The Niger River — West Africa's longest at 4,180km — flows through Guinea, Mali, Niger, Benin, and Nigeria before its vast delta empties into the Atlantic. Its wildlife faces overhunting, pollution, and severe climate pressures.
The West African manatee is Vulnerable, with the Niger one of its last significant strongholds. These gentle aquatic mammals are hunted for bushmeat throughout the basin — harpoon hunting causes prolonged suffering, as manatees are large animals that do not die quickly. Entanglement in fishing nets causes drowning. Their slow reproduction (one calf every 2-3 years) means each death has outsized population impact.
Manatees also face habitat degradation from agricultural runoff, dam construction, and water hyacinth infestations that alter food availability. The Inner Niger Delta in Mali — a vast seasonal floodplain — is critical manatee habitat but faces increasing desiccation from upstream dams and reduced rainfall.
Niger hippo populations have declined dramatically due to ivory hunting (their teeth), habitat loss, and human-wildlife conflict. Remaining animals face stress from population fragmentation, reduced access to dry-season water refuges, and conflict with fishing communities. Hippos killed in retaliation attacks are often wounded and die slowly. Drought years force hippos into dangerous concentrations in shrinking water bodies, increasing disease transmission and aggression-related injuries.
Crocodiles in the Niger face illegal hunting for skins and as perceived threats to humans and livestock. Retaliatory killing is common. Crocodile farms operate in some countries but welfare standards are generally poor — intensive crowding, inadequate water quality, and stressful handling. Wild crocodiles occasionally become trapped in desiccating pools during dry season, facing heat stress and starvation.
Reduced rainfall in the Sahel is diminishing Niger River flows, particularly during dry season. The Inner Niger Delta — critical for millions of migratory waterbirds and endemic fish — is contracting. Fish stranding in isolated pools during dry season causes mass mortality events. Climate projections suggest continued flow reductions through 2050.