GIS-Supported Survey of Low-Land Rain Forests in South-Western Nigeria

A survey investigating the capabilities of the remaining natural forest as conservation areas for already threatened wildlife population in South-western Nigeria was conducted using Aster and Landsat imageries. Spatial data acquired during the survey were incorporated into a mobile Geographic Information System (GIS) and analyzed in near real-time. Results of ground-survey revealed that a high natural forest patterns are similar to what was observed on the satellite imageries. The estimated total area of remaining natural forest in the reserves was 1,125 km 2 which is about 40 percent of the reserve area and the largest undisturbed natural forest is the 4.6 km 2 Strict Nature Reserve (SNR) found in western Omo. The forests probably still retain some level of their ecological integrity. Therefore there is an urgent need to produce new and accurate maps of the forest reserves to inform government, local people, and planners and to allow more effective management.