page_title: Wildlife of Niger
section_title: Termit Massif reserve
hierarchical_section_title: Wildlife of Niger / National Parks and reserves / Termit Massif reserve
caption_attribution_description: English: A West African Giraffe peeks under an Acacia tree in the tiger bush near Koure, Niger. This area marks the northern range of their migration, which runs south to the Dosso Partial Reserve of the Niger River in the Dry season.
context_page_description: The wildlife of Niger is composed of its flora and fauna. The wildlife protected areas in the country total about 8.5 million hectares, which is 6.6% of the land area of the country, a figure which is expected to eventually reach the 11% percent target fixed by the IUCN with addition of more areas under the reserve category. The dama gazelle has become a national symbol. Under the Hausa name meyna or ménas the dama appears on the badge of the Niger national football team, who are popularly called the Ménas.
  There are 136 mammal species in Niger, of which 2 are critically endangered, 2 are endangered, 9 are vulnerable, and 1 is near-threatened. One of the species listed for Niger can no longer be found in the wild. Bird Life International has reported 528 species of birds of which three are globally threatened and one is an introduced species; many species may be yet to be discovered in the rich avifauna seen here in spite of thin vegetation.
  Conservation of wildlife is ensured by laws and regulations enacted by the Government of Niger, which has enforced a permanent ban on hunting so that animals such as lions, hippos and giraffes are safe in the wild.
context_section_description: The Termit Massif reserve is now, since 2012, under a new decree. It encloses an area of 100,000 square kilometres (39,000 sq mi) area, which is the largest single reserve in Africa. It is also a Saharan antelopes conservation area since 1998 as it has a combination of desert and mountain habitats covering the Saharan and Sahelian zones in the country. The whole area of Termit Massif and Tin Toumma desert is considered a biodiversity hotspot. Its arid land fauna consists of addax, dama and dorcas gazelles, cheetah, Barbary sheep and striped hyena, bustards (Nubian and Sudan) and spurred tortoise. It is also the habitat for the Critically Endangered dama gazelle.
caption: A West African giraffe, also called the Niger giraffe, peeks from under an acacia tree in the tiger bush near Kouré, Niger.
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