Jos Plateau
9°34′00″N9°05′00″E/ 9.5667°N 9.0833°E
Jos Plateau Jos Plateau forest-grassland mosaic | |
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![]() Hillside nearJos | |
![]() Location of the Jos Plateau | |
Ecology | |
Realm | Afrotropical |
Biome | montane grasslands and shrublands |
Borders | |
Geography | |
Area | 13,281 km2(5,128 sq mi) |
Country | Nigeria |
States | |
Conservation | |
Conservation status | Critical/endangered[1] |
Protected | 1,199 km2(9%)[2] |
TheJos Plateauis aplateaulocated near the centre ofNigeria.The plateau has given its name to thePlateau Statein which it is found and is named for the state's capital,Jos.The plateau is home to people of diverse cultures and languages. The plateau'smontanegrasslands,savannas,and forests are home to communities of plants and animals distinct from those of the surrounding lowlands and constitute the Jos Plateau forest-savanna mosaicecoregion.
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/North-Eastern_part_of_Jos%2C_Nigeria_%2804%29.jpg/220px-North-Eastern_part_of_Jos%2C_Nigeria_%2804%29.jpg)
At the start of the 20th century, the British established Jos as a tin-mining metropolis. Many individuals from Southern and Northern Nigeria came to Jos for work and business because of the tin industry on the plateau.[3]Situated in North-Central Nigeria, the area consists of rolling hills on a plateau. Because of its diverse range of landforms and stunning scenery, the Jos Plateau is a popular tourist destination.[4]
Geography
[edit]It covers 8600 km2and is bounded by 300–600 mescarpmentsaround much of its boundary. With an average altitude of 1,280 m, it is the largest area over 1,000 m in Nigeria, with a high point of 1,829 m, in theShere Hills.Several rivers have their sources on the plateau. TheKaduna Riverdrains the western slopes, flowing southwest to join theNiger.TheGongola Riverdrains eastwards to join theBenue.TheHadejiaandYoberivers flow northeast intoLake Chad.
Geology
[edit]The Jos Plateau is dominated by three rock types. The oldergranitesdate to the late Cambrian and Ordovician. The younger granites are emplacements dating to the Jurassic and form part of a series that includes theAïr Massifin the centralSahara.There are also many volcanoes and sheets of basalt extruded since the Pliocene.[5]The younger granites containtinwhich was mined since the beginning of the 20th century, during and after the colonial period.[6]
Climate
[edit]The climate on the plateau is tropical but cooler than the surrounding lowlands. Average temperatures range from 15.5 °C to 18.5 °C in the coolest months to 27.5 °C to 30.5 °C during the hottest months. Rainfall ranges from 2,000 mm per year in the southwest to 1,500 mm or less in the drier northeast. Rainfall for the town of Jos averages 1,411 mm per year. Rainfall is highly seasonal, falling mostly between June and September with July and August the wettest months. Moisture-bearing winds come from the south and west, and rainfall is higher on the windward south- and west-facing slopes.[1]
Flora and fauna
[edit]The natural vegetation of the region was likely amosaic of savanna, open woodland, and forest.Human activities have reduced the plateau's tree cover, and most of the plateau is now covered by open grassland. Small areas of woodland and forest remain on steep and inaccessible sites, including the southern and western escarpments, along rivers, and at the base of rock outcrops.[1]The plateau is home to West Africa’s only population ofklipspringer(Oreotragus oreotragus), as well as several endemic birds and mammals, including theNigerian mole-rat(Cryptomys foxi),Fox's shaggy rat(Dasymys foxi),rock firefinch(Lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis), andJos Plateau indigobird(Vidua maryae).[1]
People
[edit]The Jos Plateau lies in the NigerianMiddle Belt,and even in this region known for cultural diversity, it is unusually diverse. Barbour et al. (1982:49) show over 60 ethno-linguistic groups on the plateau.[7]Most of the plateau's languages are in the Chadic family,[8]which is part of the Afro-Asiatic family. Two of the Plateau's largest ethnic groups are theBerom,in the northern Plateau, and theNgasin the southeast. Smaller groups include the Mwaghavul, Pyem, Ron,Afizere,Anaguta, Aten,Irigwe,Chokfem,Kofyar,Kulere, Miship, Mupun and Montol.
The state's 3.2 million inhabitants are made up of more than 50 ethnic groups out of Nigeria's 374 tribes, making it a tiny version of Nigeria in terms of variety.[9]In addition, the state is home to sizable populations of Hausa-Fulani, Igbo, and Yoruba immigrants (also known as farmers as opposed to herders who go around).[10]
The Jos Plateau is home to the ancientNok culture,known for its remarkable terracotta artwork. After theBritish colonization of Nigeria,Jos Plateau became a mining region and one of the most important tourist destinations in Nigeria, but touristic activity was impeded in early 21st century by a new conflict between Christians and Muslims as a result of tribal and political differences between the inhabitants of the Jos Plateau.
Threats and conservation
[edit]The Jos plateau is a heavily populated area with loss of native savanna and woodland to farmland conversion and firewood collection; remaining native fauna is predominantly limited to small areas in the more remote areas and river embankments. There is currently no conservation program for this ecoregion. Due totin miningactivity some 320 km2of agricultural land has been disturbed.[6]The situation has been improved since by local farmers due to usage of traditional as well as modern fertilisation methods which combined includes manure, urban waste ash and inorganic fertilizers.[6]Approximately 1,199 km2,or 9%, of the ecoregion is in protected areas.[2]Protected areas include the Jarawa Hill, Jere, Rafin Bawa, Panshanu, Guram River, Assob Bachit, Kurra Jekko, and Abak River forest reserves.[11]
References
[edit]- ^abcd"Jos Plateau forest-grassland mosaic".Terrestrial Ecoregions.World Wildlife Fund.
- ^abDinerstein, Eric; Olson, David; et al. (June 2017)."An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm".BioScience.67(6): 534–545.doi:10.1093/biosci/bix014.PMC5451287.PMID28608869.
{{cite journal}}
:CS1 maint: date and year (link)Supplemental material 2 table S1b. - ^Freund William (1986), “Theft and Social Protest among the Tin Miners of Northern Nigeria,” in Donald Crummey (ed.), Banditry, Rebellion and Social Protest in Africa, Oxford: James Curney, pp. 49-63
- ^Iro Aghedo, D. N. N. (2018). Plateau.
- ^Morgan, W.T.W. (1983)Nigeria.Longman, London.
- ^abcPasquini, MW; Alexander, MJ (2005). "Soil fertility management strategies on the Jos Plateau: the need for integrating 'empirical' and 'scientific' knowledge in agricultural development".Geographical Journal.171(2): 112–124.doi:10.1111/j.1475-4959.2005.00154.x.
- ^State., Better Life Programme (Nigeria). Plateau (c. 1992).Traditional dishes, snacks, drinks & herbs from Plateau State.[Better Life Programme, Plateau State].OCLC29704741.
- ^Isichei, Elizabeth (1982). "Introduction". InStudies in the History of Plateau State,Nigeria, ed. byElizabeth Isichei,pp 1–57. Macmillan, London.
- ^Madueke Kingsley (2018), “Routing Ethnic Violence in a Divided City: Walking in the Footsteps of Armed Mobs in Jos, Nigeria”, Journal of Modern African Studies, 56(3):443-470
- ^Adisa, R. S. and Adekunle, O. A. (2010). Farmer-Herdsmen Conflicts: A Factor Analysis of Socio-economic Conflict Variables among Arable Crop Farmers in North Central Nigeria. Journal of Human Ecology, 30(1), 1-9
- ^UNEP-WCMC (2020). Protected Area Profile for Nigeria from the World Database of Protected Areas, September 2020. Available at: www.protectedplanet.net
- Barbour, K.M., et al., editors. 1982Nigeria in Maps.Hodder and Stoughton, London.
- "Jos Plateau".Encyclopædia Britannica.
External links
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- "Jos Plateau".Global Volcanism Program.Smithsonian Institution.Retrieved2021-06-24.
- "Jos Plateau forest-grassland mosaic".Terrestrial Ecoregions.World Wildlife Fund.