The Kamuku National Park is a Nigerian national park in Kaduna State

Kaduna State

-History:The state is the successor to the old Northern Region of Nigeria, which had its capital at Kaduna. In 1967 this was split up into six states, one of which was the North-Central State, whose name was changed to Kaduna State in 1976. This was further divided in 1987, losing the area now part...

, Nigeria, with a total area of about 1,120 km².
The park has a typical Sudanian Savanna

Sudanian Savanna

The Sudanian Savanna is a broad belt of tropical savanna that runs east and west across the African continent, from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Ethiopian Highlands in the east. The Sahel, a belt of drier grasslands and acacia savannas, lies to the north, between the Sudanian Savanna and...

 ecology.

Location and history

The park is located in the west of Kaduna State, and is adjacent to the Kwiambana Game Reserve to the north west.
It was established in 1936 as the Native Authority Forest Reserve of Birnin Gwari under the Northern Nigeria Government.
It was upgraded from a state Game Reserve to a National Park in May 1999, in part due to the success of a community-based project promoting sustainable resource usage, managed by Savanna Conservation Nigeria, a national NGO.
The Federal government has been seeking to partner with foreign investors to develop eco-tourism in this and other national parks.

Environment

The park has generally flat terrain, sloping gradually upwards to the Birnin Gwari Ridge along the eastern boundary.
Natural features of interest include the Dogon Ruwa Waterfalls; the Goron Dutse, a large isolated inselberg with a smooth surface stratified in a pattern of black and white squares; and the Tsaunin Rema, a hill made of large boulders piled on top of each other, with a large population of Rock Hyraxes.

Vegetation is Guinea Savanna with some transitional Sudan Savanna elements in places. The park and the nearby forest reserves have some of the best preserved blocks of this ecosystem in the country.
Dominant trees include Isoberlinia doka

Isoberlinia doka

Isoberlinia doka is a hardwood tree native to African tropical savannas and Guinean forest-savanna mosaic dry forests where it can form single species stands. The tree is exploited for its economic value as a commercial timber. The leaves and shoots of the tree dominate the diet of the Giant...

, Terminalia avicennioides

Terminalia (plant)

Terminalia is a genus of large trees of the flowering plant family Combretaceae, comprising around 100 species distributed in tropical regions of the world. This genus gets it name from Latin terminus, referring to the fact that the leaves appear at the very tips of the shoots.Trees of this genus...

 and Detarium macrocarpum

Detarium

Detarium is a plant genus of the family Fabaceae . It contains 3 species of tree in west African forests.The genus produces timber that may serve as a mahogany substitute. The fruit is edible.-References :...

. Other common trees include Daniellia oliveri

Daniellia

Daniellia is a genus of legume in the Fabaceae family, named after William Freeman Daniell.It contains the following species:* Daniellia klainei* Daniellia oblonga* Daniellia ogea* Daniellia oliveri...

, Nauclea latifolia

Nauclea

Nauclea is a genus of flowering plants in the Rubiaceae family. The species are evergreen trees or shrubs that are native to the paleotropics. The terminal vegetative buds are usually strongly flattened. The generic name is derived from the Ancient Greek words naus, meaning "ship" and kleio,...

, Acacia

Acacia

Acacia is a genus of shrubs and trees belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae, first described in Africa by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1773. Many non-Australian species tend to be thorny, whereas the majority of Australian acacias are not...

, Lophira lanceolata

Lophira

Lophira is a genus of plant in family Ochnaceae.Species include:* Lophira alata, Banks ex Gaertn....

, Parkia biglobosa

Parkia biglobosa

Parkia biglobosa or Néré is a tree of the genus Parkia in the family Fabaceae. In West Africa, its fruits are fermented to a condiment called "soumbala" or "dawa-dawa"....

, Prosopis africana

Prosopis

Prosopis is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains around 45 species of spiny trees and shrubs found in subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, Africa, Western Asia, and South Asia. They often thrive in arid soil and are resistant to drought, on occasion...

 and Isoberlinia tomentosa

Isoberlinia

Isoberlinia is a genus in the family Fabaceae of five species of tree native to the hotter parts of tropical Africa. They are an important component of miombo woodlands...

. The riparian forests that line small, seasonal rivers often include Oil Palms (Elaeis guineensis).
Other common plant species include Afzelia

Afzelia

Afzelia is a genus in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae of the family Fabaceae . The thirteen species all are trees, native to tropical Africa or Asia.- Uses :...

, Monotes

Monotes

Monotes is a genus of plant in family Dipterocarpaceae. It contains about 44 species. This list is based on the Dipterocarpaceae data base held and maintained at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh.*Monotes adenophyllus Gilg...

 and Raphia

Raphia

Raphia may refer to:* Raphia , a genus of moths in the family Noctuidae* Raphia , the genus of raffia palms* Raphia , the Ancient Greek name for Rafah, a town in Gaza...

 shrubs.

Fauna

Mammals include elephants, Roan Antelope

Roan Antelope

The Roan Antelope is a savanna antelope found in West, Central, East Africa and Southern Africa.Roan Antelope stand about a metre and half at the shoulder and weigh around 250 kilograms. Named for the "roan' colour , they have a lighter underbelly, white eyebrows and cheeks and a black face,...

s, duiker

Duiker

A duiker is any of about 21 small to medium-sized antelope species from the subfamily Cephalophinae native to Sub-Saharan Africa.Duikers are shy and elusive creatures with a fondness for dense cover; most are forest dwellers and even the species living in more open areas are quick to disappear...

s, hartebeest

Hartebeest

The hartebeest is a grassland antelope found in West Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa. It is one of the three species classified in the genus Alcelaphus....

, baboon

Baboon

Baboons are African and Arabian Old World monkeys belonging to the genus Papio, part of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. There are five species, which are some of the largest non-hominoid members of the primate order; only the mandrill and the drill are larger...

s, warthog

Warthog

The Warthog or Common Warthog is a wild member of the pig family that lives in grassland, savanna, and woodland in Sub-Saharan Africa. In the past it was commonly treated as a subspecies of P...

, bushbuck

Bushbuck

The bushbuck is the most widespread antelope in Sub-Saharan Africa, and is found in rain forests, montane forests, forest-savanna mosaics and bush savannaforest and woodland. Recently, genetic studies have shown that the bushbuck, is in fact a complex of two geographically and phenotypically...

, Patas monkey

Patas Monkey

The patas monkey , also known as the Wadi monkey or Hussar monkey, is a ground-dwelling monkey distributed over semi-arid areas of West Africa, and into East Africa. It is the only species classified in the genus Erythrocebus...

s, and green monkey

Green Monkey

The green monkey , also known as the Callithrix monkey, is an Old World monkey with golden-green fur and pale hands and feet. The tip of the tail is golden yellow as are the backs of the thighs and cheek whiskers. It does not have a distinguishing band of fur on the brow, like other Chlorocebus...

s. There are at least 177 species of birds, including migrants and residents.
The park is important for species such as the Secretary Bird (Sagittarius serpentarius), Denham's Bustard (Neotis denhami) and the Abyssinian Ground-hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus) which are rare in other parts of Nigeria.

People

The area in and around the park is the home of the Gwari

Gwari

Gbagyi are an ethnic group in central Nigeria. They are predominantly found in the Niger and Kaduna States and the Federal Capital Territory...

 and Kamuku people, traditional farmers, hunters, pastoralists and craftsmen, noted for weaving, mat making and pottery.
The Gwari are said to have originated from Zungeru in Niger State

Niger State

Niger State is a state in the western part of Nigeria and the largest state in the country. The state capital is Minna, and other major cities are Bida, Kontagora, and Suleja. It was formed in 1976 when the then North-Western State was bifurcated into Niger State and Sokoto State.The state is named...

, and the Kamuku are said to have come from the Sokoto

Sokoto

Sokoto is a city located in the extreme northwest of Nigeria, near to the confluence of the Sokoto River and the Rima River. As of 2006 it has a population of 427,760...

 and Katsina

Katsina

Katsina is a city , and a Local Government Area in northern Nigeria, and is the capital of Katsina State. Katsina is located some 160 miles east of the city of Sokoto, and 84 miles northwest of Kano, close to the border with Niger. As of 2007, Katsina's estimated population was 459,022...

 areas during the Fulani jihad at the start of the 19th century.
The park includes places considered sacred by these people, such as hills, rock outcrops, marshes and streams, and the ancient Parnono Shrine.
The present town of Birnin Gwari

Birnin Gwari

Birnin Gwari is a Local Government Area in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Birnin Gwari.It has an area of 6,185 km² and a population of 252,363 at the 2006 census.The postal code of the area is 800....

was founded in 1957 by Gwari people who had migrated from an earlier settlement about 50 km to the north.
Hunting and illegal cattle-grazing by the pastoralist settlements on the edge of the park pose threats to the park environment.