NAN-AE-3
Wildlife
By Ebere Agozie
Abuja, June 20, 2017 (NAN) The Nigeria National Park Service will soon start the production of Nigerian wildlife documentaries and films to showcase the country’s wildlife potentialities.
Alhaji Ibrahim Goni, the Conservator General, National Parks Service, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said since Nigerians were beginning to recognise something valuable in the vast wild lands of undeveloped areas, the Service was poised to explore the potential.
“Today, people recognise the value of not only our lands but the biodiversity that thrive upon them.
“We have been recovering plants and animals that have disappeared due to development, habitat fragmentation, climate change, invasive species and other threats.
“In our houses we watch wildlife films and documentaries from South Africa, Kenya, etc., so we feel that it’s time to also start having our own films.’’
Goni said the service decided to follow the executive order of local content by showcasing the wildlife resources in Nigeria.
“The National Park is the gene bank of the country, with animal and genetic resources that are still in their original forms which we preserve and conserve for sustainable use.
“These genes are vital for our future well-being, the values of biodiversity and nature are many and on their own are sources of wonder and enjoyment.
“The documentaries and films will teach the values and workings of nature in places largely free of human influence, and compare them with landscapes dominated by humans.’’
He said the films would enhance ‘‘the survival value of multitudes of wild species that flourish as natural systems that help regulate climate, air quality, and cycles of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, mineral elements, and water.’’
Goni added that the films would also show the economic values of some plants and animals for the benefit of the citizenry.
“They are potential sources of food, medicine, and industrial products and parks protect the species and their communities that underlie these values, thereby serving as reservoirs of seed stock for restoring species lost elsewhere.
According to him, “to preserve biodiversity in parks for future generations, we must first discover the breadth of life forms that exist.
“We are working with professional scientists, university students, schools and park partners for the purpose of biodiversity discovery.
“These efforts have identified species new to science, located species that have not been seen in parks in hundreds of years and documented species that are able to survive in extreme conditions,’’ he said. (NAN)
EPA/MOL/JCE
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Edited by Mustapha Lamidi/Chukwudi Ekezie