Editing Chad (section)

=== Wildlife ===
{{Main|Wildlife of Chad}}

[[File:African Bush Elephant Mikumi.jpg|thumb|An [[African bush elephant]]]]

Chad's animal and plant life correspond to the three climatic zones. In the Saharan region, the only flora is the date-palm groves of the oasis. Palms and [[acacia tree]]s grow in the Sahelian region. The southern, or Sudanic, zone consists of broad grasslands or prairies suitable for grazing. {{as of|2002|post=,}} there were at least 134 species of mammals, 509 species of birds (354 species of residents and 155 migrants), and over 1,600 species of plants throughout the country.<ref name=Bird/><ref name=Flora>{{cite journal|url=https://www.pensoft.net/journal_home_page.php?journal_id=3&page=article&SESID=98556166bbcb445ae7ccd99343b1434e&type=show&article_id=4752&issue_id=410&ttar=da&search=wildlife%20of%20chad&IN=&TIP=&Image100_x=-678&Image100_y=-48&|title=The Flora of Chad: a checklist and brief analysis|year=2013|access-date=17 October 2013|publisher=Pensoft.net|doi=10.3897/phytokeys.23.4752|last1=Brundu|first1=Giuseppe|last2=Camarda|first2=Ignazio|journal=PhytoKeys|issue=23|pages=1–18|pmid=23805051|pmc=3690977|doi-access=free|bibcode=2013PhytK..23....1B |archive-date=11 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211090905/https://phytokeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=1546|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Elephant]]s, [[lion]]s, [[African buffalo|buffalo]], [[hippopotamus]]es, [[rhinoceros]]es, [[giraffe]]s, [[antelope]]s, [[leopard]]s, [[cheetah]]s, [[hyena]]s, and many species of [[snake]]s are found here, although most large carnivore populations have been drastically reduced since the early 20th century.<ref name=Bird>{{cite web|url=http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/userfiles/file/IBAs/AfricaCntryPDFs/Chad.pdf|title=Important Bird Areas in Africa and associated islands – Chad|access-date=16 October 2013|publisher=Birdlife International Organization|archive-date=11 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911042144/http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/userfiles/file/IBAs/AfricaCntryPDFs/Chad.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="LTQ">{{cite web|url=http://library.thinkquest.org/16645/the_land/chad_plant.shtml|title=Plant and Animal Life|publisher=The Living Africa|access-date=17 October 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131228215847/http://library.thinkquest.org/16645/the_land/chad_plant.shtml|archive-date=28 December 2013}}</ref> [[Elephant hunting in Chad|Elephant poaching]], particularly in the south of the country in areas such as [[Zakouma National Park]], is a severe problem. The small group of surviving [[West African crocodile]]s in the [[Ennedi Plateau]] represents one of the last colonies known in the Sahara today.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Brito|first1=José C.|last2=Martínez-Freiría|first2=Fernando|last3=Sierra|first3=Pablo|last4=Sillero|first4=Neftalí|last5=Tarroso|first5=Pedro|last6=Fenton|first6=Brock|title=Crocodiles in the Sahara Desert: An Update of Distribution, Habitats and Population Status for Conservation Planning in Mauritania|journal=[[PLOS ONE]]|date=25 February 2011|volume=6|issue=2|pages=e14734|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0014734|pmc=3045445|pmid=21364897|bibcode=2011PLoSO...614734B|doi-access=free}}</ref>

In Chad [[forest cover]] is around 3% of the total land area, equivalent to 4,313,000 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, down from 6,730,000 hectares (ha) in 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 4,293,000 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 19,800 hectares (ha). For the year 2015, 100% of the forest area was reported to be under [[State ownership|public ownership]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/a6e225da-4a31-4e06-818d-ca3aeadfd635/content |title=Terms and Definitions FRA 2025 Forest Resources Assessment, Working Paper 194 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |year=2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020, Chad |url=https://fra-data.fao.org/assessments/fra/2020/TCD/home/overview |website=Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations}}</ref>

Chad had a 2018 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 6.18/10, ranking it 83rd globally out of 172 countries.<ref name="FLII-Supplementary">{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M.|title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|issn=2041-1723|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi-access=free}}</ref> Extensive deforestation has resulted in loss of trees such as acacias, baobab, dates and palm trees. This has also caused loss of natural habitat for wild animals; one of the main reasons for this is also hunting and livestock farming by increasing human settlements. Populations of animals like lions, leopards and rhino have fallen significantly.<ref name="Our">{{cite web|url=http://www.our-africa.org/chad/geography-wildlife|title=Our Africa|access-date=17 October 2013|publisher=Our Africa organization|archive-date=17 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017232715/http://www.our-africa.org/chad/geography-wildlife|url-status=live}}</ref>

Efforts have been made by the [[Food and Agriculture Organization]] to improve relations between farmers, agro-pastoralists and pastoralists in the Zakouma National Park (ZNP), Siniaka-Minia, and Aouk reserve in southeastern Chad to promote sustainable development.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fao.org/agriculture/lead/themes0/drylands/chad1/en/|title=Livestock-wildlife-environment interactions in Chad|publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization|access-date=17 October 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019103202/http://www.fao.org/agriculture/lead/themes0/drylands/chad1/en/|archive-date=19 October 2013}}</ref> As part of the national conservation effort, more than 1.2&nbsp;million trees have been replanted to check the advancement of the desert, which incidentally also helps the local economy by way of financial return from acacia trees, which produce [[gum arabic]], and also from fruit trees.<ref name=Our/>

Poaching is a serious problem in the country, particularly of elephants for the profitable [[ivory]] industry and a threat to lives of rangers even in the national parks such as Zakouma. Elephants are often massacred in herds in and around the parks by organized poaching.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.co.uk/news/2006/08/060830-elephants-chad.html |title=African Elephants Slaughtered in Herds Near Chad Wildlife Park |magazine=National Geographic |date=30 August 2006 |access-date=17 October 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017173341/http://news.nationalgeographic.co.uk/news/2006/08/060830-elephants-chad.html |archive-date=17 October 2013 }}</ref> The problem is worsened by the fact that the parks are understaffed and that a number of wardens have been murdered by poachers.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/01/world/africa/central-africas-wildlife-rangers-face-deadly-risks.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1382003098-yauBx4MSdHcb4DxeUgSrUw|title=Rangers in Isolated Central Africa Uncover Grim Cost of Protecting Wildlife|newspaper=The New York Times|date=31 December 2012|access-date=17 October 2013|archive-date=17 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160717201107/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/01/world/africa/central-africas-wildlife-rangers-face-deadly-risks.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1382003098-yauBx4MSdHcb4DxeUgSrUw|url-status=live}}</ref>