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$Unique_ID{bob00300}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Cote d'Ivoire
Chapter 3A.   Geography and Population}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{T.D. Roberts, Donald M. Bouton, Irving Kaplan, Barbara Lent, Charles Townsend, Neda A. Walpole}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{country
forest
region
river
north
miles
trees
west
border
coast
see
pictures
see
figures
}
$Date{1973}
$Log{See Rainfall Pattern of the Ivory Coast*0030001.scf
}
Title:       Cote d'Ivoire
Book:        Area Handbook for Ivory Coast
Author:      T.D. Roberts, Donald M. Bouton, Irving Kaplan, Barbara Lent, Charles Townsend, Neda A. Walpole
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1973

Chapter 3A.   Geography and Population

     The Republic of the Ivory Coast lies almost wholly between 5 degrees and
10 degrees north of the equator and is bisected by the fifth meridian west of
Greenwich. Westernmost of the African countries that border the Gulf of
Guinea, its outline is a rough square, oriented in the cardinal directions,
with sides about 350 miles long and an area of approximately 124,000 square
miles. The country is bounded for the entire length of its eastern border by
Ghana. The northern boundary is shared for approximately equal distances by
Upper Volta on the east and Mali on the west. Again for approximately equal
distances, the western border, from north to south, abuts Guinea and Liberia.
The shore of the Gulf of Guinea forms the southern boundary.

     From the sea, the ground slopes gently and with very little bold relief
to elevations of about 1,400 feet along the northern border. The only
mountain masses of any consequence are along the western border and in the
northwest where some of the higher peaks exceed 3,000 feet in elevation. The
four parallel drainage basins formed by the four main rivers of the country
run generally north to south, but except for the westernmost, the divides
between them are not sharply defined.

     Dense forest characterizes the southern third of the country, but farther
inland the woodlands become more and more sparse and grassy, with the heaviest
growth bordering the water courses or dispersed in isolated pockets. Toward
the north, there is no forest in a strict sense. Scattered trees and shrubs
dot the grasslands, their size and frequency diminishing progressively from
south to north.

     The climate is warm, humid and marked by distinct seasonal variations in
rainfall. The annual and daily ranges of temperature and humidity are very
small in the coastal areas, but both increase progressively from south to
north. However, even in the extreme north, the ranges are much less than in
the United States. Annual rainfall is rather heavy along the coast but
diminishes progressively toward the north, except in the hilly and
mountainous regions of the far west and northwest.

     The population is a mosaic of diverse peoples. Practically all are true
Negroes, but they comprise many groups that are differentiated by their
traditions, customs, manners, beliefs, and speech. Over 60 dialects are spoken
in the Ivory Coast, and the only common language is French (see ch. 4, Ethnic
Groups and Languages). Except for groups of Moslems, mainly in the north, and
a small minority of Christians, the great bulk of the people adhere to various
forms of animism (see ch. 8, Religion).

     The population is unevenly distributed, and only a few towns have more
than 10,000 inhabitants. Although no complete census has ever been taken,
official estimates indicated a total population of about 3,200,000 in 1960 and
an average population density on the order of 25 per square mile-roughly
comparable with Kansas. The heaviest concentration is in the southeast,
centering on the capital and port city of Abidjan, which in 1960 had a
population in excess of 200,000 and was the focal point of a relatively
well-developed area. In contrast, much of the north and west is thinly
populated. Throughout the whole country, most of the people live at
subsistence level in small villages and scattered tribal settlements.

     As of 1962 the country lacks an adequate network of surfaced all-weather
roads but is fairly well served by secondary dirt roads connecting the main
centers of population. However, the lack of all-weather surfacing and
dependence on many fords and ferries make the system liable to frequent
interruptions during rainy seasons. No improved roads cross westward into
Liberia, but there are several connecting routes into each of the other
bordering countries. The only railroad is a narrow-gauge, single-track
line running north from Abidjan, via Bouake, to Ouagadougou in Upper Volta.

     Because of shoals and rapids, navigation on the rivers beyond short
distances above their mouths is possible only by small canoes. But the lagoons
and connecting canals which lie along the eastern half of the coastline form
a significant communications route, extending from the Ghana border westward
for nearly 200 miles. Abidjan, on the Ebrie Lagoon and connected with the sea
by a canal across the intervening barrier island, is the only sheltered
deepwater port in the country. Located at the midpoint of the Lagoon system
and terminus of the railroad that reaches inland, it is the central hub of
land and water communications and the heart of the country's economy.

Major Geographic Regions

     Viewed as a whole, almost all of the country is little more than a wide
plateau, sloping gradually southward to the sea. There are no large rivers,
mountain barriers or marked climatic differences dividing the land into
distinctive geographic regions. More than by any other physical feature, the
land is differentiated by zones of natural vegetation, extending roughly east
and west across the entire country, parallel to the coastline. Three main
regions, corresponding to these zones, are commonly recognized (see fig. 2).

The Lagoon Region

     The Lagoon region (zone lagunaire) is a narrow coastal belt extending
along the Gulf of Guinea from the Ghana border to the vicinity of Fresco,
near the mouth of the Sassandra River. For its entire length, the coast of
this region is fringed by a strip of low, sandy islands or sandbars, known
as the cordon littoral. Built by the combined action of the heavy surf and
the ocean current which sets eastward, the sand barrier has closed all but
a few of the river mouths and formed a series of lagoons between itself and
the true continental shore.

     The fringing bars and sandy islands vary in width from a few hundred
feet to 3 or 4 miles and seldom rise more than 100 feet above sea level. On
the seaward side, their smooth, steep beaches are pounded by surf, heavy at
all seasons, but particularly so in July and November. Behind the beaches,
the sandy soil supports a luxuriant growth of coconut palm and salt-resistant
coastal shrubs.

     Most of the lagoons are narrow, salty and shallow and are parallel to
the coastline, linked to one another by small watercourses or canals, built
by the French. But occasionally, where the larger rivers empty, they become
broad estuaries which may extend 10 or 15 miles inland. Mudbanks, sandbars,
and wooded islands dot the sheltered surface of the lagoons; their landward
shores are indented with little forested bays and steep rocky headlands.
The only permanent natural exits to the open sea are at Assinie,
Grand-Bassam, Grand-Lahou, and Fresco, where the flow of sizable rivers has
prevented the formation of barrier islands. However, the exits are so shallow
and so impeded by shifting bars and strong currents that they are not
navigable by vessels of deep draft and are often dangerous or unusable even
by small craft.

     Inland, there are no sharp variations in relief, and the terrain, broken
mainly by swampy depressions, is generally flat. Watercourses are sluggish,
except in time of flood. Viewed from the seaward side, the occasional hills,
which may rise to several hundred feet a few miles from the shore, have an
exaggerated prominence because of contrast with the low monotony of the
skyline.

     As a result of concentrated development under the French, the dense rain
forest which once came down to the water's edge along the continental side of
the lagoons has been largely supplanted by clearings for plantations and farms
and by second-growth woodlands or areas of brush and grass, extending from 5
to 15 miles inland. Some of the less favorable areas have been left
undisturbed, and, in particular, the low shores along the estuaries and the
edges of marshy inlets are frequently choked by dense mangrove thickets.

The Dense Forest Region

     Variously referred to in the Ivory Coast and by French writers as the
zone de la foret or the foret dense, the dense forest region forms a broad
belt that covers roughly a third of the country north of the lagoon region
and extends from Ghana on the east to Liberia on the west. West of Fresco,
it reaches all the way to the sea. Its northern boundary, although
well-defined, is very irregular, descending in the form of a wide V from
points on the Ghana and Guinea border some 200 airline miles inland, to
within about 75 miles of the sea north of Grand-Lahou.

     The region gains its identity from the heavy tropical forest that
flourishes throughout, except where it has been disturbed by man. Its
northern limit is marked by a distinct but irregular transition to open,
grassy woodlands. This division is only in small part caused by climatic
differeaces. The limits are primarily the result of persistent cutting and
burning by man encroaching on the forest from the north. No such limits
exist on the east and west where the forest continues into the adjacent
countries.

     For over 100 miles between Fresco and the mouth of the Cavally River,
the forest reaches the Gulf of Guinea. Unlike the lagoon region farther east,
this western coastline is relatively bold. There are no sheltered bays or
anchorages suitable for ocean-going vessels, and surf makes most of the
beaches dangerous. The foreshore is a succession of small sandy beaches,
separated by rocky points and backed by a broken line of hills several
hundred feet high. Except where it has been cleared, the forest extends to the
water's edge.

     Inland, from the Ghana border west to beyond the Sassandra River, the
gently rolling relief of the region is only rarely broken by small hill
masses or isolated tors, none of which rises as high as 1,000 feet. The main
drainage is toward the south. The only bold relief is west of the Sassandra,
along the Liberian border, where a series of low mountains extends east and
south from the Nimba Mountains, west of Man, to within about 50 miles of the
sea, north of Tabou. At the northern limits, some of the higher mountains
exceed 3,000 feet in elevation. At the southern end, Mt. Nienokoue rises
prominently to 2,500 feet-over 1,000 feet above the surrounding country.

The Savanna Woodland Region

     This region comprises all of the Ivory Coast lying north of the closed
forest. It is characterized by a scattering of single trees or clumps of trees
over continuous stretches of grass and low shrubbery and by narrow strips of
heavier timber bordering the watercourses or lines of drainage. The size,
types, and density of tree growth diminish progressively from south to north,
but so gradually that changes are apparent only over distances of many miles,
and important differences are evident only along the southern and northern
extremities of the region.

     As a consequence, some authorities, particularly the French, divide the
region into two approximately equal belts, roughly at 8 degree30'N. Those who
recognize the division differ as to nomenclature, referring to the southern
belt as the forest-savanna mosaic, the zone de transition or the savanna.
Similarly the northern belt is sometimes known as the woodlands and savanna
(relatively moist type), the zone soudanienne or the zone soudanienne
meridionale. The distinction, however, is only of interest to specialists in
vegetation. For practical purposes, it suffices to bear in mind the
transitional nature of the region.

     Except in the northwest, the relief is a continuation of the generally
featureless, gradually rising terrain of the dense forest region. The only
mountainous area is along the Guinea border, reaching north from the vicinity
of Man in continuation of the eastern slopes of the Guinea highlands. In this
area Mt. Tonkui, near Man, and a few other peaks, rise above 3,000 feet. The
highlands, in less broken form, extend east past Odienne nearly to Korhogo and
then smooth into a flat divide, northeast into Mali, forming a watershed
between the Niger River basin on the north and the rivers that flow south
through the Ivory Coast. Along this divide, elevations vary between 1,200 and
2,000 feet with only a few of the highest hill masses in the western part
approaching 3,000 feet.

     Elsewhere, the gently rolling plains are broken only by occasional,
isolated granite domes or small hill masses. Among the latter, the Komonos
Hills, midway between Firkessedougou and the Ghana border, are the most
extensive. The ground east of the Comoe River forms part of a major divide
which extends from Upper Volta across the northeastern corner of the Ivory
Coast and separates the main drainage system of that country from the Volta
River basin. Near Bondoukou, where the divide crosses the Ghana border, a mass
of broken hills emerges to reach elevations of about 2,000 feet.

Rivers

     Four main rivers cut across the geographic regions from north to south
to the Gulf of Guinea-the Comoe, Bandama, Sassandra and Cavally Rivers.
Although they are permanent streams with a good volume of water, they are
commercially navigable only for short distances inland from the sea coast
because of rocky ledges and shifting shoals which form rapids and prevent
passage even of small canoes. Uncontrolled and given to seasonal flooding,
they are not only of little use as communications lines but are also obstacles
to east-west travel. In fact, development of a good lateral road system has
been much impeded by the cost and difficulty of bridging the main rivers or
installing ferries.

     The drainage system of the country is not complex, and all four of the
main rivers and their principal affluents share the same characteristics.
Overall gradients are gentle, averaging no more than 4 feet per mile. Fall
is irregular, however, and sometimes abrupt at rapids. Even near their
sources, the rivers follow meandering courses. Because of the pronounced
seasonal rainfall in the north, most of the upper tributaries, except those
in the far west, are intermittent and change from dry stream beds to swollen
torrents when heavy rains set in. As a consequence, the rivers are subject
to wide variations in flow and to flooding over their entire length. In the
lower reaches, where the rivers are used to float timber to the coast, this
condition requires careful calculation to take advantage of high water and
at the same time avoid loss of logs in areas of overflow during exceptional
crests.

     Easternmost of the main rivers, the Comoe has its sources in the
Sikasso Plateau of Upper Volta. Its basin is narrow, hemmed in between the
broad basin in the Bandama River system on the west and the basins of the
Black Volta and Bia Rivers on the east. Its principal tributaries are the
Leraba River from the west and the Iringo and Kongo Rivers from the east.
The Comoe River empties into the Ebrie Lagoon near Grand-Bassam, where it
reaches the sea through a shallow gap between the barrier islands. Inland from
the lagoon, it is navigable for vessels of light draft for about 30 miles to
Alepe.

     The Bandama River system, whose basin drains about half the entire
country, covers the flat central part of the Ivory Coast. The system consists
of three main streams which follow very winding courses southward from the
Niger River divide in the extreme north. The Bandama River proper is the axis
of the system and the longest river in the country. Its companion on the west
is the Marahoue or Bandama Rouge River, and on the east, the Nzi River. All
three ultimately converge in the south and form a single river for the last
60 miles to the Tagba Lagoon, opposite Grand-Lahou, where it enters the sea
through a shallow pass between the barrier islands. Depending on the season,
the head of navigation for small craft is 30 to 40 miles inland from
Grand-Lahou.

     The Sassandra River basin is west of the Bandama system. The main source
is the Tiemba River which rises in the high ground between Odienne and
oundiali and flows directly south. East of Touba, it unites with Foreodougouba
River from the Guinea highlands to become the Sassandra. The river reaches the
coast and the open sea through a narrow estuary which extends some 10 miles
inland. The exit is shallow and much obstructed by shifting sand bars, current
and surf. Navigation by small boats is generally possible inland for about 50
miles.

     The Cavally River has its headwaters in the Nimba Mountains of Guinea
and forms the border with Liberia for over half its length. Its upper basin
is narrow and hemmed in by confused masses of forested hills. It has no large
tributaries. In its southern reaches, it winds through comparatively flat
country and crosses the last of its many rapids about 30 miles from the sea.
Although it is navigable by small boats as far inland as this point, its exit
to the sea near Cape Palmas is narrow and is obstructed by one of the most
dangerous combinations of rock and sand bars on the entire coast.

     Of the lesser streams, the Bia River, which flows from Ghana across the
southeastern corner of the Ivory Coast, furnishes a useful shallow-draft
waterway from the agricultural center of Aboisso southward for 10 miles to the
head of the Aby Lagoon. A dam and hydroelectric plant were completed in 1959
at Ayame, about 15 miles above Aboisso, where the Bia flows through fairly
broken country.

Borders and Administrative Subdivisions

     Except where the Ivory Coast borders on the sea, the international
boundaries are only partly based on physical features and are altogether
unrelated to the major geographic regions. More than any other factors,
accidents of colonial conquest and ease of administration dictated the extent
of the country. Most of the ethnic groups living in the border regions are
closely related to their neighbors in the adjoining state, but none has raised
any recent issue over the political separation. With the possible exception of
the iron-ore deposits reported in the Nimba Mountains, the borders nowhere
impair the economic unity or usefulness of any part of the country. In fact,
they enhance its geographic advantages over the landlocked states on the north
when the country is viewed as a whole.

     Fixed on the basis of an Anglo-French agreement concluded in 1893, the
southern part of the border with Ghana is drawn so as to include all of the
important lagoon region in Ivory Coast territory (see ch. 2, Historical
Setting). After following the Tano River east and north for about 20 miles,
the boundary ignores physical features and cuts diagonally across ridge lines
and streams that run southwest from higher elevations in Ghana. Near
Bondoukou, the border crosses a divide separating the Comoe and Black Volta
River basins and follows the line of the Black Volta for about 50 miles to the
frontier of Upper Volta.

     The northern border with the Upper Volta and Mali is very irregular.
Except where it follows the Comoe and Leraba Rivers for about 150 miles, it
crosses a succession of streamlines and low intervening ridges that have
little physical prominence. The entire northern border is simply the connected
trace of boundaries between the old French colonial cercles, which originally
marked the limits of responsibility of scattered military posts and were
modified from time to time to meet changing administrative needs. On the west,
the border with Guinea has a similar origin, but makes more use of physical
features, following the sinuous course of the Gwala River for some 75 miles
west of Odienne and the Feredougouba River for about the same distance in the
broken country northwest of Touba.

     In the southwest, during protracted boundary negotiations with Liberia in
1891, the French extended their occupation of the coastline as far west as
Cape Palmas. As a consequence, Liberia recognized France's possession of all
the territory east of the Cavally River in 1892. Later difficulties over the
northern part of the boundary were settled in a Franco-Liberian accord of
1907, which definitely established the entire border. Except for a gap of
about 20 miles south of Toulepleu, it is based on well-defined river lines,
following the Nuon and Cavally Rivers from the Nimba Mountains generally
southeast to the sea.

     The main subdivisions of the Ivory Coast are formed on the framework of
the cercles, which were the basic territorial units for colonial
administration. The cercles were established piecemeal in the wake of
military operations that opened up and pacified the country. Because of
imperfect knowledge of tribal divisions and traditional institutions, the
limits of the cercles only partially took into account the ethnic or physical
unities of the areas they comprised. Administrative convenience was often the
main consideration.

     The country is divided into four departements, each of which contains a
number of the former cercles (see ch. 12, Constitution and Government). The
departements do not vary significantly in area or population and are related
to ethnic groups only by virtue of their derivation from the older cercles.
Their boundaries are extremely irregular but frequently follow natural
features such as rivers.

     The Departement du Nord is the largest in size and comprises all of the
area along the northern border west of the Comoe River. In its western
reaches, the departement extends as far south as the Man Mountains. Lying
wholly within the savanna woodland region, it is primarily a food-crop
and cattle-raising area. The people, less mixed ethnically than in the other
departements, are mostly members of the Senoufo and Mande tribal groups.

     Almost wholly within the dense forest region, the Departement de
l'Ouest extends over the southwestern part of the country between the sea
and the Departement du Nord. Its southern corner, between Liberia and the
Sassandra River, is the most thinly populated area in the nation and the least
developed. In contrast, its eastern and northern portions have population
densities above average for the country and rank among the most important
cocoa-and-coffee-producing regions. Krou, composed of a number of distinct
subgroups, and Yacouba, together with many more recent settlers from other
regions, make up the population.

     The Departement du Centre is wholly landlocked and covers the central
drainage basin of the country between the Comoe River on the east and the
divide between the Bandama and Sassandra River basins on the west. Except for
about a third of its area which extends southeast and southwest into the dense
forest, the departement lies in the savanna woodland region. It is an area of
mixed food and export crops, and its capital, Bouake, is the second largest
city in the country and a center for collecting and processing agricultural
products. Its most important groups are composed of branches of the
Agni-Baoule.

     The Departement de Sud-Est is a comparatively narrow stretch of country
that extends from Upper Volta along the Ghana border to the sea. Its western
boundary follows the Comoe River to within about 100 miles of the coast and
then turns west to enclose the southern part of the country as far west as the
Departement de l'Ouest. Its northern third lies in the savanna woodland
region. The remainder is comprised of the entire lagoon region and dense
forest. Except for the most northern part, it is the most advanced area in the
country, rich in timber, export and food crops, and developing industry. The
people represent many ethnic groups, including the Lobi in the north, branches
of the Agni-Baoule, the Lagoon peoples and a few Drou in the far west.

Climate

     The dominant characteristics of the climate are sustained heat and
seasonal rainfall. Since the entire country lies close to the equator, days
vary little in length, and solar radiation received is not only more intense
but also more uniform than in temperature latitudes. The features of
winter and summer mean little in the tropics. Instead, the alternate
north-south movement of continental and maritime air masses, as they follow
the annual migration of the sun, bring about marked periodic differences in
rainfall to distinguish the climatic seasons.

     The two air masses of relatively high pressure are separated by the
equatorial low pressure belt or intertropical front. On the north, the
continental air mass has little moisture and its prevailing northeast wind is
the dry, dusty harmattan from the Sahara. In contrast, the maritime air mass,
south of the front, is warm and moist, with prevailing winds from the
southwest. The boundary between these systems is a belt of instability and
rain.

     During the first half of the year, the front is drawn northward across
the country by the advancing sun and is followed by warm, damp southwest
circulation from over the ocean that brings rain. As the solar cycle reverses
at mid-year, the front retreats south over the Gulf of Guinea,
progressively  blocking the moist, southwest ocean winds and permitting the
dry northeast harmattan to predominate and bring relatively dry weather.

     In the southern part of the country two distinct periods of maximum
isolation occur annually following the equinoxes, causing two rainy and two
dry seasons each year. Farther north, the two rainy seasons merge into a
single period of rain, alternating annually with a season of dry weather.
The two resulting types of climate are classed as equatorial and tropical,
respectively (see fig. 3).

     Along the coast, where the characteristics of the equatorial climate
are most pronounced, there are wide variations in monthly rainfall, but no
month is without significant precipitation. Four seasons are distinguished
in this region. The major dry season occurs from December through April,
followed by the major rainy season from May through July. The major seasons
are followed by two minor seasons which repeat the cycle and form a minor dry
season during August and September, and a minor dry season during October and
November. Although progressively modified inland by continental factors, this
general pattern persists over the southern two-thirds of the country.

[See Rainfall Pattern of the Ivory Coast: Source: Adapted from Ivory Coast,
Direction de la Statistique des Etudes Economiques et Demographiques,
Inventaire Economique et Social de la Cote d'Ivoire, 1947-1958, facing p. 28.]

     But farther north, the four seasons merge into only two; most of the
rains fall between June and October; and the months from November to May are
relatively dry. The contrast between rainy and dry seasons is more pronounced
than in the south. At Firkessedougou, for example, average precipitation
during the peak of the rains in August and September totals over 20 inches,
whereas the total for December and January averages only about half an inch.

     Within the general pattern of the seasons, amounts of monthly and annual
rainfall may vary considerably from year to year, with occasional marked
departures from the normal. During the major rainy season in the south, rain
may be continuous and heavy for several days and may set in at any time of
day or night. Farther inland, rainstorms, although often torrential, are of
shorter duration and generally occur in the afternoons.

     Relative humidity follows trends similar to the rainfall and is highest
during rainy seasons. In the south the average is above 80 percent for the
year, and both the annual and diurnal ranges are very small. Toward the north
where the drying effect of the harmattan is stronger, yearly averages are 60
to 70 percent, and the ranges are much more pronounced. For example, the
average relative humidity at Firkessedougou varies from 45 percent at the
height of the dry season in January to 80 percent when the rains are heaviest
in August.

     Temperatures are warm throughout the year; in the southern third of the
country average minimums during the coolest months do not fall below 70F. On
the other hand, average maximums during the warmest months may exceed 90F.,
but only in the far north. Throughout the country, both the diurnal and
annual ranges of temperature are small, but the ranges, although remaining
moderate, increase progressively toward the interior (see fig. 4).

     Ordinarily, the surface winds throughout the country are gentle, seldom
exceeding 10 miles per hour, even in open country. Prevailing winds are the
damp, southwest monsoon and the dry northeast harmattan. Both are seasonal,
and their duration and dominance depend on the latitude and time of year. In
the south, the monsoon is strongest and most persistent between June and
September. The harmattan reaches the south only for brief periods during
December and January, but it prevails for a longer time in the interior.
During much of the year there are periods of calms or light, variable
breezes. Winds are stronger during the day than at night, except in a narrow
strip along the coast where onshore sea breezes during the daylight hours
alternate with offshore land breezes at night to modify the circulation.

     The only winds of gale strength occur in connection with line storms
along the intertropical front. Known locally as tornades, they are not the
same as the tornadoes of the United States. They occur throughout the country
and chiefly at the beginning and end of rainy seasons. Moving rapidly from
east to west, the tornades are marked by heavy thunder and lightning and
squalls of wind which may reach 50 miles per hour. They are of short duration
and of no great extent but are usually followed by heavy rain which lasts for
an hour or two.

     In general, there is less cloud cover in the north, where a completely
overcast sky is rare. Stratus may occur early in the mornings, especially in
wet seasons, but the most usual cloud forms are scattered cumulus or towering
thunderheads that form during the course of daylight but are dissipated after
darkness or rain. Nights are almost always clear, except in the south during
the rainiest months. Visibility at ground level, and the intensity of
sunlight are often reduced by haze during rainy seasons or by dust and smoke
when the harmattan is blowing.

     The country conforms to Greenwich time. Unlike in temperate latitudes,
the difference between the longest and shortest days of the year is only about
an hour, with sunrises and sunsets occurring shortly before and after 6:00
a.m. and 6:00 p.m., depending on the time of year. Periods of twilight are
shorter than in temperate zones, and full daylight and darkness come on
rapidly.

Minerals and Soil

     The geologic structure of most of the country consists of gneisses,
granites and other rocks of the Pre-Cambrian era. The only area where more
recent formations are found is the lagoon region, where sedimentary rock,
mainly shale, limestone and sandstone of the Tertiary period, forms the basic
structure. In spite of the comparative flatness of the country, alluvial
deposits are not as widespread or well-developed as might be expected and are
significant only in a few places in the major river basins.

     The country's minerals have been little exploited, and it seems possible
that the known picture of the extent and nature of deposits might be enlarged
considerably if intensive exploration and development were undertaken (see
fig. 5). In 1962 only the deposits of gold, diamonds, bitumen and manganese
(in the Grand-Lahou area) were being worked commercially.

     In the Ivory Coast the character of the soil depends far more on the
action of the climate than on the nature of the rock from which the soil was
formed. Sustained warm weather hastens chemical processes, breaking down
humus faster than is needed for plant growth. Heavy, warm rains not only
erode the surface but carry plant nutrients deep into the subsoil where they
are beyond the reach of root systems. In addition, the deep penetration of
water below the surface hastens decomposition of the underlying bedrock,
deepens the subsoil and intensifies the leaching in the higher levels.

     Known as laterite, the soil resulting from this process has a low silica
content and lacks plant nutrients but is high in iron and aluminum oxides and
hydroxides. It is acid, tends to compact and is difficult to work. At its
worst, it can form a barren, hard crust several feet deep. Material from such
formations is so hard it is often used for road surfacing. Soil scientists
have identified many soil types in the country but practically all of them
are lateritic, differing only in degree.

     Laterite of low fertility is the main type of soil in the savanna
woodland region. Where ground cover has been seriously disturbed by burning,
overgrazing or careless cultivation, the surface becomes severely compacted;
heavy leaching and erosion occur; and a thick, hard crust creates almost
desert conditions. Even in favorable areas, the water table is deep, and the
ground surface dries out and hardens rapidly during the dry season. These
characteristics are most pronounced in the far north where they have been
termed "leprosy of the soil."

     In the southern half of the region, conditions improve, soils are more
friable and sandy, and their characteristics merge with those prevailing in
the dense forest. Here, the basically lateritic soils, enriched by humus,
have more nutrients and are generally loose and uncompacted. The higher
elevations often have a red soil, containing conglomerate and gravel. Lower,
the gravel disappears, and the color of the soil may change to yellow, grey
or black in the lowest areas. The lowland soils are fairly heavy and usually
more fertile than those on the upper levels. All are generally easier to work
than in the savanna woodland region. Under exposure and cultivation, however,
they tend rapidly to lose their organic content and may degenerate to barren,
encrusted laterite unless carefully handled.

     Soils of the lagoon region, formed from sedimentary rock and modified
in many places by alluvial deposits, are generally quite acid and more sandy
than in the other regions. They are subject, however, to heavy leaching, and
unless protected by an ample covering of vegetation, they too tend to
laterize.

Vegetation

     The forest, which gives the southern part of the country its regional
identity, is the outstanding feature of the natural vegetation. One of the
most dense forests in all Africa, it is both a significant source of wealth
and a hindrance to economic and social development.

     The forest is rich in valuable varieties of timber not found in
temperate zones and, where properly managed, has proven to be very favorable
to the introduction of useful trees and plants from other lands. On the
debit side, the forest has always been hard to penetrate and inhospitable to
live in. It cut off its dwellers from outside influences and isolated them
from each other in small, primitive groups. More effort was required to build
roads, improve sanitation and introduce new institutions in the so-called
green desert than in the more open parts of the country. The obstacles are
being overcome, but large areas in the southwest are still thinly populated
and relatively inaccessible.

     The dense forest contains both broad-leaved evergreen and deciduous
species. The evergreens predominate in the coastal and southern areas, but
toward the forest's northern limits the trees are more frequently deciduous.
Although there is no clear line of distinction and the proportions change
gradually, specialists classify the two types of growth as the evergreen, or
tropical rain forest proper, and the mixed, deciduous rain forest. In
connection with this classification, there are no extremes of cold or drought
to interrupt plant activity in the dense forest region. The long periods of
dormancy found in temperate zones do not occur. As a consequence, many of
the trees classed as deciduous are never entirely bare or are bare for only
a few days.

     Where the forest is virgin, trees are extremely varied in types and
sizes. About 600 species reaching 4 inches or more in diameter have been
identified. Big trees, rising to 75 or 80 feet form the basic type. Above
their canopy of crowded, intertwined top branches, occasional forest giants
tower to nearly twice their height. Beneath, in shade, the smaller trees and
saplings compete for space and light. Flange-like buttresses at the bases of
the big trees are common, and trunks are often perfectly straight and round,
unbroken by branches except at the very top. Undergrowth in scanty, and ground
cover is sparse or altogether absent. Fallen trees and branches, rather than
underbrush, are the principal impediments to travel. Woody climbers (lianas)
abound, twined around the trunks of trees or dropping down from the top limbs,
and the trees are hosts to a profusion of orchids, mosses and other air
plants.

     In abandoned areas of former cultivation or timber cutting, where the
forest has not been completely cleared, patches of secondary forest spring
up. They are marked by thick stands of small trees of rapid growth and
tangled underbrush not found in the virgin forest. Wherever the forest has
been completely cleared and then left idle, or where the soil has been
exhausted by cultivation, the subsequent growth is confined almost entirely
to luxuriant second-growth brush which inhibits development of sizable trees.
Many stretches of this type of vegetation are found along roads and near
villages.

     Hardwoods are prominent among the native trees of the dense forest. Some
of the better known include several kinds of mahogany, known locally as acajou
(Khaya spp.), and sipo (Etandrophragma utile). Niangon (Tarrietia utilis)
closely resembles mahogany but has a high resin content. Various other cabinet
woods include avodire (Turraeanthus africana) and several satinwoods known as
limbo and framire (Terminalia spp.). One of the best hardwoods for general use
is iroko (Chlorophora excelsa), which has the same uses as Asiatic teak. The
most prominent softwood is samba (Triplochiton scleroxylon). Along the edges
of the lagoons and the seashore are large stands of oil and coconut palms.
In addition to the native flora, many introduced trees and plant have found a
favorable environment in the forest region. Cocoa, coffee, and banana
plantations have replaced large areas of the original forest. Pineapples and
other tropical fruits, vegetables, and several varieties of citrus have also
been naturalized to add to the native botanical wealth.

     Vegetation in the savanna woodland region is neither as abundant nor as
varied as in the dense forest, and its pattern has been much modified by
cultivation, burning and grazing. Areas of grassland, interspersed with trees,
alternate with cultivated or fallow spaces. The trees may occur either as
isolated, single specimens or as patches of woodland. The latter are
especially thick and tall along the rivers or intermittent streamlines where
they form fringing or gallery forests. Here, the trees depend on subsoil
moisture during dry seasons and are consequently confined to narrow strips,
perhaps 50 feet wide on either bank. The fringing forests are composed mainly
of evergreens of the same species that occur in the dense forest.

     Other than the fringing forests, the most noticeable groves are mainly
of sau (Isoberlinia doka). Mature trees of this species reach 30 to 60 feet
in height and under good conditions are straight and suitable for lumber.
Frequently, the sau groves are unmixed or associated with a smaller,
large-leaved tree, the somon (Uapaca somon). Wherever other varieties intrude,
they are always smaller than the sau trees. In any case, the undergrowth is
mostly thick, high grass with only rare clumps of low shrubbery.

     Of the occasional trees scattered over the grasslands, the largest and
best known are several representatives of the bombax family from which kapok
is gathered; the karite (Butyrospermum parkii), or sheabutter tree; the
baobab (Adansonia digitata); and cailcedrat (Khaya senegalensis), or dry-zone
mahogany. Among other exotics, cotton and sisal have been introduced in the
region together with experimental trees and food plants.

     Because of extremes in dry and rainy seasons, most of the vegetation in
the savanna woodland region shows marked differences in appearance during
the year. Except in the fringing forests, the trees are deciduous and shed
their leaves annually. Grasses and other herbaceous cover die down during
the dry season but flourish luxuriantly after the rains have set in. A yearly
cycle of alternating exuberant growth and comparative dormancy is much more
apparent in the north than in the dense forest region of the south.

Animal Life

     In spite of increasing human encroachment, wild life is abundant,
although game animals are not as numerous or widely distributed as in the
past. The fauna is characteristic of the Ethiopian zoogeographic region but
is less rich and varied in species than in some parts of East Africa.

     Even in areas where they are protected, there are no great herds of
game such as still roam the preserves and grasslands in the east and south of
the continent. The larger mammals, singly or in small groups, seek the more
inaccessible parts of the dense forest or frequent the fringing forests and
wooded pockets farther north. Elephants are still fairly plentiful and,
although found throughout the country, are most numerous in the forests of the
southwest where they often ravage cultivated areas. Hippopotamuses are common
in the rivers of the south and are found in fewer numbers along streams in
the savanna woodland. The dense forest also harbors the small red buffalo, a
number of species of antelope and wild hog, leopards, hyenas and a great
variety of smaller animals. Large mammals found almost exclusively in the
savanna woodland include black savanna buffaloes, which range in herds of 20
to 30, gazelles, waterbucks, kobs and other antelopes. There are a few lions,
but only in the northeastern corner of the country.

     Troops of monkeys range the whole country but are most plentiful in the
dense forest. They are mostly of the smaller kinds, and several species have
been virtually exterminated by fur hunters. Chimpanzees are found in the
southeast, but no other anthropoid apes have been identified.

     Some of the birds are seasonal migrants from Europe, but because of the
comparatively constant environment, the wholly stationary population is
relatively large. Ducks, plovers, egrets, terns, and herons are numerous in
the lagoon region. The birds of the forest are often brightly colored. Among
the most striking are the turacos or plantaineaters, noisy black and white
hornbills, parrots, speckled pigeons, green and yellow bulbuls, and weaver
birds who build large communal nests. The savanna woodland harbors a
number of useful game birds such as francolins or bush fowl, quail and
partridges. Flocks of parakeets and rice birds often damage growing crops.
Black vultures are common around settled areas where they are valuable as
Scavengers.

     Largest of the reptiles are the crocodiles (sometimes erroneously
referred to as caimans) which are found in all the streams of the country.
Snakes include the dangerous green mamba, several kinds of vipers and
cobras (which are also venomous) and pythons, one species of which grows to
20 feet or more in length.

     Fresh-water fish are found in all of the rivers but are not as
important as a food source as the fish of the estuaries, lagoons, and the
adjacent sea. These include, among many varieties flat fish of several kinds,
mullet, carp, shark, tarpon, barracuda, mackerel, tuna, cavally, and sardines.

     Because of the climate, the insects are plentiful and have more impact
on the daily life of the people than do the other fauna. Although many of the
insects are useful, others are a nuisance or harmful to humans. Flies, gnats,
ants, and chiggers are active throughout the year. Several species of the
Anopheles mosquito, capable of transmitting malaria, are common throughout
the country. The yellow fever and dengue mosquito (Aedes aegypti) has domestic
habits and breeds in towns and villages. The tsetse fly is found in most parts
of the country, but not all of the species transmit sleeping sickness. The
tsetse fly thrives under shady conditions of heat and humidity, and the
largest concentration of the dangerous varieties is in the forest between Man
and Duekoue and the Liberian border. Termites are abundant, and some of the
species are very destructive to wooden construction and even household
furniture. Termite colonies in the savanna woodland form mounds which often
exceed 5 feet and are a characteristic feature of the landscape.