ABSTRACT
Cameroon has a long coastline drained by rivers with diverse regimes of lakes and springs. The most interesting sectors are the tidal mangrove reaches, creeks and islands with huge amphibious colonies found in the estuaries of huge rivers, such as the Wouri, Sanaga and Nyong. Cameroon opens into the Atlantic Ocean through the Littoral and Southwest provinces, respectively. The estuary of Wouri and the sea around the port city of Limbe, formerly Victoria, contains a diversity of plants and fish unmatched in Africa, and continues to provide food, shelter and income to about 5 million people in Cameroon. The importance of the biodiversity of freshwater and marine ecosystems provides a rationale for economic exploitation and need for conservation (Pearce et al, 1990; McAllister et al, 1997; Myers, 1997; Shumway, 1999). However, the biological productivity of marine resources along the coast has over the years been challenged by climatic factors (Sackey et al, 1993; Jones, 1994). Future climate change stemming from global warming poses an immense challenge to stakeholders in the region.1
