Page:Niger Delta Ecosystems- the ERA Handbook, 1998.djvu/61

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What is the Niger Delta?


THE NATURAL ECOZONES OF THE NIGER DELTA
Ecozone Sub-ecozones
  • West African Lowland Equatorial Monsoon
  • Low water-table
  • High water-table
  • Flood plain
  • Riverine swamp
  • West African Freshwater Alluvial Equatorial Monsoon
  • Levee forest
  • Palm forest
  • Seasonal swamp
  • White-water floodplain
  • Black-water floodplain
  • Lakes
  • Seasonally exposed river alluvium
  • West African Brackish water Alluvial Equatorial Monsoon
  • Mangroves
  • Mangrove/freshwater ecotone
  • Sand Barrier Islands
  • Ridge-top tropical rainforest
  • Trough freshwater swamp forest
  • Brackish-water swamp forest
  • Beach strand
  • Estuaries and offshore waters of the Niger Delta

Each is considered in detail in the following chapters. However it must be stressed that at this stage, we are still considering the natural ecosystems of these zones, as they would be if humankind were still playing out natural roles within them. Only then will the modern ecosystems as affected by modern human activities will then be understood and considered.

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