Animals in Ghana
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Ghana, a country located in West Africa, is situated on the Gulf of Guinea—just above the equator. Ghana's geographical location and tropical climate afford it a rich environment made up of both low and high plains, a forested plateau region, mountain ranges, and rivers. These regions lend themselves as thriving habitats for the animals that reside within them.
The list of animals native to Ghana is a long one that includes mammals, reptiles, amphibians, aquatic and marine animals, birds, insects, and spiders. So far 504 species of fish, 728 of birds, 225 of mammals, and 221 of amphibians and reptiles have been recorded in the country of Ghana. These include, of course, the antelope, baboons, buffalo, cobras, gazelle, hippos, hyenas, lions, leopards, jackals, and pythons for which Africa is famous—thanks in part to modern movies such as The Lion King.
Poaching, human settlement, and habitat loss brought on by deforestation, overgrazing, and periodic drought threaten Ghana's wildlife. Today, only around 33 percent of Ghana is still forested, and this number depletes by about 1.3 percent each year, which will significantly affect Ghana's ecosystem.
There are an unfortunate number of threatened species within Ghana, which are categorized as Critically Endangered, Endangered, and Vulnerable. The grove-toothed forest Mouse is the only Critically Endangered species. Endangered species include the
href="http://thewebsiteofeverything.com/animals/mammals/Proboscidea/Elephantidae/Loxodonta/Loxodonta-africana.html">African elephant, the
chimpanzee, the
Diana monkey, the
red colobus, and the
wild dog. Finally, the
African golden cat, the Buettikofer's epauletted fruit bat, the fat mouse species, the lion, the pied bat, the red-fronted gazelle, the spotted-necked otter, the
West African manatee, the white-thighed black-and-white colobus, and the
white-toothed shrew species are all Vulnerable.
To protect the animals and their natural habitats, multiple nature preserves and national parks have been established. The Kakum National Park, for example, is a natural rainforest housing rare and endangered species of plants and animals where visitors can observe the wild from a Canopy Walkway around 40m/130ft off the ground. Kakum protects an especially rare and endangered animal called the Mona-meerkat. Other Ghanaian national parks include Ankassa, Bia, Bui, Digya, Kyabobo, Mole, and Nini-Suhien. These are used not only for conservation, but for research and study as well.
Even-toed ungulates in Ghana
Common hartebeest
Roan antelope
Tsessebe
Grey duiker
Common warthog
African buffalo
Water chevrotain
Giant forest hog
Red river hog
Bay duiker
Maxwell's duiker
Black duiker
Ogilby's duiker
Bongo
Waterbuck
Red-flanked duiker
Marshbuck
Kob
Yellow-backed duiker
Bushbuck
Bohar reedbuck
Red-fronted gazelle
Common hippopotamus
Oribi
Carnivores in Ghana
Panther genet
African lion
Haussa genet
Leopard
African clawless otter
Side-striped jackal
African caracal
Wild cat
Gambian mongoose
African golden cat
Johnston's genet
Serval
Speckle-throated otter
African wild dog
African palm civet
Common cusimanse
Slender mongoose
Egyptian mongoose
White-tailed mongoose
Honey badger
Striped polecat
Spotted hyaena
Common genet
Dolphins, porpoises, and whales in Ghana
Atlantic spinner dolphin
Pygmy killer whale
Fraser's dolphin
Atlantic hump-backed dolphin
Bats in Ghana
Moloney's flat-headed bat
Noack's roundleaf bat
Sierra leone free-tailed bat
Angolan free-tailed bat
Mongalla free-tailed bat
Mauritian tomb bat
Midas free-tailed bat
Naked-rumped tomb bat
Aellen's pipistrelle
Straw-coloured fruit bat
Dwarf free-tailed bat
Egyptian tomb bat
Hammer-headed fruit bat
Tiny pipistrelle
Peterson's free-tailed bat
Rusty pipistrelle
Gambian epauletted fruit bat
Spurrell's free-tailed bat
Buettikofer's epauletted fruit bat
Railer bat
Lesser woolly bat
Franquet's epauletted fruit bat
Trevor's free-tailed bat
Spurrell's woolly bat
Yellow-winged bat
Halcyon horseshoe bat
Little collared fruit bat
Dent's horseshoe bat
Bini free-tailed bat
Rüppell's horseshoe bat
Lander's horseshoe bat
Veldkamp's bat
Pel's pouched bat
Light-winged lesser house bat
Bate's slit-faced bat
Duke of abruzzi's free-tailed bat
Dark-winged lesser house bat
Gambian slit-faced bat
Chapin's free-tailed bat
Pohle's fruit bat
Large slit-faced bat
Lappet-eared free-tailed bat
Zenker's fruit bat
Hairy slit-faced bat
Little free-tailed bat
African yellow bat
Intermediate slit-faced bat
Russet free-tailed bat
White-bellied yellow bat
Aba roundleaf bat
Large-eared slit-faced bat
African sheath-tailed bat
Schreber's yellow bat
Benito roundleaf bat
Dwarf slit-faced bat
Nut-colored yellow bat
Sundevall's roundleaf bat
Egyptian slit-faced bat
Greenish yellow bat
Cyclops roundleaf bat
Woermann's bat
Sooty roundleaf bat
Large-eared free-tailed bat
Peter's dwarf epauletted fruit bat
Jones's roundleaf bat
Hyraxes in Ghana
Rock dassie
Western tree dassie
Hares, pikas, and rabbits in Ghana
Cape hare
Pangolins in Ghana
Giant ground pangolin
Black-bellied pangolin
Three-cusped pangolin
Primates in Ghana
Chimpanzee
Potto gibbon
Patas monkey
Red colobus
Olive colobus
Collared mangabey
Lesser bushbaby
Campbell's guenon
Diana guenon
Mona guenon
Lesser spot-nosed guenon
King colobus
Elephants in Ghana
African elephant
Rodents in Ghana
Northwestern fat mouse
Ghana mole rat
Lord derby's flying squirrel
Pel's flying squirrel
Temminck's striped mouse
West african shaggy rat
Green bush squirrel
African grass rat
Baer's hylomyscus
Defua rat
African brush-tailed porcupine
Allen's hylomyscus
African groove-toothed rat
Ebian's palm squirrel
Guinea gerbil
Crested porcupine
Kemp's gerbil
Long-eared flying squirrel
Forest soft-furred mouse
Gracile tateril
Tullberg's praomys
Greater cane rat
Hausa mouse
Red-cheeked rope squirrel
Matthey's mouse
Slender-tailed squirrel
Fire-footed rope squirrel
Pygmy mouse
Forest giant squirrel
Kintampo rope squirrel
Peter's mouse
Rudd's bristle-furred rat
Bellier's lemniscomys
Striped ground squirrel
Senegal lemniscomys
Typical lemniscomys
Shining thicket rat
Rusty-bellied brush-furred rat
Jentink's dormouse
Lorrain dormouse
Gambian sun squirrel
Small sun squirrel
Cansdale's swamp rat
Red-legged sun squirrel
Edward's swamp rat
Guinea multimammate mouse
Natal multimammate mouse
Ghana rufous-nosed rat
Giant rat
Gambian rat
Jackson's fat mouse
Dugongs, manatees, and sea cows in Ghana
African manatee
Aardvark in Ghana
Aardvark
Information about the animals living in Ghana is brought to you by
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The animals displayed on this page are group in their scientific order.
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