593: Is also home to the African civet , African fish eagle , grey parrot , giant forest hog , great blue turaco , speckle-throated otter , water chevrotain , three species of pangolin , seven species of monkey (including the endangered Diana monkey ), crocodiles , leopards , bee-eaters , egrets , hornbills , kingfishers , rollers , and sunbirds . The park has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports significant populations of many bird species. Prior to

308-479: The Sapo National Park (180,436 ha (445,870 acres), a National protected area. Sankwehn Proposed Reserve , occupying an area of 80,348 ha (198,540 acres) is a National proposed reserve, while LTPC Reforestation Project with an area of 154.2 ha (381 acres)) is a National plantation area. As of 2008 the county had a population of 102,391. With 54,767 males and 47,624 females, the sex ratio

352-579: The Second Liberian Civil War (1999–2003), and to acquire mercenary fighters from South Africa . Liberia's Minister of Information, Reginald Goodridge , denied the allegations, noting that no evidence of logging was found during a National Geographic Society team's two-week visit to the park. Fauna and Flora International and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) worked with Liberia's Forestry Development Authority and

396-726: The Sinoe River and south of the Putu Mountains . The park's original boundaries were set and its management plan drafted by the Division of Wildlife and National Parks, in cooperation with the World Wildlife Fund , the World Conservation Union , and the Peace Corps . Throughout its history, Sapo National Park has been threatened by illegal farming, hunting, logging, and mining, "all exacerbated by

440-555: The 13 counties and they serve a nine-year term (30 senators, 15 counties and nine years from 2011). Senators are also elected based on plurality of votes. The Vice-President is the head of the Senate and he also acts as President in his absence. Sinoe Peru ==External links== Sapo National Park Sapo National Park is a national park in Sinoe County , Liberia . It is the country's largest protected area of rainforest,

484-715: The Society for the Conservation of Nature of Liberia (SCNL) to prepare a two-year initiative to restart management of the park. Mainly funded by the Darwin Initiative of the United Kingdom 's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the World Wildlife fund from 2000 to 2002, the objectives of the initiative were to re-establish the park's management, build support for the park among

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528-591: The Upper Guinean forest is located in Côte d'Ivoire (28% of the remaining forest), Ghana (16%), Guinea (8%), Sierra Leone (5%), and Togo (1%). Just an estimated 40-45% of Liberia's original forest cover remains, and less than 30% of its area is covered by natural forest. Its tracts of forest were once continuous, but are now fragmented into blocks that are isolated from each other as a result of logging, road-building, cultivation, and human settlements. Before

572-599: The Wildlife and National Park Act of 1988. Unique to West Africa, the wild population of pygmy hippopotamuses is thought to number less than 3,000 individuals. According to the World Conservation Union (IUCN), conservation efforts targeted at the species have "historically been most effective in the Sapo National Park ... where protection is good". According to an action plan published by the IUCN Species Survival Commission , Sapo National Park

616-511: The border with Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire, was created at the same time to become Liberia's second protected area. The peace that followed the conclusion of the Second Liberian Civil War gave rise to new threats to the park. Groups of fighters and civilians moved into the park during the final months of the conflict — some to escape the conflict and others to harvest timber or prospect for gold . The influx of people into

660-659: The civil war, the Forestry Development Authority calculated that about 35% of Liberia's original forest was "undisturbed", 45% was "disturbed but productive", and 20% was "disturbed and unproductive". Sapo National Park's forest is one of the country's last remaining blocks of tropical lowland rain forest, and one of West Africa's least disturbed lowland rainforests. It is the second-largest area of primary tropical rainforest in West Africa after Taï National Park in Côte d'Ivoire. The park has one of

704-631: The country's grinding poverty" and social and political instability. However, in the early 1990s, the World Conservation Monitoring Centre reported that "[rural development projects around the park and general acceptance of its existence have helped to minimise potential conflicts." Until the 1990s, poaching was limited due to various initiatives, funded by the United States Agency for International Development , that made local villagers stakeholders to

748-552: The country. The number of rubber plantation was 440, which was 0.7 per cent of the total area of cassava planted in the country. The number of coffee plantation was 110, which was 0.5 per cent of the total area of cassava planted in the country. As of 2008, the county had 2,761 paid employees, 18,650 self-employed people, 8,661 family workers, 5,162 people looking for work, 8,419 not working people, 9,030 people working in households, 22,388 students, 185 retired people, 901 incapacitated people, 1,329 part-time workers and 5,374 others, making

792-547: The driest months in the park, and May and August are the wettest months. There is a mid-dry period of decreased rainfall in July, which occasionally extends into August. During the dry season, many of the smaller streams dry up and their sandy and rocky stream beds are exposed. The dry season also causes the larger rivers shrink in size, exposing waterfalls and sandbars . In the rainy season, river levels can rise by more than 4 m (13 ft) in one night, inundating forests near

836-548: The extension of the Sapo National Park ) on October 10, 2003, expanded the size of the park to 1,804 km (697 sq mi), constituting an increase of more than 37%. The act recognised the park as being "at the core of an immense forests block of the Upper Guinea Forest Ecosystem that is important to the conservation of the biodiversity of Liberia and of West Africa as a whole". The 135 km (33,359 acres) East Nimba Nature Reserve (ENNR), on

880-402: The formal designation of Sapo National Park in 1983 there had been "no systematic study of chimpanzee populations in Liberia". Since then, various surveys have confirmed the existence of the western chimpanzee in Sapo National Park, located primarily in the park's center and western areas, with estimates of the population ranging from 500 to 1,640. The culture of the local Sapo people includes

924-480: The illegal squatters , the park was not completely emptied until late August-early September 2005, and then only through the participation of conservationists, the Liberian government, and United Nations peacekeeping forces. Due to its remote location and the near-complete absence of tangible amenities , such as visitor housing or recreational facilities, there are few visitors to Sapo National Park. Entry into

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968-477: The leadership of Alexander Peal , who served as its head until 1990. By 1982, seven protected areas has been proposed in Liberia, including three national parks. Of these, only Sapo National Park — named after the local Sapo (or Sao) tribe — was formally designated, in 1983, by the People's Redemption Council . At the time, and for twenty years, it covered an area of 1,308 km (505 sq mi) east of

1012-580: The local community, and to build Liberia's capacity in conservation management and planning. The SCNL also received a grant from the Whitley Foundation to begin a programme to monitor the park's large mammals. There has been very slow progress in the establishment of protected areas in Liberia. Sapo National Park, proclaimed in 1983, was the country's first protected area. The approval of the Sapo National Park Act ( An Act for

1056-524: The major plantation areas in the county. The flag is a green cross on a white background with the flag of Liberia in the top-left corner. Long settled by indigenous peoples, this area became colonized by more than 300 freed African-American slaves from Prospect Hill Plantation, Mississippi in 1835. The colony was originally called Mississippi-in-Africa , under auspices of a chapter of the American Colonization Society . Greenville

1100-399: The park — and the prevailing climate of insecurity, to the extent that species populations actually increased during the war years. William Powers, a Catholic Relief Services official posted to Liberia from 1999 to 2001, noted that the park was a war-time haven for small groups of people, who scavenged for food and hunted bushmeat to survive. Logging and poaching became more common after

1144-474: The park continued after the war's end, eventually growing into a full-scale gold rush . Accompanying or following the prospectors were hunters, many of them former combatants, who poached the park's animals to sell as meat to the settlers. By March 2005, an estimated 5,000 people lived in the park, according to the United Nations Mission in Liberia . Although efforts were undertaken to remove

1188-408: The park during the period of rebel control is disputed. John Terborgh , a professor of environmental science and biology at Duke University , writes that "[l]ogging was rampant during the war". However, Peal reported that logging was limited, and that farming and hunting pressures were minimised, by population displacement — including the exodus of people out of over two dozen villages surrounding

1232-470: The park include the legumes Tetraberlinia tubmaniana and Gilbertiodendron splendidum , and the tree Brachystegia leonensis . Sapo National Park is a "regional centre of endemism" and biodiversity , at one time hosting around 125 mammal species and 590 types of bird, including a number of threatened species , such as the African golden cat , Gola malimbe , Liberian mongoose , white-breasted guineafowl , and white-necked rockfowl . The park

1276-647: The park is prohibited without approval from the Forestry Development Authority. No roads lead into the park, so it can be reached only on foot. The park also has no trails. Located in Sinoe County in southwestern Liberia, Sapo National Park covers an area of 1,804 km (697 sq mi). The park is bounded to the north by the Putu Mountains and to the west by the Sinoe River. The park's quite homogeneous, flat and marshy topography supports

1320-535: The park's preservation. During the First Liberian Civil War , Sapo National Park fell into the hands of rebel forces, and much of the park's infrastructure and equipment was damaged or destroyed, including a wildlife rehabilitation and orphanage facility constructed in 1989 and supported by Friends of Animals . Of 33 park employees, at least three were killed and seven became refugees . The extent of illegal resource extraction from inside

1364-430: The park. The park has a tropical climate , with temperatures ranging between 22 and 28 ° C (72–82 ° F ). The forest's average relative humidity is 91%. Annual precipitation at Basintown, 4 km (2 mi) south of the park's headquarters, averaged 2,596 mm (100 in) in the 1980s. The park's dry season occurs from November to April and the wet season lasts from May to October. January and December are

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1408-623: The pygmy hippopotamus population in the park had survived the civil wars and subsequent poaching and logging. The endangered African forest elephant is also present in Sapo National park, with population estimates ranging from "as many as 500" for the early 1980s to between 313 and 430 for the end of the decade; however, the IUCN considers the most recent surveys — both of which relied on dung counts — to be of low quality and reliability . Bodae District Bodae District

1452-505: The richest amounts of floral species in the country, with many endemic species. A 1983 survey of the park determined it to be composed of 63% primary and mature secondary forest , 13% swamp forest, 13% seasonally inundated forest, and 11% young secondary forest. The forest is luxuriant, with trees that can grow to a height of 70 m (230 ft). The forest canopy's height ranges from 12–32 m (39–105 ft), with an average height of 25 m (82 ft). Plant species found in

1496-418: The rivers. From the airplane I stare down upon this forest for the first time. ... Below me is a block of peacock, kelly, and olive green stretching out to the horizon. I search for breaks in the canopy but find none. As far as my eyes can see, the earth is solid rainforest. Liberia has the largest remaining part of the Upper Guinean forest ecosystem, with an estimated 42% of the remaining forest. The rest of

1540-453: The total number of people displaced on account of wars as of 2008 in the county was 15,289. The number of people residing in urban areas was 17,519, with 9,053 males and 8,466 females. The total number of people in rural areas was 49,270, with 25,810 males and 23,460 females. The total fraction of people residing in urban areas was 17.11 per cent, while the remaining 048 per cent were living in rural areas. The number of people resettled as of 2008

1584-518: The total working population of 82,860. The districts of Sinoe County are: Bodae District , Bokon District , Butaw District , Dugbe River District , Greenville District , Jaedae District , Jaedepo District , Juarzon District , Kpayan District , Kulu Shaw Boe District , Plahn Nyarn District , Pynes Town District , Sanquin District 1 , Sanquin District 2 , Sanquin District 3 , Seekon District and Wedjah District The Legislature of Liberia

1628-505: The war's end in 1996. In 2002, allegations surfaced that President Charles Taylor had sold concessions worth several millions of United States dollars to a Hong Kong -based timber company — the Oriental Timber Company — to conduct logging within the boundaries of the park. The funds were reportedly pocketed by Taylor or used to secure the loyalty of various senior commanders, to arm loyalist forces embroiled in

1672-632: The world", according to Conservation International , and in the Western Guinean lowland forests ecoregion , according to the World Wide Fund for Nature 's ecoregions classification scheme . In 1976, the Liberian Forestry Development Authority was created to manage and preserve the country's forest resources. A year later, in 1977, the Division of Wildlife and National Parks was formed under

1716-436: Was 1.15:1, a marked increase from the 1.03:1 found at the 1994 census. The number of households during 2008 was 14,533 and the average size of the households was 6.4. The population was 3.10 per cent of the total population, while it was 2.90 per cent in 1994. The county had an area of 3,770 sq mi and the density per sq.mi was 27. The density during the 1984 census stood at 17. Liberia experienced civil war during various times and

1760-399: Was 3.476 per cent of the total area of rice planted in the country. The total production stood at 8000 metric tonnes. As of 2011, the number of cassava plantation was 6080, which was 5 per cent of the total area of cassava planted in the country. The total production stood at 680 metric tonnes. The number of cocoa plantation was 680, which was 1.8 per cent of the total area of cassava planted in

1804-402: Was 32,832 while the number of people who were not resettled was 485. The number of literates above the age of ten as of 2008 was 23,907 while the number of illiterates was 34,812 making the literacy rate 40.71 per cent. The total number of literate males was 15,558 while the total number of literate females was 8,349. As of 2011, the area of rice plantation was 8,300 ha (21,000 acres), which

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1848-632: Was modeled based on the Legislature of United States. It is bicameral in nature with a Senate and the House of Representatives . There are 13 counties in the country and based on the population, each county is defined to have at least two members, while the total number of members to the house including the Speaker being 64. Each member represents an electoral district and elected to a six-year term based on popular vote. There were 26 senators, two each for

1892-629: Was named after Judge James Green and was established with the freed Black Americans of the society in 1838. Green was instrumental in bringing a group of slaves from the Mississippi Delta to Liberia. The town was a prominent exporter of rubber, lumber and agricultural products. It was destroyed during the First Liberian Civil War but has been rebuilt. There is boat connectivity from the town to Monrovia and Harper . The county has lower tropical forests which has mid size hills composed of various valleys and water courses. These forests receive

1936-607: Was the first national park established in the country, and contains the second-largest area of primary tropical rainforest in West Africa after Taï National Park in neighbouring Côte d'Ivoire . Agriculture , construction , fishing , hunting , human settlement , and logging are prohibited in the park. Sapo National Park is located in the Upper Guinean forest ecosystem , a biodiversity hotspot that has "the highest mammal species diversity of any region in

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