The Fauna
Although published data are scarce, LNP is thought to protect a wide range of endangered species, including Forest elephant, Western lowland gorilla, Chimpanzee and Bongo. In addition, 305 bird species have been recorded, including range restricted, rare and near-threatened taxa (Dowsett-Lemaire and Dowsett, 2000). Until our recent research, there were no records for bats but the area is predicted to have high diversity (Herkt and Fahr, 2016).
UNESCO Site
LNP, together with the national parks of Dzanga-Sangha (Central African Republic) and Nouabalé-Ndoki (Republic of Congo), is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sangha Trinational Transboundary Complex (7460 km2). This complex is home to a wide range of tropical forest ecosystems. There has been an extensive study of the LNP's community and its role in conservation (Lambini et al., 2019).
​
The Flora
LNP, with its open-canopy, semi-evergreen Sterculiaceae forest is considered to be a zone of transition between the evergreen Dja forest and the semi-deciduous Malvaceae and Ulmaceae forest. It is characterised by the presence of natural clearings on dry and waterlogged ground. Over 760 plant species have been recorded.