Noteworthy Threatened Plant Species in the Sahel Region, Nigeria

Abstract

The loss of biodiversity in Nigeria is intensifying distressingly, which happened to be more prominent in some states across northwestern as well as north eastern geopolitical regions of Nigeria and was threatened by the confrontational effect of desertification. The Sahel region and some part of the savannah region bordered which faced the menace of drought and desertification which lead to so many factors like soil erosion, distraction of the ecosystem entirely. Moreover, the plants destroyed were mostly aromatic plants which served as medicines in curing many ailments and diseases contributed to the economic status of the communities found in the Sahel. The plants species became threatened to the human practices by noticing their effects for their well-being. Consequently, among the species that were threatened include: Neocarea macrophylla Prance ex F.White (Gawasa), Sclerocarya birrea (A. Rich) Hochst. (Danya), Detarium microcarpum Harms. (Taura), Prosopis africana, (Kirya), Acacia africana, Acacia nilotica and Azadirachta indica. Hence, the major concern of this chapter is to assess some of the threatened species found in the Sahel region, Nigeria and to highlight the valuable medicinal plants at risk of extinction according to the guidelines of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).